- Free
- No sign-up
- Your plan is never uploaded
See every camera on your floor plan before anyone drills a hole.
Open your floor plan, click where each camera goes, and watch the coverage appear. In a few minutes you have a clean PDF drawing with a legend and a full camera list.
- Open a PDF, JPG or PNG floor plan
- Click to place and aim your cameras
- Download the finished PDF drawing
Loading the camera planner…
Best on a desktop or laptop. Files up to 50 MB and 40 pages. Right-click the plan for quick options, or press ? for shortcuts.
What you get
Everything you need to turn a blank floor plan into a camera drawing you can hand to a client, a landlord or an installer.
Six camera types
Turret, 180° panoramic, dome, bullet, 360° fisheye and PTZ. Each has its own colour, so the drawing reads at a glance.
Aim it like the real thing
Drag one handle to point the camera and set how far it covers. Pick a lens from 2.8 mm to 12 mm and the shape changes to match.
Real distances
Click two points you know the distance between, type the number, and every coverage area shows in feet or metres.
Numbers that fix themselves
Cameras are numbered as you go. Delete CAM-02 and the next camera you add takes that number, so there are no gaps.
A drawing and a camera list
The PDF keeps your plan sharp and adds the cameras, a legend with counts, and a schedule listing each camera’s type, location, mount, aim and notes.
Private by design
The planner runs in your browser. Your floor plan stays on your computer and is never sent to us or anyone else.
Which camera goes where
The camera type decides the shape of the coverage. These are the shapes you will see on your plan.
Turret
The everyday choice. A wide view of about 100° that suits most rooms and doors.
Use it for: entrances, corridors, offices, shipping doors.
180° panoramic
One camera on a wall sees everything in front of it. Detail drops faster with distance.
Use it for: parking lots, building faces, long warehouse walls.
Dome
Same wide view as a turret in a tougher, more discreet housing.
Use it for: indoor ceilings, retail floors, lobbies, low mounts people can reach.
Bullet
A narrow view that reaches far. It sees less to the sides.
Use it for: fence lines, driveways, gates, licence plates.
360° fisheye
A full circle from one ceiling camera. Great overview, weaker detail at the edges.
Use it for: the middle of an open office, store or warehouse bay.
PTZ
Turns and zooms anywhere, but only records where it is pointed at that moment.
Use it for: yards and large lots with someone watching live. Pair it with fixed cameras.
Want the full comparison? Read dome vs bullet vs turret cameras for business and 2K/5MP vs 4K security cameras.
How far can a camera really see?
A camera sees a long way. The useful question is how much detail is left at that distance. Here is a typical 4K camera with a wide lens.
This is why one wide camera over the front door is rarely enough. It shows that someone came in, but not who. Use a wide camera for the overview and a tighter one where you need a face or a plate.
Show the numbers for other cameras and how they are calculated
The levels come from the CCTV standard IEC 62676-4, which measures detail in pixels per metre across the scene: 250 to identify, 125 to recognise, 62.5 to observe and 25 to detect. The four levels are known as DORI.
| Camera | Identify | Recognise | Observe | Detect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 MP, 100° lens | 4.3 m (14 ft) | 8.6 m (28 ft) | 17 m (56 ft) | 43 m (141 ft) |
| 4K (8 MP), 100° lens | 6.4 m (21 ft) | 12.9 m (42 ft) | 26 m (85 ft) | 64 m (211 ft) |
| 4K (8 MP), 180° panoramic | 4.9 m (16 ft) | 9.8 m (32 ft) | 20 m (64 ft) | 49 m (160 ft) |
Pixels per metre = horizontal pixels ÷ scene width
4 MP is 2560 pixels wide and 4K is 3840 pixels wide. The 180° row measures along the arc in front of the camera (π × distance). These are daylight figures at the centre of the image. Night, infrared, compression and lens distortion all reduce them.
Six placement rules we use on real jobs
Keep these in mind as you click cameras onto your plan.
- Start with the doorsPut a camera on every exterior door, looking at people as they come in. Mount it at 8 to 10 ft so it sees faces under a hat brim.
- Cover the choke pointsStairwells, elevator lobbies and the corridor between office and warehouse. A few cameras here see everyone who moves through the building.
- Do not aim at bright openingsA camera pointed at a window or an open dock door turns people into silhouettes. Mount beside the opening and look across it.
- Let cameras watch each otherWhere it matters, place each camera inside the view of another one, so tampering is recorded.
- Pick the height on purposeHigher covers more floor. Lower gives better faces. In racking, put cameras at the aisle ends looking down the aisle.
- Keep cable runs under 100 m (328 ft)That is the limit for a PoE camera from its network switch. Longer runs need a closer network closet or fiber.
More detail: loading dock camera guide, where to put network closets in a warehouse and the PoE power calculator.
Make the distances real
A PDF does not know how big your building is. Choose Set scale, click the two ends of something you know the length of, and type the distance. A dimensioned wall is best. A standard door opening, about 3 ft wide, also works.
After that, coverage shows in feet or metres and the camera list includes each camera’s range. Skip this step and the planner still works. The shapes then show direction and relative size only.
Your drawings stay with you
The floor plan is opened, marked up and exported on your own computer. It is not uploaded to Cablify or anyone else. That matters when the drawing shows a secure site or a building that is not yours to share.
Because the work happens on your computer, the planner opens files up to 50 MB and 40 pages. For a bigger drawing set, save only the floor plan sheets as a new PDF and open that.
Questions people ask
Is the camera layout planner free?
Yes. It is free to use, there is no account to create and no limit on the number of cameras or drawings. The exported PDF carries a small “Planned with Cablify” line in the legend.
What file types can I open?
PDF floor plans, including multi-page drawing sets, and JPG or PNG images such as a scanned plan or a screenshot. Files can be up to 50 MB and 40 pages.
Is my floor plan uploaded anywhere?
No. The file is processed in your browser on your own computer. It is not sent to our server. We only see a layout if you email the exported PDF to us.
I deleted a camera. How do I get its number back?
Add a new camera and it takes the lowest free number, so if you delete CAM-10 the next camera you place becomes CAM-10. You can also press Ctrl+Z to undo the delete, type any ID you like in the Camera ID box, or use Renumber cameras to renumber the whole drawing in order.
How accurate are the coverage areas?
They are a planning aid. The shape follows the field of view and coverage length you set, on a flat plan. Real coverage also depends on mounting height, tilt, the exact lens, lighting, and walls or racking in the way. A site assessment confirms the final positions.
How many cameras do I need?
Count the things you need to see, not the square footage. Start with every exterior door, then choke points inside, then the specific areas that matter to you such as receiving, cash, the server room and the parking lot. Place those on the plan, check the gaps between the coverage areas, and add cameras only where a gap matters.
Can I use the planner for my own clients or projects?
Yes. Put your own name or company in the Prepared by box and it appears on the camera schedule.
Can Cablify install the layout I made?
Yes. Choose Get a quote in the planner, download the PDF and send it to us. We review the layout, confirm it with a free site assessment, usually within one to two business days, and send a written quote for the cameras, cabling, recorder and installation anywhere in Toronto and the GTA.
Related services and guides
- Security camera installationCommercial CCTV design and installation across Toronto and the GTA.
- Cloud security camerasCloud-managed, NDAA compliant camera systems for one site or many.
- Conduit fill calculatorHow many camera and data cables fit in EMT and PVC conduit.
Send us the PDF. Our own background-checked technicians confirm it on site and quote the cameras, cabling and recorder, anywhere in Toronto and the GTA.
The planner is a layout and estimating aid. Coverage areas are approximate and do not replace a site assessment or a system design by a qualified installer.