9 Best HVAC Design Software of 2026

Right-Suite Universal ranks first because it covers the whole residential job in one Windows program. You sketch the house in Right-Draw, the software calculates ACCA Manual J loads and Manual S equipment selection, and Manual D duct design follows from the same model. Wrightsoft's Hotlink technology builds the parts takeoff list and the customer proposal as you finish each step, so a design change shows up in the price without retyping. The Residential package also covers radiant panel loops, high-velocity ducts, geothermal design, energy and cost comparison, and duct balancing, with links to RESCheck, COMCheck, REM/Rate and ENERGYPro for permits and ratings. Commercial users can buy the Commercial-Only package or add Manual N and ASHRAE loads to the residential one. Both packages cost $900 a year in the US. The limits are the platform, since it runs only on Windows, and the depth, which takes some training before it feels fast.

CoolCalc is the easiest way on this list to get an ACCA-based load and duct design without installing anything. It runs in any modern browser on a Mac, PC, phone or tablet, and the project can be shared with others in your company or with an outside reviewer such as a HERS rater. Geometry can come from a floor plan upload, a satellite trace for quick block loads, manual drawing, or the CoolCalc Scan app, which uses the LiDAR scanner on an iPhone 12 Pro or newer or an iPad Pro to capture rooms on site. Manual S draws on an equipment database covering dozens of brands. Pricing is flexible: you can build a project for free, then pay $45 to see the results, or subscribe to Pro at $50 per user a month for unlimited reports and ticketed support. It does not handle commercial ASHRAE loads, and the proposal and CRM features sit on a Pro Plus plan the vendor listed as coming soon.

Rhvac has been one of the standard residential load programs for years, and it remains one of the best values here. It calculates block and room-by-room loads to ACCA Manual J Eighth Edition, Version 2, sizes ducts to Manual D with system losses and fan static pressure, and produces a Manual S report that interpolates performance data from any manufacturer. For permits it fills in ACCA Form 310, the ACCA design review form and the Energy Star HVAC Design Report automatically. You can buy it as a Windows desktop license for $599, or as Rhvac Online at $239 a year, which runs in a browser on iPads, phones and computers and can upload desktop project files. A loads-only Manual J Calculator Online costs $149 a year. Drawing Board floor plans cost extra on the desktop, and some links, such as the REM/Rate and EnergyPro exports, are desktop only.

HAP is the commercial engineer's workhorse on this list. It combines system design and energy modeling, so the inputs you enter to size a system are reused to compare energy use and cost between design alternatives. Building models start from imported floor plan images: you scale them, sketch space boundaries, and HAP computes areas and extrudes the plan into 3D for checking. Sizing is system based, which means reports are tailored to rooftops, VRF, central air handlers, water source and ground source heat pumps, fan coils, chilled beams and DOAS rather than raw zone loads. Loads use the ASHRAE Heat Balance method, ventilation follows ASHRAE Standard 62.1, and the sizing summaries fit equipment selection data on two pages. HAP costs $1,995 in the US with a free trial on request. It is not meant for residential Manual J work, and the depth takes time to learn.

Chvac is the budget pick for commercial loads. It calculates peak heating and cooling loads with either the Radiant Time Series or CLTD method, reports building tonnage and room CFM, and sizes runout and main trunk ducts. Ventilation follows ASHRAE Standard 62, the program complies with ANSI/ASHRAE/ACCA Standard 183, and it can look up design weather for over 2,000 cities. Rooms can be grouped under VAV boxes and into as many as 100 air handling systems, and gbXML import and export lets you exchange geometry with other tools. Results can go to EnergyPro or eQUEST for energy analysis. The price scales with room capacity, from $299 for 2 rooms to $1,499 for unlimited rooms, so most real projects need one of the higher tiers. Drawing Board for floor plan input costs extra.

Design Master HVAC is the pick for engineers who draw HVAC plans in AutoCAD and want the calculations to stay with the drawing. You lay out single-line or double-line ductwork and diffusers, set the CFM for each diffuser, and size the whole system with one command while keeping control over duct shapes. Pressure loss is calculated from the drafted layout, and the critical path is found, labeled and reported. Heating and cooling loads come from drafting over the architect's plan and setting wall materials, openings, occupancy and design temperatures. When the project needs BIM, the design exports as IFC or DWG to Navisworks or Revit for clash detection. A dedicated license costs $104 per seat a month or $1,008 a year, and AutoCAD is a separate purchase. Load reports are simpler than in Wrightsoft, HAP or TRACE.

TRACE 3D Plus is Trane's engineering tool for commercial load design and energy modeling, and it is the deepest modeler here alongside Carrier HAP. It runs on the EnergyPlus engine, imports PDF floor plans for scaling and tracing, and shows both the architecture and the HVAC systems in 2D and 3D, with built-in checks that catch modeling mistakes. Systems and plants are configured schematically. A guided wizard handles LEED and ASHRAE 90.1 work, and you can calculate and compare up to 20 alternatives at once for energy, carbon and cost. Version 8 adds electrification options such as hot gas reheat and air-to-water heat pump configurations, plus better ASHRAE 170 modeling for medical facilities. Trane does not publish a price on the product page, so its value score is conservative. A trial is available as a download.

Revit is the BIM standard for MEP engineering firms, and its HVAC tools matter when the deliverable is a coordinated model rather than a load report. You design and document duct and pipe systems with mechanical design content, run interference detection against the architecture and other trades, and work in a shared central model through worksharing. Systems Analysis supports HVAC design decisions, and the Insight integration assesses heating and cooling loads, daylighting and whole building energy from the Revit energy model. For contractors moving toward prefabrication, Revit supports MEP fabrication detailing to LOD 400 and a design-to-fabrication conversion tool. A subscription starts at $251 a month and includes access to the 3 previous versions. Revit is heavy for a residential contractor who mainly needs Manual J and a duct layout, and it runs only on Windows 11.

SysQue sits at the end of the HVAC design process, where a contractor turns the engineer's model into something the shop can build. It runs inside Revit and replaces generic families with content from a managed database of over eight million parts based on real manufacturer products, then converts ductwork to SMACNA or DW144 specifications. From the detailed model you produce spool sheets for prefabricated duct, pipe and plumbing, lay out hangers and supports for export to Trimble Field Link, and send pipe data to PypeServer or other CAM software. On the VDC Pro+ subscription the model can also connect to the estimate. Trimble does not publish a price and asks buyers to contact sales, so the value score is conservative. SysQue does no load calculations, so it complements a tool such as HAP, TRACE or Wrightsoft rather than replacing one.