How to Export a Floor Plan to CAD, BIM, and PDF
A floor plan is only useful once it reaches the person who needs it, and that person almost always wants it in a particular format. An architect wants DWG or DXF they can open in CAD. A BIM-based practice wants IFC. A contractor wants a PDF they can print and mark up. An estate agent wants something for the listing, and a quantity surveyor wants the areas as numbers. Floor Plan Studio exports all of those from the same plan.
Why the export format matters more than it sounds like it should
Send an architect a screenshot of a floor plan and they will redraw it, and bill you for redrawing it. Send the same plan as DWG or IFC and they open it as walls, rooms, and openings they can work on directly. The plan is identical; the format decides whether the next person in the chain starts from your work or starts again. That is also why the exports carry room schedules and an area inventory: the numbers travel with the drawing instead of being re-measured off it.
Step-by-Step: How to Export a Floor Plan to CAD, BIM, and PDF
- Finish the plan first. Get room names, boundaries, and dimensions right before you export. Fixing a mistake in the app and re-exporting is quick; fixing it after three people have opened the DWG is not.
- Pick the format for the recipient. DWG or DXF for CAD, IFC for BIM workflows, USDZ for 3D and AR viewing on Apple devices, PDF for printing and marking up. CSV when someone just needs the areas.
- Export the plan. Generate the file from Floor Plan Studio. Room schedules come with the plan exports, and the CSV area inventory lists the rooms and their areas as data.
- Send it with the context it needs. Say which units the plan is in, that dimensions are from a scan or a converted drawing rather than a site survey, and which measurements you have verified yourself.
- Ask the recipient to confirm it opened cleanly. One message before they start work catches a version or unit mismatch early, especially with DWG and IFC, where different software versions read files differently.
Which floor plan export format to send
| Format | Who it's for | What they can do with it |
|---|---|---|
| DWG | Architects, designers, engineers working in CAD | Open and edit the plan directly as walls, rooms, and openings |
| DXF | CAD users on other software, or when DWG won't open | Same geometry in a more widely interchangeable CAD format |
| IFC / BIM | BIM-based practices and larger projects | Bring the plan into a BIM model alongside other disciplines |
| USDZ | Clients, family, anyone without CAD software | View the space in 3D or AR on iPhone, iPad, or Mac |
| Contractors, trades, estate agents, printing | Read, print, and mark up the plan with no special software | |
| CSV area inventory | Quantity surveyors, anyone pricing materials | Use room areas as spreadsheet data for flooring, paint, quotes |
What travels with the plan, and what doesn't
The exports carry the geometry of the plan, room schedules, and, via the CSV, the room areas as data. That is enough for someone to design, quote, or price against without re-measuring off your drawing.
What doesn't travel is everything that was never in the plan to begin with: which walls are structural, where services run, ceiling heights that weren't in the source, and any local requirement about how floor areas must be measured or stated. Different countries and listing bodies measure floor area differently, so if a number is going on a listing or into a contract, check which standard applies before you quote the app's figure.
The practical habit: when you send a file, say in one line where the dimensions came from — a LiDAR scan, a converted PDF, a sketch — and which ones you checked yourself. It takes a sentence and it prevents the expensive kind of misunderstanding.
Sending a plan without wasting the recipient's time
Most problems with a shared plan are logistical rather than technical. A short checklist avoids nearly all of them:
- Ask which format they want before exporting, rather than guessing and sending three files.
- State the units the plan is in. Metric and imperial mix-ups are the single most common import problem.
- Include the PDF alongside any CAD or BIM file, so they can see what the plan should look like.
- Name the file with the property and the date, so the version they open is the version you meant.
- Say plainly that dimensions are not from a site survey, and name the ones you verified.
Try It on Your Own Space
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⬇ Download Interior AIFrequently Asked Questions
What file formats can I export to?
PDF, DWG, DXF, IFC/BIM, and USDZ, plus a CSV area inventory. Plan exports include room schedules.
Which format should I send to an architect or engineer?
DWG or DXF if they work in CAD, IFC if their practice is BIM-based. If you don't know, ask — or send DWG and PDF together, which covers most cases.
What is USDZ for?
USDZ is Apple's 3D format. It lets someone open the plan as a 3D model on an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, including in AR, without any CAD software. It is a good way to show a client or a family member the space rather than a drawing.
Can I get room areas as a spreadsheet?
Yes. The CSV area inventory exports rooms and their areas as data you can open in a spreadsheet, which is what a quantity surveyor or anyone pricing flooring or paint usually wants.
Are the exported dimensions reliable enough to build from?
They are reliable enough to design, quote, and plan against, but they come from a scan or a converted drawing, not a measured site survey. Anyone building or ordering from the plan should verify dimensions on site first, and it is worth saying so when you send the file.
Can real estate agents use the exports?
Yes — PDF plans and the area inventory are the usual pair for a listing, since most listings need a readable plan and a floor area figure. Check what your local listing rules require for how floor areas are measured and described.