When you order drafting, one of the first questions is the format. AutoCAD and Revit are both industry standards, both produce professional drawing sets, and both can get you a permit. They work very differently underneath, though, and the right choice depends on the project and what happens to the files afterwards.
AutoCAD: precise 2D drawings
AutoCAD produces drawings made of lines, arcs, text and blocks, saved as DWG files. Each sheet is drawn largely on its own: the floor plan, the elevation and the section are separate drawings that the drafter keeps consistent.
It is well suited to:
- Smaller residential projects, additions and remodels
- As-built and existing-conditions drawings
- Site plans and construction details
- Projects where consultants and the jurisdiction work in DWG
AutoCAD files are universally readable and easy for other firms to edit, which makes them a safe handover format.
Revit: a building model
Revit is building information modeling (BIM) software. Instead of drawing lines, the drafter builds a 3D model of walls, floors, roofs, doors and windows, each with its own properties. Plans, elevations, sections and schedules are all views of that single model.
That brings real advantages:
- Automatic coordination. Move a window in plan and it moves in every elevation, section and schedule.
- Schedules from the model. Door, window and room schedules update as the design changes.
- Quantities. Areas, wall lengths and counts can be pulled from the model to support a take-off.
- 3D views. The model is a head start for coordination reviews and 3D renderings.
Revit shines on larger commercial and multi-family projects, work with several consultants, and designs that will go through many changes.
Things to weigh
- Project size and complexity. A single-room addition rarely justifies a full model. A multi-story building usually benefits from one.
- Who else touches the files. If the architect, engineers or owner work in Revit, matching them avoids lossy conversions.
- Future use. Owners who will manage a building for decades may value a model they can keep updating.
- Expected changes. The more the design will change, the more automatic coordination saves.
- Budget and schedule. A model takes more effort to set up and saves effort later, so small, fast jobs often favor CAD.
Tip: Whichever format you choose, ask for the native files as well as PDFs. Owning the DWG or RVT file means any future designer can pick up where the last one left off.
You don't always have to choose
Revit can export DWG files, so a project can be modeled in Revit and still deliver CAD files to consultants who need them. Plenty of teams draft standard details in AutoCAD and link them into a Revit set.
Our approach
We draft in both AutoCAD and Revit and deliver editable files you keep, as described on our drafting service page. The Abel & Christine Residence permit set is an example of a complete residential set: title sheet, foundation and floor plans, elevations, sections and window details.
