Cupola design

Cupola Design: See a Cupola on Your Roof

A cupola is a small structure that sits on the ridge of a roof, with louvres or windows on its sides and its own little roof, often topped with a weathervane. It is a classic finish for garages, barns, farmhouses and stables, and people search for cupola designs to pick a size, a shape and a style before they buy one. This AI cupola design tool starts from a picture: upload a photo of your garage, house or barn, and ArchitecturesAI renders it in the same view; then describe the cupola, its roof and the weathervane in a sentence. The result is an idea picture. It is not a size chart, a fitting guide or a quote.

Upload your roof photo

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 white two-car garage with a grey shingle roof, a front gable and a side gable, two white garage doors and a driveway — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a two-car garage, not a real garage. Edit prompt used: "Add a cupola on the middle of the roof ridge of this garage: a small square white wooden cupola with louvred sides and a copper hip roof with a weathervane on top. Keep the garage, the roof, the doors, the siding, the driveway and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: a small square white wooden cupola with louvred sides, a copper hip roof and a weathervane; the garage, the roof, the doors, the siding and the driveway stayed. What differs from the prompt: it sits low on the front roof slope next to the front gable rather than in the middle of the ridge. We ran this one once.

The same garage with a square white louvred cupola with a copper hip roof and a weathervane on the roof, beside the front gable — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a two-car garage, not a real garage. Edit prompt used: "Add a cupola on the middle of the roof ridge of this garage: a small square white wooden cupola with louvred sides and a copper hip roof with a weathervane on top. Keep the garage, the roof, the doors, the siding, the driveway and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: a small square white wooden cupola with louvred sides, a copper hip roof and a weathervane; the garage, the roof, the doors, the siding and the driveway stayed. What differs from the prompt: it sits low on the front roof slope next to the front gable rather than in the middle of the ridge. We ran this one once.

What a cupola is and how people choose one

This Old House, Fine Homebuilding, Ask the Builder and makers such as Brick & Batten describe the cupola and how to pick one:

A small roofed structure on the roof ridge, square, hexagonal or octagonal, with louvres (for air) or windows (for light).
A working cupola vents hot air from a barn or attic; many on garages today are only decorative.
A common rule of thumb: about 1.25 inches of cupola width for every foot of roof length, so a 24 foot garage takes a cupola about 30 inches wide.
Its roof is often copper, metal or shingles, and it is usually topped with a weathervane or a finial.
Seeing it on a photo of your own roof is the easiest way to judge the size before you buy.

How to try a cupola design with ArchitecturesAI

In the editor above, the mode is Render Architecture, the type is Residential and the style is Traditional. This mode has no prompt box: you start from an image.
Under Select Image, upload a JPG or PNG: a daylight photo of your garage, house or barn taken from the street with the whole roof ridge in view.
Click Generate. Free accounts can only use Low quality (Medium and High are marked PRO). Sign in with Google or email when asked.
To steer the result, click Edit Image on it (the box is called Edit Instructions) or use Custom Action, and describe the cupola shape, the louvres or windows, its roof, the weathervane and where it sits and what must stay the same. Each edit is another render and uses credits. Run it a few times, since every result differs.
The three examples below ran directly on our image model with the written instructions shown. They did not go through the editor above, so your own results will differ.

Upload your roof photo

A cupola on a garage

Garages are the most common place for a cupola. Here the shape, the copper roof and the weathervane came through; it landed lower on the roof than asked.

A cupola on a farmhouse or a barn

A glass cupola suits a farmhouse and a large louvred one suits a barn. The captions note where each one landed on the roof.

A white two-storey farmhouse with a black shingle roof, dormers and a brick chimney, a covered front porch, black windows, a lawn and a gravel drive — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a farmhouse, not a real house. Edit prompt used: "Add a cupola on the middle of the main roof ridge: an octagonal white cupola with small glass windows on each side, a black metal roof and a simple finial on top. Keep the house, the roof, the porch, the windows, the lawn, the drive and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: an octagonal white cupola with small glass windows, a black metal roof and a finial; the house, the dormers, the porch, the windows, the lawn and the drive stayed. What differs from the prompt: it sits towards the left end of the roof rather than in the middle of the ridge, and the brick chimney that stood there is gone. We ran this one once.

The same farmhouse with a white octagonal cupola with small glass windows, a black metal roof and a finial on the main roof — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a farmhouse, not a real house. Edit prompt used: "Add a cupola on the middle of the main roof ridge: an octagonal white cupola with small glass windows on each side, a black metal roof and a simple finial on top. Keep the house, the roof, the porch, the windows, the lawn, the drive and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: an octagonal white cupola with small glass windows, a black metal roof and a finial; the house, the dormers, the porch, the windows, the lawn and the drive stayed. What differs from the prompt: it sits towards the left end of the roof rather than in the middle of the ridge, and the brick chimney that stood there is gone. We ran this one once.

A red barn-style building with a gambrel roof in grey metal, two dormers, white trim, white cross-braced doors and a fenced paddock — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a barn-style building, not a real barn. Edit prompt used: "Add one large square white wooden cupola sitting on the middle of the main roof ridge, with louvred sides, a grey metal pyramid roof and a black rooster weathervane on top; the cupola is clearly visible above the ridge. Keep the barn, the dormers, the roof, the doors and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: a large square white louvred cupola with a grey metal pyramid roof and a black rooster weathervane, clearly above the ridge; the barn, the roof, the doors and the paddock stayed. What differs from the prompt: the cupola took the place of one of the two dormers. We ran this one twice: the first run added only a weathervane and no cupola, so we reworded the prompt and ran it again on the same "before". The pair shown is the second run.

The same barn with a large square white louvred cupola with a grey metal pyramid roof and a rooster weathervane on the ridge — An AI-generated pair made with our own image model. The "before" is an AI-drawn stand-in for a photo of a barn-style building, not a real barn. Edit prompt used: "Add one large square white wooden cupola sitting on the middle of the main roof ridge, with louvred sides, a grey metal pyramid roof and a black rooster weathervane on top; the cupola is clearly visible above the ridge. Keep the barn, the dormers, the roof, the doors and the camera angle exactly the same." What followed it: a large square white louvred cupola with a grey metal pyramid roof and a black rooster weathervane, clearly above the ridge; the barn, the roof, the doors and the paddock stayed. What differs from the prompt: the cupola took the place of one of the two dormers. We ran this one twice: the first run added only a weathervane and no cupola, so we reworded the prompt and ran it again on the same "before". The pair shown is the second run.

What the AI keeps and what it may change

Usually kept: the camera angle, the building, the roof and the setting.
Often different from what you asked: where on the ridge the cupola sits and how big it is.
Sometimes removed: small roof features near it, such as a dormer or a chimney.
Never produced: floor plans, structure, cost estimates or approval drawings.

Finishing a roof or a garage?

The dormer page covers windows in the roof, the roof design page covers roof materials, and the farmhouse and barndominium pages cover the house styles that usually carry a cupola.

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 garage, the farmhouse and the barn on this page are AI-drawn stand-ins, not real. Each example was run directly on the model, not through the tool above.

Frequently asked questions

What is a cupola on a roof?

A small roofed structure on the ridge, with louvres or windows on its sides, often topped with a weathervane. It can vent a barn or attic or be purely decorative.

What size cupola do I need?

A common rule of thumb is about 1.25 inches of cupola width per foot of roof length. A render of your own roof helps you judge it by eye, but check the maker's sizing before you buy.

Is there a text box in the editor?

The prompt box exists only in Architecture Generator mode. The editor above opens in Render Architecture, where you upload an image and change the result with Edit Image (Edit Instructions) or Custom Action.

Is it free to try?

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

See a cupola on your roof

Upload a photo of your garage, house or barn, compare a few cupola shapes and sizes, and take the best one to your supplier. Your first 2 renders on a free account are on us.

Upload your roof photo