Dreaming of living in your very own tiny house? If so, you might be thinking about placing a call to your local architect. But you might also be daunted by some of the price estimates you see out there—and rightly so. A tiny house shouldn't break the bank, but a lot of ready-made tiny houses cost in excess of $40,000.
If you are on a tiny budget for your tiny house, why not build it yourself? You might feel daunted by that too, but if you look around the web, you will find that a lot of people are doing their own construction work these days.
These are for the most part ordinary people just like you, who woke up one day and realized that they could make their tiny house dreams come true if they just did a little research and planning.
Speaking of planning, along with the construction, that might be the other part of the equation which you are concerned about. If you are not an architect or an engineer, how can you be sure you are coming up with a livable tiny house plan with the structural integrity to hold over the years to come?
The answer is … you don't have to! There are already a ton of awesome tiny house plans out there available to you—and many of them are completely FREE.
All you have to do is download the plans, and they will tell you everything you need to build your very own tiny house:
Materials Tools needed Dimensions and measurements Step-by-step instructions Diagrams
Most of these plans are just as thorough as the expensive plans you would purchase from an architect, and offer the same level of quality.
If you have questions, you might also be able to leave a comment or send an email to the plans' creators.
Excited to build your own tiny house, but don't want to scour the web for free plans? We've done the research for you! Below are 18 free tiny house plans (actually, a few are low-cost plans—most are free) which you can use to build the tiny house of your dreams!
1. A-522 by Recreational Resort Cottages and Cabins
The free plans for house A-522 by Recreational Resort Cottages and Cabins prove that you don't need a lot of space to live big! This beautiful little house takes up just 399 square feet, but it provides you with a surprisingly open and airy environment. Check the link below to take a tour through every lovely room of this gorgeous home—and be sure to download the free plans to build one of your own!
Source: itinyhouses.com
FREE PLANS HERE: cabinsupercenter
2. Pin-Up Houses: 25 Low-Cost Plans!
These plans are not free, but they are very budget-friendly. Pin-Up Houses offers plans for cabins, cottages, sheds, tiny houses and play houses. While I am trying to stick with mainly free plans for this list, I had to throw these in here because they can still save you a ton of money—not just on the plans, but on construction. How so? Many of these projects can be built for $10,000 or less, sometimes even just a couple thousand bucks.
Visit the link to check out a list of 25 low-cost plans from Pin-Up Houses!
Full List of 25 Plans: itinyhouses.com
3. 8×16 Tiny Solar House
If you want to save money on construction, you also should be thinking about how you can save money after construction. One great way to cut your utilities costs way down (and potentially get off the grid) is to incorporate solar panels into your tiny house design. A great starting point is this free plan for an 8×16 solar house!
Source: tinyhousedesign
FREE PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
4. Quartz Tiny House by Ana White
If you have browsed much on our site, you know that we are big fans of Ana White and her amazing tiny houses! One of her most beautiful and versatile models by far is the Quartz Tiny House. This simple, elegant design has a quaint rustic charm, and the big windows give the space an open feel. Check out the free plans and build your own!
Source: ana-white.com
FREE PLANS HERE: Ana-White
5. Free Wood Cabin Plans from The Classic Archives
Can you imagine living in a tiny space measuring just 108 square feet? It might seem impossible, but these free wood cabin plans from The Classic Archives prove that such a life would be anything but cramped. This cozy little cottage is absolutely adorable, and it can be yours!
Source: itinyhouses.com
FREE PLANS HERE: theclassicarchives
6. Homesteader's Cabin
The Homesteader's Cabin is among the most popular tiny house plans offered on the Tiny House Design website. Measuring 12×24, it includes a high roof with a cozy loft, a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a laundry closet. Below, you can download free plans. If you click through to the source link, you can also see more images as well as download a SketchUp file.
Source: tinyhousedesign
FREE PLANS HERE: Tinyhousedesign
7. Tall Man's Tiny House
This one is a little complicated—the house you see in the picture was actually a modification of a few of the plans available on the Tiny House Design website (the same one that offers the Homesteader's Cabin). If you click the source link below, you can read more. I have also included a link to all of the free plans offered by Tiny House Design. Check them out and get inspired—maybe you also will build a customized design of your own!
Source: itinyhouses.com
FREE PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
8. 8×20 Solar House
If you liked the 8×16 Tiny Solar House shared previously, but imagine you would be more comfortable with just a tad more space, you will love the 8×20 solar house! This is another free plan available from Tiny House Design. A design like this will save you money now and in the future!
Source: tinyhousedesign
FREE PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
9. Texas Round House
The Texas Round House was developed by Shawn Dehner at The Small House Catalog. This design is quite unusual; you do not see a lot of round homes. The plans incorporate solar power, a fireplace for heating, concentrated plumbing, and plenty of other outstanding features. If you visit the source link, it indicates that free plans are available—you probably need to contact Shawn Dehner to get them. You can also buy them for $25 each, but he indicates that is only necessary if you are in a jurisdiction where you need to submit the plans without watermarks.
FREE PLANS: smallhousecatalog
10. 5×8 Tiny Market House
This is not actually a tiny house you can live in—it is a tiny market stall which is designed to mimic the appearance of a house. I have included it here in case you are looking for something clever you can take with you to the farmer's market—or a cool design for a shed.
FREE PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
11. Tiny Gypsy Wagon
On a really, really low budget? You might wonder whether you can afford a tiny house, but this amazing tiny gypsy wagon by Hypha proves you can. She reports that she managed to build her awesome tiny house for just $2,000, and that it took around 50-100 hours to do it. Within six months, it paid for itself. She has explained her entire process in thorough detail on Instructables.
Source: itinyhouses
FREE PLANS HERE: instructables
12. The Micro Gambrel
The next few tiny house plans all come from a company called Choo Choo Tiny House. This one is free and features a charming gambrel roof. Gambrel roofs offer a spacious interior compared to a simple pitched gable. The house's width allows it to fit on a trailer so that it can be moved from place to place.
FREE PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
13. The Craftsman
Here is another free plan for a very simple tiny house, once again from Choo Choo Tiny House. Measuring 8×12, this home includes a basic pitched roof. The architect emphasizes that his free plans are just as detailed as his paid plans (not always a given with free house plans), so this is fantastic.
FREE PLANS: Contact tinyhousedesign
14. The Simple Tiny
Another very simple, straightforward design for a tiny house is this one, referred to as "The Simple Tiny." Even though it looks truly diminutive, it manages to fit in a living area, a kitchen, and a bath. The architect suggests it as either a tiny cabin or a studio or backyard office.
Source: tinyhousedesign
15. The Tiny Solar Saltbox
The plans for this tiny house are not free, but at $9.95, they are pretty close to it. As the architect over at Choo Choo Tiny House says, they cost around as much as a trip to a fast-food restaurant.
PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
16. The Pioneer's Cabin
Measuring 16×20, The Pioneer's Cabin is a bit larger than most of the other free and low cost tiny house plans shared here. This one costs $9.95.
PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
17. The Prospector's Cabin
One more tiny house plan you can purchase for $9.95 is The Prospector's Cabin. With a 12×12 base and two roof pitches, it includes a couple of wide porches, integrating indoor, and outdoor spaces. While these are the cheapest plans on Choo Choo Tiny House, be sure to check out the other plans on the site, as many more are available for under $100.
PLANS HERE: tinyhousedesign
Conclusion: You Too Can Build a Tiny House … And You Don't Need to Pay a Dime For Plans!
If you don't want to spend an arm and a leg on a tiny house … don't! The tiny house movement is supposed to be about cost-savings and sustainability. And if you are on a shoestring budget, that starts with free or low-cost plans.
Hopefully you already have found a design plan that you love after reading through our list. But don't forget—you can modify any of these plans to better fit your needs. As you get started building, you will begin picking up important design principles. These will help you to customize designs as needed. Good luck, and have fun building your very own tiny house!
