Most outdoor builds stall in the same place. The customer has an idea, the builder has a calendar, and there are three weeks of phone tag before either side has enough information to talk about specifics. The fix is straightforward. Get the rough design onto a screen first, then talk.
A decent online designer lets you do that on a laptop or phone, in under fifteen minutes, with no sales pressure on the other end. Here is how to use one properly so the quote that comes back actually reflects what you want.
What an online pergola or deck designer actually does
A modern outdoor-build designer is not a fancy drawing app. It does three useful things at once:
- Lets you set the footprint in real measurements, in metres, the way a builder thinks
- Shows you the build in 3D so you can sanity-check the proportions against the house behind it
- Translates the shape, materials and roof into a working quote in the background, so an accurate ballpark is ready before you hit submit
The good ones do all of that without forcing you to register an account first. You should be able to land on the page and start dragging things around within a few seconds.
The four decisions to make before you start
Spend two minutes on these before you open any tool. They drive every other choice.
- Is it a pergola, a deck, or both? A pergola is the overhead structure. A deck is the platform you walk on. "Combo" means both, usually with the pergola sitting over part of the deck.
- What is the rough footprint? Walk the area you want covered and pace it in metres. A 6 by 4 metre area is a comfortable starting point for a four-seat outdoor setting. Anything over 7 metres on a single span starts needing engineering input.
- Is it attached to the house? Pergolas attached to an existing wall use a ledger and need fewer posts. Freestanding pergolas need a post at every corner. The designer asks you this up front because it changes everything downstream.
- What look are you after? Modern flat-roof, classic gable, premium louvered, all-timber, or Colorbond steel? Knowing this lets you make smart trade-offs instead of being surprised at the end.
Walking through the UBG 3D designer
Our 3D Designer is built around those four decisions. The flow is:
Pick the mode
Start screen asks: pergola only, deck only, or combo. Pick the closest one. You can change later without losing your work.
Size it
A simple width and depth picker. Drag the sliders or type the numbers. The 3D preview updates as you go so you can see straight away if 5 by 5 looks right or if you need to push out to 6 by 4. The viewport is mouse-friendly on desktop and touch-friendly on a phone.
Shape it (optional)
If you need an L-shape, T-shape, U-shape, or a rectangle with a cutout, switch to the shape picker. Useful for wrapping a pergola around a corner of the house or working around an existing tree.
Choose the roof
For pergolas, the big decision is roof type. The four options that cover most of what we build:
- Gable: peaked, classic look, good for shedding rain
- Skillion: single-pitch slope, modern look, good against an existing wall
- Flat: low-profile, usually with a slight fall built in for drainage
- Louvered: motorised opening slats, premium option, all-weather
Material choices behave logically: Colorbond for full shade and weatherproofing, polycarbonate for filtered light, shadecloth for hot climates where you want airflow.
Materials
The board picker shows what each timber or composite looks like installed. For decking, the standard choices are:
- Merbau or Kapur in 90 or 140 mm board widths (warm timber, weathers gracefully)
- Blackbutt or Spotted Gum (Australian hardwoods, beautiful colour variation)
- Evalast Infinity, Apex or Pioneer (composite, basically zero maintenance)
For pergola posts, the call is between treated pine (paintable, classic), Australian hardwood (warm look) and galvanised steel (slim profile, holds the most weight).
Accessories
Fans, lights, weatherproof power points, gutters and privacy screens. Each item is added with a tap and you can see how it changes the look in 3D.
Submit
When the design looks right, fill in your name, phone, email and suburb. The design payload, a screenshot and our calculation all land in our inbox at the same time. We typically respond inside one business day.
What "instant quote" actually means
The number we send back is the result of the same calculation we would do on a clipboard, using the same materials list, the same labour rates and the same fixed costs (site visit, council application, delivery, rubbish removal). Tweaks happen after the site visit (slope, soil, access), but you have a real working budget from minute one.
What is not in the price up front:
- Removal of an existing structure (we quote that separately after seeing it)
- Concrete or paving works that sit underneath
- Electrical certification beyond standard add-ons
What to send when you are ready for a real quote
When you hit submit, three things go through:
- Your design as a structured payload (we can rebuild it byte-for-byte on our end)
- A 3D screenshot of what you see on screen
- Your contact details and suburb
If you have photos of the site (a wide shot of the area, the wall the pergola will attach to, any tricky access), reply to the auto-email with them attached. That gets us most of the way to a final quote without needing a site visit straight away.
Common questions
Do I need to log in? No. The designer is anonymous until you submit.
Will my design save if I refresh? Yes, it lives in your browser. You can come back the next day and pick up where you left off.
Can I send a link to my partner, builder or electrician? Yes. Hit the share button and the URL encodes your design.
Ready to sketch yours?
Spend ten minutes in the 3D Designer and you will have a working design and a budget by the end of it. Or if you would rather talk it through first, get in touch and we will help you scope it.
We are Universal Building Group, a fully licensed building company on the South Coast of South Australia. The designer is free to use and we will not sell your details to anyone.
