Modsy Design Review – Worth the Money?

An update on Modsy Design in 2023 is that it is closed.

Have you wondered about this program? I decided to try Modsy design services after seeing a coupon on Instagram which allowed me to get the “Modsy Plus” for $59.

The Plus plan gives you a 3D floor plan with unlimited changes and access to exclusive discounts on the furniture and accessories that they recommend.

How Much Does Modsy Cost in 2021?

There are several different room design plans in Modsy’s suite of services.

• Premium design package is $159 where you work one on one with a modsy designer and you get two drafts plus unlimited revisions
• Multi-room is $299 and you can do two or more rooms and get two drafts with unlimited design revisions
• Luxe package is $499 – you get video support

The Process

The design process for each room is pretty simple and takes about 30 minutes for one room. This doesn’t include putting all of your stuff away, because you have to send photos.

When you are getting started Modsy asks you which living space you want to decorate and why? Are you moving, looking for new pieces of furniture, need help with the layout? Then you have to choose if you are starting from scratch or not.

Modsy also asks you to give them guidance about your design style preferences. Don’t worry if you don’t know your personal style, they give you images to help narrow it down. For example, modern, trendy, rustic, urban and dramatic. If you have no idea what your style is, they will take you to a design quiz to help.

1.) The first step is to measure the length and width of your room (for me a living room).

2.) Take 8 photos of the room standing against every wall and in all 4 corners, which is why you need to put junk away.

3.) Take their style quiz where you look at images to see which ones match up with your style. You also select which retailers or furniture stores you normally like.

4.) Add any specific requests. I told them that I had curtains that were not hung yet and what color they were. I told them what accent colors I wanted to use (blue and red). Lastly, I told them I had a piece of art and the size of the art that I planned to hang above the sofa.

5.) Tell them your budget.

The Follow Up

I had mentioned to them the piece of artwork with dimensions. When you are filling out the background information they let you know that if you want to design around any of your existing furniture specifically, you will have to pay $15 per item.

They responded immediately that I would need to pay the extra fee for them to factor in my artwork. I decided to pass. I really just wanted to see what a “professional designer” would suggest for furniture placement and possibly take advantage of furniture discounts on the items they suggested.

The Solution

The Modsy team responded with a design very quickly. It is interactive on the phone, meaning you can spin the phone around and see the room from every angle. I wasn’t crazy for the furniture placement. They had two chairs facing the sofa, which I get, but they would be facing away from the TV.

My main problem with the initial design was that it lacked any color. It was a color palette of beige, beige furniture, beige wood, beige lamps. Everything was the same color. See a few screen shots below of my first design. The rug had blues, which I liked. Every dot you see is something you can purchase.

First Solution

Second Solution

I put my concerns into the second request to see what they would do differently. Mainly, I didn’t like the placement of the chairs and the furniture and decor were mostly beige. Here’s what they came back with for my second design.

View facing the front door.

Pros & Cons

The things I liked about the process were:

1.) It was a quick turnaround, within 48 hours I had the initial designs, and it was easy to complete the design request.

2.) The best part was that for each product they recommend you can click on it to see that product, plus six other similar items, all with an add to cart. It was interesting because Modsy suggested some stores that I had never heard of outside the usual, well-known brands like Pottery Barn and Crate & Barrel.

Here are a few I will go back to: Zuo (for lantern by fireplace), Tanjore (for pouf, rugs and lamps), Pinecone Hill (for pillows), Ashby Home (for side tables and lamps), DW Silks (for artificial plants), Chelsea Art Studio (for artwork)

3.) If you purchase the plan with unlimited changes, they really do pick out different pieces and rearrange the layout options as requested.

4.) I loved being able to visualize the furniture in the space and the layout was fairly accurate, especially since I only gave them two measurements. It even included moldings like I have and a mantle that looks almost exactly like mine. It did give me some ideas about where to place furniture that I hadn’t thought about and I tried them.

What I didn’t like:

1.) I thought the overall design looked a little bit like a computer picked everything out, but it WAS only $58. You can read more about the pros and cons of hiring a real interior designer here.

2.) If you want the design to incorporate anything in your current space you have to pay for each item – $15 per item. I understand why they do that because it adds to the time they spend setting it up, but basically they can’t work with anything you already have.

3.) If I bought everything in their design it would far exceed my “budget” of $2500. I think the design picked a sofa similar to the one I have, so many of the large pieces I wouldn’t need to purchase.

How long does it take to get Modsy Designs back?

I got my room design back in 48 hours. They are very quick and when I asked for the second round it was even faster.