Free tools, checked 2026

Best free solar mounting and snow and wind load calculators 2026

Several free tools compute snow and wind loads for a solar array. They differ in what they compute, which standards they use and whether they plan ground mounting at all. This is an honest list, with each tool’s official page.

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Ground frame designer

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Solispec picks the profiles and posts, checks the frame against snow and wind to the DBN and prices it down to the last bolt.

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What a free calculator can and cannot tell you

A snow and wind load calculator turns a location into design values: the characteristic snow load on the ground and the basic wind pressure for the site, then the load on the panels by tilt and height. A mounting configurator goes one step further and sizes the parts of one maker’s system against those loads.

The table lists only tools whose own pages we checked. Where a page does not state a thing, the cell says so. Prices of paid plans are not quoted, because they change; follow the link.

The tools

Tool	What it computes	Ground or roof	Region and standard	Free scope
Solispec	Snow and wind loads, ballast, roof fixing spacing, ground truss check, tilt and row spacing, strings and payback.	Ground, flat roof, pitched roof.	Ukraine by DBN; Poland, Germany, Spain by national annex values of main cities; other countries by your own s_k and q_b.	Every calculator is free and needs no account. The full designer has a free Start plan.
K2 Base	Layout of the K2 mounting system on a roof: fixings, ballast, loads, a report with assembly plan and parts list.	Pitched and flat roofs; ground mounting not mentioned.	Not stated.	Free of charge, says the maker. K2 systems only.
fischer SOLARPANEL-FIX	Mounting structure design with snow and wind loads, an installation plan, a parts list in Excel and a technical report.	Pitched or flat roofs.	Loads by Eurocode 1 from the site’s geolocation; countries not stated.	Price not stated on the pages checked. Online module of the FiXperience suite.
Renusol PV-Configurator	Mounting plan, static calculation and parts list for Renusol systems.	Roof types not listed on the page; ground mounting not stated.	Snow and wind standards of 17 countries; a Eurocode safety concept.	Free, says the maker. Sign-in through a login page.
Schletter Creator	Roof layout drawn on a map and loads by postcode (Creator); structural analysis and DXF export (older Configurator).	Roofs; ground mounting not mentioned.	A worldwide load database; the standard is not stated.	Creator is free in the browser. The Configurator is free for trade companies, on Windows.
Solar-Planit	Planning around BayWa r.e.’s novotegra system: loads, parts list, CAD export, quotes, yield.	Not stated; built around one mounting system.	The maker says 15 countries.	Free, with no licence or subscription fees, after registration.
SkyCiv	Wind, snow and seismic loads for a building. Not specific to solar.	Any building; no PV mounting design.	Codes of many countries, among them EN 1991 and CTE DB SE-AE.	Free with limits, such as three wind speed searches a day. Detailed reports are paid.

Checked November 2, 2026

How to read the table

The makers’ tools are free because they plan the maker’s system. That is a fair deal when you buy that system, and it is why most of them do not claim to cover a frame you fabricate. A general load calculator such as SkyCiv gives you the building code values but stops before the solar-specific work: panel tilt coefficients, ballast, fixings and the check of the profiles.

Solispec’s calculators use the same engine as its designer, so a number from the snow and wind calculator is the number the structural check uses. They cover ground and roof, and they are free without an account. They do not carry a maker’s approval.

Picking one

Match the tool to the job before the price, since they are all free at the entry level. Three questions settle most cases.

Whatever you pick, treat the output as a first estimate. Local snow zones, terrain, building height and roof condition decide the real design, and a qualified engineer checks them.

Is the structure a maker’s system on a roof? Start with that maker’s tool and keep its report.
Is it a ground table, a custom frame or a mixed quote? Use a calculator that is not tied to one maker.
Do you only need the code values for a site? A general load calculator is enough.

Where to go next

Questions

Which free tool is best for ground-mounted solar?

Among the tools checked here, none of the makers’ pages mentions ground mounting. Solispec’s calculators and designer cover ground tables. For a very large plant you would move to dedicated engineering software.

Are these tools accurate enough to build from?

They are accurate enough for planning and quoting. Construction needs a check by a qualified engineer for the real site, and some authorities want the maker’s statics proof for a product.

Do the calculators use Eurocode?

Solispec uses EN 1990, EN 1991-1-3 and EN 1991-1-4 with national annex values for Poland, Germany and Spain, and DBN V.1.2-2 for Ukraine. The fischer page names Eurocode 1, and Renusol names a Eurocode safety concept. K2 and Schletter do not state the standard on the pages checked.

Why is Solispec on a list written by Solispec?

Because the list is for installers who search these terms, and leaving it out would be odd. The competitor entries come from the makers’ own pages, linked below, and the table marks everything those pages do not state.

Do I need an account for the calculators?

Not for Solispec’s free calculators. The makers’ tools differ: Renusol and Solar-Planit ask you to sign in, and the Schletter Configurator needs a login.

Sources

About the competitors only what their public pages state (November 2, 2026); what they do not state is marked «not stated». No competitor prices: they change, see the vendor’s site.