About

Plans that pass the tape measure.

Most garage plans come in one size, drawn for conditions you may not have. The Garage Planner is a free 3D designer: you set the building you need and the snow, wind and frost line where you build, it places every member, checks it and prices the materials, and draws the plan.

Operator: Westernmost LLC
Address: 30 N Gould St Ste R, Sheridan, WY 82801, USA
Email: hello@thegarageplanner.com

Who we are

The Garage Planner is an independent project operated by Westernmost LLC, 30 N Gould St Ste R, Sheridan, WY 82801, USA. We build planners for backyard projects: one engine per kind of build, written from the published rules, so that every design gets the same checks. If you find a mistake in a rule or a number, tell us: a fix to the engine fixes every design at once.

How the designer works

1
You set the building
Width, length, wall height, roof, doors and windows for your garage, from a 1 car to a 3 car, with a loft or a workshop bench if you want one.
2
You set where you build
Your snow, wind and frost line, from your building department. In Canada, your NBC 2020 loads.
3
It checks every part
The slab and footings, the wall framing and the door headers, the bracing, the roof trusses and the wind ties.
4
It prices and draws it
A materials list priced line by line, with lumber packed onto the boards the yard sells, and a builder's plan drawn from your own numbers.

Each design gets one of three answers. Ready: every check passes and the builder's plan is for sale. Needs a look: the design can be built, but one part sits outside what the code tables cover, like the header over a 16 ft door, so the designer tells you who sizes it and offers a fix. Can't be built as drawn: something has to change first, and the designer shows you what.

Where the sources say nothing, we chose a value and call it our default, so you can always see which numbers are ours.

Where the rules come from

IRCInternational Residential Code 2021Footings and slabs (R403), wall framing and headers (R602), roof framing (R802) and the design loads in R301.
NBCNational Building Code of Canada 2020Part 9 for small buildings: snow loads, framing tables and lumber values for garages built in Canada.
SimpsonSimpson Strong-TieThe hurricane ties, hold-downs and anchors that hold the trusses and the walls down in wind, with the load each one is rated for.
LPLP SolidStartThe LVL beam specifications behind a wide door header, and the sheathing and framing lumber a garage is built from.

What we don't do

We don't approve your build. Local approval is not checked. Your building department sets the loads, reviews the drawings, issues the permit and inspects, and the truss maker designs the trusses. Ask them before you pour.

The planner is a planning aid, not an engineer's review or an inspection. It does not cover:

Your soil: the footing is sized for a standard soil value, and poor soil needs a qualified professional.
Ground snow and wind above the range the prescriptive tables cover: those buildings need an engineered design.
Your permit, your setbacks, your height limit and your local amendments.

How the site is paid for

The designer and the free plans cost nothing and need no account. What pays for them is the builder's plan: a PDF drawn for the garage you design, with the dimensioned layout, the framing, the cut list and the shopping list, for $79 once. If our plan has an error, we fix it or refund you. The site carries no advertising.

Contact

Email hello@thegarageplanner.com or use the contact page. Send the design link with your question, so we see the same numbers you do.

Design the garage you need

Open the designer