Site design or instant office test fits? A fair comparison of laiout and Autodesk Forma.
Updated October 2026. This comparison reflects publicly available information as of 22 October 2026.
laiout is self-service AI test fit software that generates commercial office layouts in seconds, adjusts them live, exports them straight to Revit, CAD and PDF, and turns any design into AI static and video renders within minutes. Autodesk Forma is, per Autodesk, an industry cloud for early-stage design, covering site design, schematic building design and analysis for architects, planners and developers. In our view, laiout is the stronger choice when the job is a test fit on an existing office floor plate to support a leasing or fit-out decision, while Forma fits teams designing a new building or masterplan from site context upwards.
- Forma and laiout both use AI to help produce layouts, but they work at different stages. laiout generates and adjusts office test fits on a floor plate in seconds, while Forma is built for the earlier question of what to build on a site, with massing, environmental analysis and schematic floor plans.
- In our view, laiout is the stronger choice for leasing and fit-out teams that need a layout now, since live cost, carbon and capacity data, exports, and AI renders and videos within minutes are available from the first session. Forma is the better fit for architects and developers who are shaping a new building and want sun, wind, daylight and carbon analysis alongside the massing.
- The platforms rarely compete for the same moment in a project, and many design teams will use both.
Both names come up when people search for AI layout generation, which is why they get compared. Traditionally, a simple office test fit takes days to weeks from brief to finished plan, even though the drafting itself is only a few hours of architect time for a single floor plate, which is one reason leasing cycles run long. Fees run from a few hundred to several thousand dollars, and test fit agreements commonly range from $0.12 to $0.15 per square foot. Forma and laiout both aim to speed up early layout decisions, but they start from different places.
- Different starting points: laiout starts from an existing floor plate and generates an office test fit, while Forma starts from a site and a massing model, per Autodesk.
- Different stages: Forma is positioned for early and schematic design, with Revit taking over for detailed design and documentation, as ITWire reported, whereas laiout supports leasing and fit-out decisions.
- Different audiences: Autodesk names architects, urban planners and real estate developers for Forma, whereas laiout serves landlords, tenants, brokers, designers and flex operators.
- Built for: laiout serves landlords, tenants, brokers, designers and flex operators. Forma Site Design targets architects, urban planners and real estate developers in pre-design and schematic design, per Autodesk.
- Starting point: laiout generates optimised office test fits from a floor plan and lets users adjust them live. Forma starts with site context such as terrain, buildings and roads, then massing, per Autodesk.
- AI layouts: laiout generates the layout in seconds. Autodesk describes a Building Layout Explorer in Forma Site Design that generates floor plan options from a massing model, announced in June 2026 as an experimental feature available to commercial users with US-stored data.
- Analysis: laiout shows cost, carbon and capacity live, updating on every adjustment to the plan or design. Forma lists analysis of sun hours, daylight, wind, noise and view, plus carbon in US data hubs, per Autodesk.
- Getting started: laiout is self-service, with onboarding typically completed in a single session. Forma offers a 30-day free trial and is available to Revit subscribers, per Autodesk and ITWire.
- Visuals: laiout provides AI static and video renders within minutes (a premium add-on), plus 3D walkthroughs. Forma lists AI-powered rendering in context for concept visualisation, per Autodesk.
- Sharing: laiout creates live shared links to a design that update automatically, so stakeholders can open and review the latest version without a CAD licence. Forma Board offers collaborative design review with real-time editing and a presentation mode, per Autodesk.
- Outputs and workflow: laiout exports to DWG, DXF, RVT, IFC, OBJ, PDF and CSV, and its Revit plugin brings the chosen layout back as native, editable Revit elements. Forma sends proposals to Revit as geolocated native models and supports IFC and OBJ import and export, per Autodesk.
- Portfolio: laiout Hub stores a portfolio's floor plans and statistics in one place.
- The job is an office test fit: laiout is built to turn an existing floor plate into a layout a tenant or landlord can act on, which is the same logic behind why speed wins in competitive leasing markets.
- A leasing decision is live: Generate a test fit and adjust it with the client in the room, rather than working up massing and schematic options first.
- The user is not an architect: Landlords, tenants, brokers, designers and flex operators work from the same self-service platform, with onboarding typically completed in a single session.
- Capacity, cost and carbon sit beside every layout: laiout shows these metrics live and updates them on every adjustment to the plan or design, so trade-offs are visible during the conversation.
- Finished visuals are needed straight away: Generate AI static and video renders from the same design within minutes (a premium add-on), and share a link to the design with stakeholders who have no CAD licence.
- You are designing a new building or masterplan: Forma starts from site context and massing, which is the right place to begin when nothing is built yet, per Autodesk.
- You want environmental analysis in the design loop: Autodesk lists sun hours, daylight, wind, noise, view and carbon analysis in Forma. laiout focuses on the layout itself, with live cost, carbon and capacity data.
- You work in the Autodesk ecosystem: Forma connects to Revit, Dynamo, Rhino and Autodesk Docs, per Autodesk. laiout also exports to RVT and its Revit plugin brings the chosen layout back as native, editable Revit elements, so Revit teams are covered either way.
- You are exploring residential or mixed-use schemes: Autodesk lists tools for housing, parking and units within Forma Site Design.
- What exists today? An existing office floor plate that needs a layout points to laiout. A site or massing that still needs shaping points to Forma.
- What decision is being made? A lease, a fit-out or a client conversation points to laiout. A scheme-level design direction for a new building points to Forma.
- Who is working on it? Landlords, brokers, tenants and flex operators generating options themselves point to laiout. Architects and developers developing a scheme in the Autodesk ecosystem point to Forma.
Q: What is Autodesk Forma used for?
Autodesk describes Forma as an industry cloud for architecture, engineering, construction and operations. Forma Site Design is used for site planning, massing and analysis in pre-design and schematic design, and Forma Building Design extends that to schematic building options, with selected designs moving into Revit as geolocated native models. It is not a leasing test fit platform, which is the job laiout is built for.
Q: How much does Autodesk Forma cost?
Autodesk lists Forma Site Design as a paid subscription with monthly, annual, multi-year and flex options and a 30-day free trial, and Forma is available to Revit subscribers. Pricing varies by plan and term, so check Autodesk's site for current figures.
Q: Is Autodesk Forma or laiout better for office space planning?
In our view, laiout is the stronger choice for office space planning, because it generates and adjusts test fits on an existing floor plate live in seconds, with cost and carbon data, renders and Revit-ready exports. Forma suits architects and developers shaping a new building from site context. Our guide to choosing an AI floor plan generator sets out how to weigh the options.
Q: Does Autodesk Forma generate floor plans like laiout?
Autodesk describes a Building Layout Explorer in Forma Site Design that generates floor plan options from a massing model for early conceptual design. Autodesk's demos include office buildings among the examples, but it was announced as an experimental feature, so availability is limited. laiout is built for office test fits on an existing floor plate and generates them in seconds, with live adjustment.
Q: What are alternatives to Autodesk Forma for layout planning?
The right alternative depends on the stage of the project. laiout is built for instant, self-service office test fits that landlords, tenants, brokers, designers and flex operators generate, adjust and export themselves. Other platforms focus on site feasibility, architecture-led generative design or workplace programmes, so it helps to start with the decision you need to support. Our guide to AI test fit software covers five criteria for comparing them. For another architect-led option, see how laiout compares with Hypar.
Q: Is Autodesk Forma or laiout better for architects and designers?
Designers who want a fast, defensible starting layout on an existing floor plate lean towards laiout, which brings the chosen layout into Revit as native, editable elements. Architects shaping a new building from site context may prefer Forma, and a design team could use both.
Q: Does laiout work with Revit like Autodesk Forma?
Yes. laiout exports to RVT, and its Revit plugin brings the chosen layout back as native, editable Revit elements. It also exports to DWG, DXF, IFC, OBJ, PDF and CSV. Forma sends proposals to Revit as geolocated native models, per Autodesk.
Q: Can laiout designs be shared with stakeholders who do not have CAD software?
Yes. laiout creates live shared links to a design that update automatically, so stakeholders can open and review the latest version without a CAD licence. Forma Board offers collaborative review for design teams, per Autodesk, so sharing is a strength of both.
Q: Can a team use both laiout and Autodesk Forma?
Yes. A team can use Forma to shape a new building from site context, then use laiout to test fit the floor plates for tenants once the scheme is defined.
In our view, laiout is the stronger overall choice when the question is how an office floor plate will be used. It is live, self-service and usable by the whole deal team, and puts capacity, cost and carbon data and Revit-ready exports in your hands straight away, with AI static and video renders following within minutes. Forma earns its place for architects and developers who are still deciding what to build on a site, and many teams will sensibly use both.
If the next step is a live conversation, book a demo with laiout today and see a test fit generated, adjusted and exported in front of you.
- laiout generates and adjusts office test fits live in seconds, while Forma is built for site design and schematic design before a building exists.
- A traditional architect-led test fit can take days to weeks to turn around and can cost from a few hundred to several thousand dollars.
- Forma lists site analysis, massing, schematic floor plans and a Building Layout Explorer that Autodesk announced as experimental, per Autodesk.
- laiout adds live capacity, cost and carbon data, AI static and video renders, 3D walkthroughs and exports to DWG, DXF, RVT, IFC, OBJ, PDF and CSV.
- Both platforms work with Revit, and both support sharing designs with stakeholders.
- In our view, laiout is the stronger choice for office test fits and leasing decisions, and Forma for architects shaping a new scheme.
- What Is a Test Fit in Commercial Real Estate? How Developers Use Them, Build, March 2026.
- Why Tenants Should Use A Test Fit, Park Real Estate Advisors.
- Autodesk brings design and make intelligence to the built environment with Forma Building Design and deeper cloud connections with Revit, ITWire, 12 April 2026.
Author: Theodore Harding, laiout
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