The three pricing tiers
Most residential drafting is priced per square foot of living space, with a flat minimum for smaller projects. As a general reference:
- Design Package: $0.75/sq ft (living space), $1,000 minimum — floor plans and elevations only.
- Full Architectural Plan Set: $1.00/sq ft (living) + $0.25/sq ft (covered areas), $1,500 minimum — the complete set most counties need for a permit.
- Architectural + Engineered Plan Set: $2.00/sq ft (living) + $0.25/sq ft (covered areas), $2,500 minimum — adds structural engineering details.
"Covered area" means garages, porches, and unfinished basements—square footage that adds to the drawing scope but isn't finished living space.
A worked example
For a 1,800 sq ft home with a 500 sq ft garage:
- Design Package: 1,800 × $0.75 = $1,350
- Full Architectural: (1,800 × $1.00) + (500 × $0.25) = $1,925
- Engineered: (1,800 × $2.00) + (500 × $0.25) = $3,725
You can run your own numbers with the pricing calculator on the quote page after answering a few questions about your project.
What pushes the price up
- Larger square footage (living and covered area both count).
- Multiple stories, complex rooflines, or custom framing.
- Jurisdictions that require engineered/stamped calculations.
- Significant revisions after drafting has started.
What's not included
Drafting fees cover the drawing set itself. They generally do not include permit application fees charged by your city or county, land surveys, or separately licensed engineering stamps when a project requires one beyond what's scoped in the Engineered tier. We'll flag anything like that during your quote so there are no surprises.