Home Improvement Outdoors Building Projects

15 DIY Cabin Plans for Every Size and Style

From 200 Square Feet to Full-Sized Cabin Homes

A-frame log cabin

The Spruce / Margot Cavin 

Build the cabin of your dreams using small cabin plans—any size or style from small to large and rustic to modern. If you have building expertise, a DIY cabin build is usually cheaper. Living in the home you have built from the ground up is also rewarding, meeting your tastes, needs, and lifestyle.

Cabin costs are usually calculated by square footage, and sizes range from under 500, 1,000, or 2,000 square feet. Tiny cabins are less expensive than larger ones with many prefabricated pieces. Choose a size based on your budget, your land, and what you envision you want. Some plans are free, but you have more options if you pay for the building plans.

A cabin kit is a user-friendly way to make an affordable cabin with a set of building plans. Kits often have the option to get precut materials or an unfinished shell for a basic structure, or some kits are more elaborate with many prefabricated parts; the level of how much you want to do it yourself is up to you.

Many choose a cabin kit to eliminate hiring an architect and engineer, but you want to do the labor and only pay for the kit and materials. Good cabin kit manufacturers also offer building services should you start the building project and leave the rest to professional builders.

Cabin plans should include blueprints, step-by-step building directions, photos, materials lists, and cutting lists. Cabin plans can also be customized.

  • 01 of 15

    The Cottage Life Bunkie Plan

    Picture of a small cabin with a porch

    Oxbow Timber Mart

    This cabin plan from Oxbow Timber Mart is perfect for the parents and a few kids, as it's compact but also makes room for an adult-sized loft. This bunkie plan is ideal for giving privacy to overnight guests or just as a place where you can get away from it all.

    This free cabin plan is a 17-page PDF file that contains detailed instructions, a materials list, a shopping list, and plan drawings. You'll be taken through the process of building the floor, walls, loft, roof, windows, door, trims, and finishing.

    Unlike other cabin plans from this list, The Cottage Life Bunkie doesn't include a kitchen or bathroom.

    • Square footage: 108 square feet
    • Bedrooms: Studio
    • Building plans: https://timbermart.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Bunkie-Plan.pdf
  • 02 of 15

    How to Build a 12' X 20' Cabin on a Budget

    A small wooden cabin

    Instructables

    This free cabin plan from Instructables shows how to build a small cabin with a door and window. The home ends up being 12 feet by 20 feet when finished. It's designed with a budget and does an excellent job of sticking to it.

    Illustrations and real pictures are shown throughout the plan to ensure you're building it correctly. There are 15 steps and almost 50 images to help you with this building project.

    Included are wiring details for the inside of this cabin, with insulation tips, flooring and wall finishing, and furniture ideas.

    • Square footage: 192 square feet
    • Bedrooms: Studio
    • Building plans: https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Build-a-12x20-Cabin-on-a-Budget/
  • 03 of 15

    The Lookout Cabin

    The first page of a cabin plan

    Today's Plans

    This free cabin plan from Today's Plans outlines a 460-square-foot structure, perfect for building within the confines of a small space and making a great tiny home. This cabin has one small bedroom, a full bathroom, and an upstairs, lavatory, and balcony. The plan includes roof and wall framing details, electrical plans, foundation and floor plans, and more. The PDF contains all the cabin blueprints you'll need to build it.

    • Square footage: 460 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 1
    • Building plans: https://todaysplans.com/DO-Lookout-1-Cabin-Plans.pdf
  • 04 of 15

    Two Bedroom Free Cabin Plan

    Blueprint of a front facing cabin plan

    Today's Plans

    Download this PDF for a free cabin plan from Today's Plans that features two bedrooms with a loft and a basement.

    You'll get six pages of large floor plans for the basement, main floor, loft, roof schematic, electrical items, and more. There aren't any written instructions, so you'll need to depend only on the diagrams when building this cabin.

    • Square footage: 1,588 square feet (main floor and loft) plus an additional 1196 square foot basement
    • Bedrooms: 2
    • Building plans: https://todaysplans.net/CabinsAndSheds-Cabin1.pdf
    Continue to 5 of 15 below
  • 05 of 15

    Three Bedroom Cabin Plan

    The first page of a free cabin plan

    LSU AgCenter

    This Chesterfield cabin plan has an open-floorplan living, dining, and kitchen on the first floor and two bedrooms. The third bedroom is on the second floor.

    The plan—one of several offered by LSU AgCenter—includes a fireplace, wood porches, and two full baths. It has 1,164 square feet of living space.

  • 06 of 15

    Dream Cabin With a Loft

    A blueprint of a finished cabin

    Cabin Plans 123

    Follow this free cabin plan from Cabin Plans 123, and you'll have a cabin complete with a living room, kitchen, bedroom, bath, and loft.

    This full cabin plan includes a materials list and instructions for choosing elevation, building the walls and foundation, and calculators for figuring out floor joists, rafters, porch roof beams, porch deck beams, and floor beams.

    • Square footage: 384 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 1
    • Building plans: http://www.cabinplans123.com/images/FreeCabin.pdf
  • 07 of 15

    Off-Grid Cabin Plan from Instructables

    A cabin with solar panels

    Instructables

    Here's another free cabin plan from Instructables, and this one will get you an off-grid cabin that's a small 8-foot by 8-foot. It includes a kitchen, desk, and closet with storage cabinets, a bathroom, a sleeping loft, an RV water system, and a propane system.

    You'll find a materials list, diagrams, and step-by-step directions to help you build this cabin.

    • Square footage: 122 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 1
    • Building plans: https://www.instructables.com/Off-Grid-Stealth-Cabin-Plans/
  • 08 of 15

    Two-story A-Frame

    Two-story A Frame cabin plan

    Family Home Plans

    This contemporary A-frame house plan costs just over $1,000 from Family Home Plans and is a two-story home plan with two bedrooms and two bathrooms with a crawlspace foundation. It can be customized to have a slab foundation, a below-grade basement, or a walk-out basement.

    This plan includes a rear window wall, open living space, and a private bedroom suite on the top floor.

    • Square footage: 1,037 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 2
    • Building plans: https://www.familyhomeplans.com/plan-80518
    Continue to 9 of 15 below
  • 09 of 15

    Luxury Log Cabin

    Luxury log cabin plan

    House Plans and More

    This luxe two-story log cabin home from House Plans and More has two bedrooms and two full bathrooms with a front porch. This home includes an eat-in kitchen, a great room with a cathedral ceiling surrounded by windows, and a fireplace. The first-floor bedroom has a private bath, much like a primary bedroom suite. The second floor has a small room for an office, another bedroom, and a full bath.

    • Square footage: 1,362 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 2
    • Building plans: https://houseplansandmore.com/homeplans/houseplan163D-0006.aspx
  • 10 of 15

    Tiny Log Cabin

    Mini log cabin plan

    Family Home Plans

    Tiny homes are a perfect single-person getaway. This 12-foot by 18-foot log cabin from Family Home Plans has about 200 square feet of livable space and is a two-level construction with loft space and a small front porch. It's built on a slab foundation. You must pay for a PDF of this building plan with a materials list. It also includes scaled drawings of exterior elevations and details about the walls, foundation, and roof.

    • Square footage: 201 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 1
    • Building plans: https://www.familyhomeplans.com/plan-6024
  • 11 of 15

    Pentagon-shaped Tiny Cabin

    Pentagon shaped cabin

    Pinup Houses

    This one-bedroom pentagon-shaped tiny cabin by Pinup Houses has 329 square feet of living space, with a gable roof, two skylights, and tilted walls to give the impression of more space. The one-bedroom has a 164-square-foot sleeping loft with a little wooden staircase and a 43-square-foot front porch. The building plans cost just over $100, including the CAD design, material list, and tool list. This house is estimated to cost about $7,000 to build.

    • Square footage: 329 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 1
    • Building plans: https://www.pinuphouses.com/pentagon-cabin-plans-ann/?set=38
  • 12 of 15

    One-bedroom Square Cabin

    Abigail cabin plan

    Pinup Houses

    This one-floor cabin by Pinup Houses includes one bedroom, a full bathroom, a walk-in pantry with shelving, and a back entrance. To save space, it has sliding bathroom and bedroom doors. The plans include a narrow covered porch that can be extended a couple of feet as a nice space for outdoor meals. This design is good for DIY beginners who want to avoid building with tricky angles. This cabin kit PDF plan costs about $500, including layouts, details, sections, elevations, material variants, and plans for windows and doors. This build-out is estimated to cost about $29,000.

    • Square footage: 329 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 1
    • Building plans: https://www.pinuphouses.com/square-cabin-plans-abigail/
    Continue to 13 of 15 below
  • 13 of 15

    Luxe A-frame

    Luxe A-frame cabin plan

    Den

    This modern two-bedroom A-frame by Den accommodates four to six people with two bedrooms, including a primary bedroom in the loft, a floating staircase, floor-to-ceiling windows, two full bathrooms with a luxurious overlook bathtub, a full open-concept kitchen, laundry closet, wood or gas stove, and an option for mini-split HVAC or suspended fireplace. The PDF plans cost about $200.

    • Square footage: 1,650 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 2
    • Building plans: https://denoutdoors.com/collections/small-house-and-aframe-plans/products/2-bedroom-a-frame-house-plan-with-loft
  • 14 of 15

    Rectangular Country Cabin

    Rectangular country cabin plan

    Family Home Plans

    This 960-square-foot small country cabin from Family Home Plans has two bedrooms with closets, one bathroom with a tub and shower combo, vanity, counter, and linen storage, and 960 square feet of living space. This cabin has an open floor plan with a spacious living room open to the kitchen, a coat closet for storage or a stackable laundry station, and decorative, rustic beams.

    • Square footage: 960 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 2
    • Building plans: https://www.familyhomeplans.com/blog/2023/01/small-country-cabin-plan-with-960-square-feet/
  • 15 of 15

    3-bedroom Modern Cabin

    Truoba cabin plan

    Truoba

    This 1,410 square-foot, two-story, three-bedroom open-floor plan cabin from Truoba offers a lot of sunlight with a modern home office or hobby room. It has an airy kitchen, living room, fireplace, covered front and side porch, and open rear deck. The primary bedroom includes a built-in wall closet and has a separate utility room for laundry or closet space. The second-floor space is 176 square feet for a guest bedroom. The building plans cost $1,600 for PDFs and $2,100 with CADs, including the materials list, construction notes, and plans for the foundation, plumbing, roof, elevation, HVAC, electrical, doors, and windows.

    • Square footage: 1,410 square feet
    • Bedrooms: 3
    • Building plans: https://www.truoba.com/house-plans/t-321/
FAQ
  • What is the simplest cabin to build?

    A vertical log cabin with a slab or crawlspace foundation is the simplest and one of the least expensive types of homes to build.

  • What type of cabin is the cheapest?

    Log cabins are among the cheapest; the smaller the cabin, the lower the building cost. For example, a 500-square-foot log cabin averages about $75,000 to build, according to HomeAdvisor. A cabin kit is a little more expensive but makes building a log cabin easier with modern, prefabricated details and finishes.

  • What is the perfect size for a small cabin?

    A good size for a small cabin is between 1,000 to 2,000 square feet, although tiny cabin living aficionados can live comfortably with 100 to 400 square feet.