7 Best Room Scan Apps for Your Business
[fs-toc-omit]Time is money, and inaccurate measurements cost both. Whether you're in construction, remodeling, or real estate, a room scanning app can transform your workflow—saving hours and preventing costly mistakes.
LiDAR is a killer technology that allows you to scan a room to create a floor plan that exactly matches the existing space. It uses laser light to read a space, and everything in it.
AR is already served by hardware within most mobile devices and tablets. An app can be downloaded and ready to go in minutes, depending on its compatibility with an operating system.
Whichever system is best for your operations depends on what you need it to do, how fast you need it done, and how complex the role.
How Room Scan Apps Work
What does LiDAR stand for?
LiDAR stands for Light Detection and Ranging. It's a light-based measuring system that uses rapid pulses of laser light to detect distances between objects. It works on the same principle as radar, sending out a signal, and then calculating the time taken for the return signal to be received.
Lucky for us, you can access LiDAR devices from several of the Pro models from Apple, whether it be an iPhone or iPad.
In the image, the LiDAR sensor is the large, dark circular element located to the right of the two camera lenses. It appears as a black circle without any visible lens reflections, distinguishing it from the cameras and the flash.
What's LiDAR used for?
Modern LiDAR uses GPS (Global Positioning System) technology to accurately measure the location of items in an area such as trees in a landscape, orwindows, and doors within an interior space. Scanning a room to create a floor plan is, today, more accurate, and faster than traditional methods.
Radio-controlled planes and drones have scanned terrain to create topographical maps to study areas in various industries.
The tech has been in development for sixty years. In the 1980s, the emergence of GPS revolutionized how we saw the world by helping to create incredibly detailed 3D topographical maps with LiDAR.
What are core LiDAR elements
There are three core elements of a LiDAR system, the laser, the scanner, and the GPS:
- The color and intensity of the laser are different depending on the application. Green light is most often used for underwater topographical scanning.
- Infrared lasers have been used in cell phones for more than ten years to assist with auto-focusing for camera apps.
- The scanner collects the return signal for the software to then synthesize into real-world data.
- GPS navigating systems secure the position and orientation of the sensor to ensure data accuracy.
Lidar vs AR for Room Scans
AR (Augmented Reality) was a phrase coined in the 1990s and describes a merging of the real world with an informational overlay.
A device that uses AR takes a stream of video information delivered by the camera. It synthesizes the data from accelerometers, gyroscopes, GPS, and compasses, tracking physical features and objects.
[fs-toc-omit]Can I still use AR for a room scan to create a floor plan?
For room scanning, the app is what is referred to as markerless AR, where nothing is pre-programmed, so the app has to recognize common features such as corners, doors, or window openings.
You can use AR to scan rooms, but it uses imagery to determine floors, walls, and ceilings based on algorithms that determine what which end is up–literally. LiDAR, on the other hand, works in the dark and uses physical distances to determine room dimensions. The more complex a measuring job, the more processing power is needed, which means that AR may sometimes struggle in complicated spaces.
[fs-toc-omit]Core AR Elements
Most cell phones and tablets are AR-ready, with sensors, cameras, accelerometers, GPS, and a solid-state compass, for directional capability.
Which Products are Best for Scanning a Room to Create a Floor Plan?
Numerous applications have taken and integrated room scanning to deliver functions from 2D plans to 3D walkthroughs to furniture retailing. But how many of them are suitable for seamless integration with your business model?
You’ll need to decipher whether the actual 3D model is the end goal, versus a 2D model for the work you actually need to do. All these apps use LiDAR and AR technology to create a 3D model, but some only use it as a means to get to get measurements, which may only be needed in a 2D environment.
Examples of 3D room scans that may only require 2D work
Say you’re a planning a remodel and you need to estimate costs for flooring, drywall, and windows. The 3D model is great, but at the end of the day, your costs will be based on calculating materials by the linear foot or square footage. For that, you want a 2D floor plan. It's nice to have a 3D model to help visualize, but at the end of the day, you only really need to look at the walls and know the ceiling height to calculate your area of material requirements.
We’ve taken a look at some of the market leaders, the names that will come up when you go looking on a search engine, to help you decide whether they fit the bill.
Here are 7 of the Best Room Scan Apps
1. Magicplan
Magicplan takes aim squarely at renovators, individuals, and businesses with a core focus based on insurance claims, inspections, and loss adjustments. They claim on their website that you can scan a room and create a floor plan in seconds.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
When you need to put together a condition survey prior to agreement and commencement of remedial works, Magicplan knows your niche.
- If you require photographic backup, as well as plans that show what remedial works are required, done, and still to do, this popular app will cover off everything you need.
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
4.7 out of 5
2. Room Scanner from Measure Square
Room Scanner, from Measure Square who is best known for their commercial flooring software. The App Store shows that they offer several related apps that scan rooms, but they share some of the same core features in different wrappers: RenoPlan, and M2 AR Measure.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
It generates a file you can export to RenoPlan or their Measure Square Mobile app for further product layout and estimating for sales quotes, so the app itself my contain basic scanning functionality.
- DIY - Create floor plans for DIY projects or to send to contractors
- Home - Measure room areas, and perimeters
- Contractors - Save and store floor plans and measurements
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
4.5 out of 5
3. Canvas IO
Canvas IO is a service, rather than a one-stop room scanning app. Canvas requires a user to scan the room using their iPhone or Apple tablet and send the results to Canvas, specifying what format you require, i.e. Sketch-Up.
- Pricing is based on the square footage of the room you need to convert into a drawing, or 3D model.
- The site encourages you to practice scanning at home, or in the office and they offer free feedback on your technique before you ever have to place an order.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
- Professionals - Architects, Interior designers, and remodelers looking for floor plans and willing to wait for off-site processing to complete final floor plan.
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
4.8 out of 5
4. CubiCasa
Finland is the home of the Nokia brand of cell phone, and the country has also produced CubiCasa, which started out as a scanning IT service that could produce plans from scans and photographs for the real estate market.
- Today they supply 3D layouts for listings and a tiered service for tiered service that delivers in a day, or faster if you go premium.
- Most of the work they do as service, to enhance the final deliverable, whether it be a floor plan, or a hybrid real estate layout for a listing sheet.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
4.2 out of 5
5. Floor Plan - CamPlan AI
One of the newest apps to be released is Camplan. The website has the feel of an emerging startup, so if you are keen to be an early adopter of what Camplan claim is the future of architectural design, it could be the one to choose.
- It partners with both LiDAR and AR and integrates GPT AI to deliver reports and design suggestions.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
- Architects and designers who want AI-generated insights alongside their scans.
- Tech-savvy early adopters looking for a futuristic take on room scanning.
- Users interested in integrating LiDAR and AR for enhanced spatial analysis.
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
3.7 out of 5
6. PolyCam
PolyCam has a free download available so you can try the basic functions before committing to their enterprise level that has more of the features a business requires. It uses a mix of LiDAR and advanced photogrammetry to produce 3D models that can then be exported into 2D plan views.
- There is an option to have a full-color rendering through the photogrammetry for a detailed record of an existing building, its condition, and its contents.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
- Designers and 3D modelers who need high-quality, full-color scans of existing spaces.
- Restoration and insurance professionals documenting building conditions.
- Hobbyists and small-scale users who want a free, basic scanning tool before upgrading.
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
4.7 out of 5
7. RoomScan Pro LiDAR floor plans
The Brits haven’t been sitting on their hands either when it comes to taking advantage of the new scanning tech. The RoomScanPro and RoomScanClassic from Locometric uses Apple tech to point scan a room and develop it into a range of products, from photo-accurate 3D imagery to floor plans.
- If you regularly carry out property condition surveys, one cool feature of RoomScanClassic is that you can dictate notes directly onto any photographs taken with the app.
[fs-toc-omit]Best for:
- Property surveyors who need to document room layouts with voice notes and photos.
- Real estate professionals looking for a fast, app-based floor plan solution.
- Homeowners and DIY renovators wanting a simple way to scan their space.
[fs-toc-omit]App Store User ratings:
4.2 out of 5
Bonus Reviews for Room Scanning Apps
SketchUp from Trimble
Within the popular 3D modeling software, SketchUp, there are integrations with the Apple room scan apps, as well as with Canvas. While this isn't exactly in the same category as the other standalone room scan apps, for those users already using SketchUp in their workflow, it can be another consideration.
If you participate in a trade business that doesn't already use SketchUp, it probably isn't the best for because the workflow would involve turning the 3D drawing into a 2D floor plan, then you would need to apply products and additional third-party plugins for creating takeoffs and estimates.
What Room Scan Apps Are Best for Construction Pros
The majority of these apps have been developed out of a need to attract more buyers to real estate listings. On average buyers will look at ten homes before making an offer, and listings with a floor plan receive up to 52% more click-throughs than ones that don’t.
Other apps have emerged through niche construction sectors, such as insurance, where record-keeping and evidence-based invoicing are key to getting estimates agreed.
And it’s no surprise that flooring companies have been early adopters of this technology, with a laser focus on square footage.
Conclusion
There are a handful of apps to choose from for scanning rooms to floor plans, so you'll need to try them out to make your decision. Use the guide here to help determine the best app for your business!
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