Houzz alternatives
Houzz is for browsing other people's projects and finding professionals. Nothing on it redesigns your own garden. The alternatives below either put a designer on your project or show your own space in a new style.
What Houzz actually is
Houzz is the largest home and garden inspiration platform on the web, combining millions of project photos, a directory of landscape and garden professionals, and a product marketplace. It is where most people start looking for ideas, but it is a discovery and hiring platform rather than a design tool, nothing on Houzz redesigns your own garden.
Pricing: Free to browse and save; you pay professionals and for marketplace products separately. Turnaround: Instant to browse; hiring a professional runs on their timeline.
The 5 options, by what they are
Hiring a person
- a Local Landscape Designer: Hiring a local landscape designer for a site visit, custom plan, and ongoing project oversight.
AI design tools
- AI Garden Design(ours): photoreal AI redesign of your own garden photo, in under two minutes
- Neighborbrite: Browser-based AI landscape design with a genuinely free tier and a large plant and hardscape library.
Online human-designer services
- Yardzen: Online landscape design service with human designers, full plans, plant lists, and contractor matchmaking.
- Tilly Design: The online landscape design service acquired by Bower & Branch in 2024, now sold as Design Studio with the plants for sale alongside the plan.
1. a Local Landscape Designer
Local professional
A local landscape designer is the highest-end option for most homeowners. You get a site visit, a custom plan informed by your soil and microclimate, drawings detailed enough for a contractor to build from, and (often) project oversight through the build. The trade-off is cost and turnaround.
- Best for
- The project involves grading, drainage, or structural changes
- Pricing
- Roughly $50–$150 per hour, with a full residential plan usually landing between $2,000 and $10,000, plus project management fees if they oversee the build
- Speed
- Usually four to eight weeks from consultation to final plan; longer if construction documents are included
2. AI Garden Design
OursAI design tool
Photorealistic AI redesign of your actual garden photo. Pick from fifteen distinct garden styles (modern, japanese, mediterranean, cottage, and more) and get a share-ready render in under two minutes. 3 free designs, then unlimited designs for $4.99 a week or $44.99 a year. Cancel anytime.
- Best for
- You want to see your own yard in several styles before paying for anything
- Pricing
- 3 free, then $4.99/week or $44.99/year
- Speed
- Under 2 minutes per design
3. Yardzen
Online human-designer service
Yardzen is the best-known online landscape design service in the US. You pay a fixed fee, fill out a brief, and a licensed landscape designer delivers a custom 2D plan, 3D renderings, a plant list, and a list of local contractors who can build it. It is a one-time service, not a tool, you get a finished design, not the ability to iterate on your own.
- Best for
- You already know the look you want and are ready to build now
- Pricing
- $995 to $3,495 per project, paid up front
- Speed
- 5 to 10 business days from brief to first design, plus revision time
4. Tilly Design
Online human-designer service
Tilly was one of the main Yardzen alternatives: human designers, fixed-price packages, a turnaround in weeks. It no longer exists on its own. Bower & Branch, an online marketplace where independent growers sell trees and plants direct to homeowners, acquired Tilly in August 2024 and folded the design team into its own Design Studio. tillydesign.com now redirects there, and the packages are priced under the Bower & Branch name.
- Best for
- You want a finished plan from a human designer, not a picture
- Pricing
- Design Studio packages run $559 for a front yard, $699 for a backyard and $1,049 for a full yard; the Native & Beneficial versions, built around regional natives and pollinator planting, run $699, $839 and $1,259
- Speed
- Two to four weeks from brief to finished design
5. Neighborbrite
AI design tool
Neighborbrite is a web-based AI landscape design tool that turns a photo of your yard into a redesign, with an unusually generous free tier. It is the most direct free competitor in this category, and the main reason people arrive at a comparison page like this one is to work out whether paying for anything else is justified.
- Best for
- You are doing one project and do not want to pay anything
- Pricing
- Free tier available with no install; paid Pro and Business tiers add customisation and high-resolution export (pricing is not published on the marketing site, check in-app)
- Speed
- Seconds per render, in the browser
See your own yard redesigned first
Upload a photo of your garden and get a photoreal redesign in under two minutes. 3 designs free, no credit card.
Redesign my yard freeHouzz alternatives: frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Houzz?
It depends on why you are leaving Houzz. Pick a Local Landscape Designer if the project involves grading, drainage, or structural changes. Pick AI Garden Design if you want to see your own yard in several styles before paying for anything. Pick Yardzen if you already know the look you want and are ready to build now.
How do these Houzz alternatives compare on price?
A Local Landscape Designer: Roughly $50–$150 per hour, with a full residential plan usually landing between $2,000 and $10,000, plus project management fees if they oversee the build. AI Garden Design: 3 free, then $4.99/week or $44.99/year. Yardzen: $995 to $3,495 per project, paid up front. Tilly Design: Design Studio packages run $559 for a front yard, $699 for a backyard and $1,049 for a full yard; the Native & Beneficial versions, built around regional natives and pollinator planting, run $699, $839 and $1,259. Neighborbrite: Free tier available with no install; paid Pro and Business tiers add customisation and high-resolution export (pricing is not published on the marketing site, check in-app).
Which Houzz alternative is fastest?
A Local Landscape Designer: usually four to eight weeks from consultation to final plan; longer if construction documents are included. AI Garden Design: under 2 minutes per design. Yardzen: 5 to 10 business days from brief to first design, plus revision time. Tilly Design: two to four weeks from brief to finished design. Neighborbrite: seconds per render, in the browser.
Can I combine AI Garden Design with Houzz?
Yes. Use AI Garden Design to try styles on a photo of your own yard, then brief Houzz with the renders you liked. The designer starts from a clear direction, and paid revision rounds are not spent finding it.