AI commercial exterior design

AI Commercial Exterior Design: See a New Look on Your Shop, Cafe or Office

A new paint colour, an awning or a cladding change can cost a lot to try on a real building. Upload a photo of the front of your shop, cafe or office, pick the Facade type, and ArchitecturesAI renders the same view; then describe the change in a sentence to try it. The result is an idea picture for choosing a direction and for talking to a painter, sign maker or architect. It does not know your lease, local rules or building materials, and it does not always do exactly what the sentence says, as the three examples below show.

Try a new look on your building

Sign in with Google or email to render. New accounts get 2 free renders (watermarked); free renders are not available in India on this site.

A small shop front on a street corner with a cream rendered wall, a blank pale grey signboard, a large window with a grey frame, a grey glass door, grey drainpipes and a paved pavement — Both images are AI-generated with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a shop front; it is not a real shop. Edit prompt used: "Change ONLY the shop front: paint the wall deep green, make the window larger with a thin black frame, add a dark green fabric awning above the window with no text on it, and keep the signboard blank. Keep the door position, the pavement, the sky and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: the cream wall is now deep green, a green fabric awning with a scalloped edge hangs over the top of the window, and the signboard is still blank. What was NOT done: the window was not made larger, and its frame and the door frame are still grey, not black as the prompt asked. Extra change the AI made on its own: the pale grey signboard also turned dark green. The door, the drainpipes, the pavement, the reflections in the glass and the sky are unchanged.

The same shop front with a deep green wall, a dark green blank signboard, a green fabric awning with a scalloped edge over the top of the window, and the same grey door, drainpipes and pavement — Both images are AI-generated with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a shop front; it is not a real shop. Edit prompt used: "Change ONLY the shop front: paint the wall deep green, make the window larger with a thin black frame, add a dark green fabric awning above the window with no text on it, and keep the signboard blank. Keep the door position, the pavement, the sky and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: the cream wall is now deep green, a green fabric awning with a scalloped edge hangs over the top of the window, and the signboard is still blank. What was NOT done: the window was not made larger, and its frame and the door frame are still grey, not black as the prompt asked. Extra change the AI made on its own: the pale grey signboard also turned dark green. The door, the drainpipes, the pavement, the reflections in the glass and the sky are unchanged.

What AI commercial exterior design does

A commercial exterior visualizer shows a shop, cafe or office with a new look before you pay for it. Paint charts and cladding samples show a colour on a small card. An AI picture shows the colour, an awning or a different cladding on your own building, in the light of your own photo.

AI tools start from your photo, keep the camera and the general shape of the building, and repaint or add what you describe. They are fast and cheap to repeat. They are not drawings: they do not know real sizes, and they do not follow every instruction.

How to try a new look on your building with ArchitecturesAI

Click "Try a new look on your building". The Render Architecture tool opens with Facade selected under Architecture Type. Sign in with Google or email.
Under "Please select an image", click Select Image and upload a JPG or PNG of the front of the building. Photograph it straight on or from a corner in daylight, with the whole front in frame and as few cars and people as possible.
Pick the Style closest to the look you want, such as Modern, and generate. Free accounts can only use Low quality (Medium and High are marked PRO).
To change one thing, use Custom Action or Edit Image on the result and describe it in a sentence: what to change, the colour or material, and what must stay the same. Each edit uses credits. Run it a few times, since each result differs.
The examples on this page ran directly on our image model with the written instructions shown, not through this tool, so your result will differ.

Try a new look on your building

Ideas you can try

A new wall colour on a shop front, as in the first example.
An awning above a window, as in the first and third examples.
Cladding panels instead of brick on an office, as in the second example.
Bistro tables and chairs on the pavement of a cafe, as in the third example.
Two or three colours of the same wall, to compare before you buy paint.

What the AI keeps and what it may change

Use this as a checklist when you compare a result with your building.

Usually kept: the camera angle, the building shape, the door positions, the pavement and the sky, as in all three examples.
Often changed without being asked: nearby surfaces, such as the signboard that also turned green in the first example.
Sometimes not done: asking for a larger window or black frames did not work in the first example, wide glass windows did not appear in the second, and the white window frame and door stayed white in the third.
Never produced: measurements, a materials list, a cost, or a check on whether the change is allowed.

A two-storey office building with orange brick walls, small white-framed windows, a small canopy over a white entrance door, a drainpipe, and a car park with white bay lines and two parked cars — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo, not a real building. Edit prompt used: "Change ONLY the walls and windows: cover the brick with dark grey metal cladding panels and replace the small windows with wide black-framed glass windows in the same positions. Keep the building shape, the entrance, the car park, the sky and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: the orange brick is gone and the walls are covered in dark grey panels with visible joints, and the window frames are now black. What was NOT done: the windows were not replaced with wide glass windows, so they are the same size and in the same places as before. The entrance canopy, the white door, the drainpipe, the building shape, the car park, the cars and the cloudy sky are the same.

The same office building with dark grey cladding panels with visible joints instead of brick, black window frames, and the same white entrance door and canopy, drainpipe, car park and cloudy sky — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo, not a real building. Edit prompt used: "Change ONLY the walls and windows: cover the brick with dark grey metal cladding panels and replace the small windows with wide black-framed glass windows in the same positions. Keep the building shape, the entrance, the car park, the sky and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: the orange brick is gone and the walls are covered in dark grey panels with visible joints, and the window frames are now black. What was NOT done: the windows were not replaced with wide glass windows, so they are the same size and in the same places as before. The entrance canopy, the white door, the drainpipe, the building shape, the car park, the cars and the cloudy sky are the same.

Before you change a real building

The image is for choosing a direction. If you rent the premises, check your lease and ask the landlord before you paint or add an awning. Some places also have rules on signs, awnings, colours or changes to a listed or historic building, so ask your local authority before you start. Keep in mind that the picture shows none of this.

Keep the signboard blank in the picture if you plan to add your own name later: the AI should not be trusted to draw text or a logo. For the idea on a house rather than a business, see the house facade page.

A white rendered corner building with a ground-floor window and a white door, a blank window panel to the right, a dark maroon door at the far left, a black gutter, a paved pavement and a street with double yellow lines — Both images come from our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo, not a real cafe. Edit prompt used: "Change ONLY the cafe front: paint the walls and window frame terracotta orange, add a striped cream and terracotta awning above the window, and put two small round metal bistro tables with chairs on the pavement. Keep the door, the building shape, the sky and the camera angle exactly the same. No text anywhere." What followed it: the walls are now terracotta orange, including the upper floor and its window sill, the pillar left of the door, the lower window sill and the blank panel on the right, a striped cream and terracotta awning sits above the window, and two small round tables with two chairs each stand on the pavement. What was NOT done: the window frame and the door are still white, not terracotta. Extra change: the awning covers the top of the window. The maroon door at the far left, the black gutter, the pavement, the street and the sky are the same; only the door at the far left keeps its maroon, while the wall around it is orange.

The same corner building painted terracotta orange, with a striped cream and terracotta awning over the window and two small round bistro tables with chairs on the pavement, and the same maroon door, black gutter and street — Both images come from our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo, not a real cafe. Edit prompt used: "Change ONLY the cafe front: paint the walls and window frame terracotta orange, add a striped cream and terracotta awning above the window, and put two small round metal bistro tables with chairs on the pavement. Keep the door, the building shape, the sky and the camera angle exactly the same. No text anywhere." What followed it: the walls are now terracotta orange, including the upper floor and its window sill, the pillar left of the door, the lower window sill and the blank panel on the right, a striped cream and terracotta awning sits above the window, and two small round tables with two chairs each stand on the pavement. What was NOT done: the window frame and the door are still white, not terracotta. Extra change: the awning covers the top of the window. The maroon door at the far left, the black gutter, the pavement, the street and the sky are the same; only the door at the far left keeps its maroon, while the wall around it is orange.

AI idea picture, a mock-up or a designer?

ArchitecturesAI. No setup: upload a photo, describe the change and get a picture back. Good for comparing colours and ideas; not to scale and not faithful to every instruction.
A sign maker, painter or shopfitter. They can mock up your sign and awning to size and give a price, but you wait for them.
An architect or your local authority. Needed for structural changes, planning rules and listed buildings.

Free tier and plans

You need a free account to render. New accounts get 2 free renders, and free renders carry a watermark. In India this site does not include free renders, so a paid plan is needed there. Weekly, monthly and yearly plans for more renders without the watermark are on the pricing page.

The "before" images on this page are AI-drawn stand-ins, not photos of real buildings.

Frequently asked questions

Can AI redesign the exterior of a shop, cafe or office from a photo?

Yes, as a concept picture. Upload a photo of the front, choose the Facade type, and describe the change with Custom Action or Edit Image on the result. It keeps the camera and the building shape and repaints or adds what you describe, but it is not to scale.

Will it do exactly what I write?

Not always. In our three examples it changed the wall colours and added awnings, but it did not enlarge a window, did not make wide glass windows and left a white window frame and door white. Check each result against what you asked for and run it again with a clearer sentence.

Can it add a sign with my shop name?

We do not recommend it. AI pictures often draw text wrongly, so we keep the signboard blank in the examples. Add your own name later with a sign maker.

Do I need permission to change my shop or office front?

That depends on where you live and whether you own or rent the building. Check your lease with the landlord, and ask your local authority about rules on signs, awnings, colours and listed or historic buildings.

What photo should I upload?

A level photo in daylight of the whole front, straight on or from a corner, with as few cars and people as possible. Crop out text and toolbars.

Is it free to try?

Yes. After you sign in, a new account gets 2 free renders with a watermark. In India this site does not include free renders. Paid weekly, monthly and yearly plans are listed on the pricing page.

See the new look before you paint

Upload a photo of your shop, cafe or office, describe the change, and compare a few ideas. Your first 2 renders on a free account are on us.

Try a new look on your building