When not sketching ideas for my architectural projects, I often comb the Internet for the latest home-design technologies and software. Easy-to-use apps for smartphones and tablets can be invaluable to homeowners and professionals alike, offering ideas and clever tools to assist with renovations. Having reviewed more than 70 home-related apps, I’ve selected several standouts—most of them free and downloadable (for both iOS and Android devices) at the Apple iTunes store and at Google Play.

Helping to inspire and to take the guesswork out of paint selection are three apps: Behr Paint’s ColorSmart, Benjamin Moore’s Color Capture, and Sherwin-Williams’s ColorSnap (pictured above). All make it easy to browse and save colors, find purchasing locations, and matchpaints to hues in images you’ve selected from your device’s photo albums. I love to use these apps to pinpoint colors that catch my eye while traveling. The ColorSmart and Color Capture apps also allow you to input room dimensions to calculate paint costs, and share your color schemes on Facebook and other social media. ColorSnap’s iPad version (which offers more functions than the phone app) also lets you try out different shades in a room by virtually painting uploaded photographs with the brush of a finger. behr.com, benjaminmoore.com, and sherwin-williams.com

With the elegant Homestyler Interior Design app, users can point and shoot a room, import existing photographs, or use one of the software’s room templates, then drop in furniture, lighting, rugs, and finishes to see how they look in the space. I find it great for showing rough concepts to clients as well as for visual reference when making shopping decisions on the go. There are options to save and share ideas (including within the Homestyler community), and the app can help connect you with design professionals in your area. homestyler.com

When working on clients’ gardens, I like to use iScape to plot out basic features and explore ideas. I simply take a photograph of an outdoor area and start adding in trees, plant beds, water features, walkways, and furniture from the app’s database. The paid version ($9.99) provides a much more extensive image bank, while iScape’s sister app, HardScape ($4.99), offers an extra-wide array of options for rendering surfaces, walls, fences, and more. iscapeapps.com

The recently updated Home Design 3D is a robust interior design tool that enables you to create or upload floor plans and populate the rooms (in 2-D or 3-D) with sample furnishings and textures. The real treat is designing with the paid version (starting at $6.99), which allows you to import and customize your own decor elements as well as save and share projects. homedesign3d.net

- Text by Campion Platt