Reading architectural drawings
Architectural drawings are a set of related views of a building. Learn what each view shows, how to read scale and symbols, and how to picture the building in 3D from them.
In this lesson you will
- Explain what plans, sections and elevations show
- Read scale, dimensions and levels
- Recognise common symbols
- Relate views to build a 3D picture
The main views
- Floor plan: a horizontal cut about 1–1.2 m above the floor, looking down: walls, doors (with swings), windows, stairs, fixtures, room names, dimensions.
- Elevation: looking straight at an outside face: heights, materials, windows and doors.
- Section: a vertical cut through the building: floor-to-floor heights, ceilings, roof, stairs, how parts stack.
- Site plan: the building on its site: boundaries, setbacks, access, north point.
Scale and dimensions
At 1:100, 1 mm on paper is 100 mm in reality — a 3.6 m room is 36 mm on the drawing. Always use written dimensions rather than measuring the drawing (drawings are often printed at the wrong size). Dimensions are usually in millimetres in metric countries; levels such as RL 25.450 or FFL +3.000 give heights.
Common symbols
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Arc from a door leaf | Door swing direction |
| Thin lines across a wall opening | Window (glass line) |
| Arrow with 'UP' on stairs | Stair direction and riser count |
| Circle with a line and arrow | Section marker: where it's cut and which way it looks |
| Circle with triangle | Elevation marker |
| Arrow with N | North point |
Putting it together
Read plans and sections together: the section marker on the plan shows where the section cuts; the section shows the height of what the plan shows in width. Tracing one element — a window — through plan, elevation and section is the quickest way to build a mental 3D model.
Exercise
Read a real set
- Find a publicly available house plan set.
- Identify the living room in plan and find its windows in an elevation.
- Find a section through it and read the ceiling height.
- Measure one dimension with a scale ruler and compare with the written dimension.
You should end up with: Confidence reading and relating views.
Checklist
0 of 5 checked · saved on this device
Lesson quiz
At 1:100, how long is a 4.5 m wall on paper?
Finished this lesson?
Taking the quiz marks it complete too. Your course page picks up where you stopped.
Free KitWren tools that help
- Area ConverterConvert square metres, square feet, acres, hectares and more.
- Length ConverterConvert between metres, centimetres, millimetres, kilometres, inches, feet, yards and miles.
- Renovation Cost CalculatorBuild a renovation budget from area, build rate, fixtures, fees and contingency.
- Paint CalculatorWork out how much paint you need for a room’s walls and ceiling, in litres or gallons.
- Flooring CalculatorCalculate how much flooring, timber, laminate or carpet to buy, including waste and boxes.
- Image CompressorCompress JPG, PNG and WebP images to make them much smaller — with a before/after preview and the size saved.
Free, independent learning material written for KitWren. We never provide software downloads, licence keys or cracks — use the official sources.