Best Pallet Rack Design Software in 2026: OneRack vs. Configura CET vs. AutoCAD vs. RISA

If you manage a warehouse, you have probably dealt with rack design projects that take longer than they should. The layout goes back and forth, structural calculations take weeks to come back, and by the time a revised preliminary reaches you, the project is already behind.

Most people deal with this. No single tool has ever covered the full process, so most manufacturers and integrators built their own workarounds and learned to live with the extra time requirements.

This article looks at the four tools that show up most often in that workflow:

• OneRack Solutions
• Configura CET
• AutoCAD
• RISA-3D

We’ll focus on what actually matters for rack projects: which tools handle the structural engineering side automatically, and which ones require a licensed engineer to complete the work. 

That single difference has a huge effect on how long your projects take, what they cost, and how much risk you are carrying on each job.

What Actually Matters in Rack Design Software

Most software comparisons focus on interface, support quality, and integrations. 

But when you’re trying to choose the right software, these things actually aren’t all that helpful. They matter a lot less than the structural side. 

Here are the differences you actually need to know about in order to tell which software is most useful for you:

ANSI MH16.1 and RMI compliance. This is the main US safety and design standard for storage racks. Any software built for rack engineering should have this built in. If it does not, the engineer has to apply it manually on every single project, which takes more time and leaves more room for error.

Structural analysis (FEA). FEA, or finite element analysis, is how engineers test whether a rack design can safely handle real-world loads. It is the most rigorous method available and what most building departments want to see when reviewing permit applications. Some tools run this automatically, others use simplified tables, and some do not do it at all.

PE-stamped drawings. Most rack installations that require a building permit also need drawings signed off by a licensed structural engineer. How quickly a tool can get you that sign-off directly affects your project timeline.

Preliminary designs, bills of materials (BOMs), and proposals. A BOM is a complete list of every part going into the installation. A tool that only produces drawings has not finished the job. You also need that parts list, a preliminary design package for the customer to approve, and a proposal document for quoting. If the software does not generate these, someone on your team is doing it by hand.

Built for rack vs. general purpose. Software designed specifically for pallet rack has the right standards and code requirements built in from day one. General-purpose tools need to be set up for rack work on every project, which adds time and creates more opportunities for things to go wrong.

How the Tools Stack Up

OneRack Solutions

OneRack is a cloud-based pallet rack design platform built by licensed structural engineers at Epiq Engineering, with close to a decade of material handling industry experience. It runs entirely in your browser, no installation needed, and runs structural analysis on real manufacturer parts.

What it covers:

• ANSI MH16.1 Structural calculations and compliance with ANSI MH16.1, the main US rack design standard, are built into the design process
• Complete preliminary design package including a full BOM, proposal documents, and permit-ready drawings
• PE stamp submission handled directly, with a typical turnaround of 2 to 5 business days
• Design revisions that run in minutes, not days

When a customer wants a different beam configuration or upright height, you do not have to wait for an engineer to rerun the numbers. You can answer on the spot, which matters when you are competing for the same job.

Configura CET

CET is the layout tool most material handling integrators already use. It fits into existing workflows and produces polished 3D visualizations for customer-facing presentations.

What it does not do:

• Run structural analysis on rack designs
• Apply or check compliance with ANSI MH16.1 or RMI design standards
• Produce PE-stamped drawings or permit-ready structural packages

CET was built for space planning and visualization. The issue is that many integrators present CET layouts to customers without any structural validation behind them. When a permit is required, the structural work has to start from scratch with an external PE, and the CET drawings usually cannot serve as the basis for a stamped package without significant rework.

OneRack does not replace what CET does. It covers the structural engineering step that CET does not. For more on what drawing packages permits require, see LARC drawings and the pallet rack permitting process.

AutoCAD

AutoCAD is the most widely used CAD drafting platform in the world. It gets pressed into rack design work because it is already in most engineering offices.

What it does not do:

• Run any structural analysis
• Encode ANSI MH16.1 or RMI standards
• Generate seismic calculations, BOMs, or permit-ready structural packages

Producing a rack drawing in AutoCAD is exactly that: a drawing. Every AutoCAD-based rack project involves two separate workstreams, drafting and structural engineering. When calculations come back with required changes, the drawings have to be revised manually. When the customer requests a change, the whole cycle repeats.

For any project that needs permitted construction documents, AutoCAD introduces significant process overhead on its own.

RISA-3D

RISA-3D is professional structural analysis software used by engineers for buildings, bridges, and industrial structures. Some PE firms use it for rack design projects.

What it does well:

• Full FEA on arbitrary frame geometries
• Outputs respected by AHJs reviewing permit applications
• Handles structural work outside standard rack code frameworks

The limitation for standard rack work is that RISA does not encode ANSI MH16.1 or RMI standards. Every rack project requires manual model setup and code application, which is exactly what OneRack automates. RISA also does not produce preliminary designs, BOMs, or proposals, is not cloud-based, and carries substantially higher annual licensing costs than rack-native tools.

It is the right call for projects that genuinely fall outside ANSI MH16.1 scope. For standard rack design within RMI guidelines, a purpose-built platform is faster. See OneRack’s ANSI MH16.1 coverage and the RMI certification overview.

	OneRack	Configura CET	AutoCAD	RISA-3D
ANSI MH16.1 / RMI compliance	Yes, natively encoded	No	No	No, manual application required
FEA on rack geometry	Yes, real manufacturer parts	No	No	Yes, but requires manual rack model setup
PE-stamp workflow	Yes, 2 to 5 business day turnaround	No	No	Possible via PE firm, significantly longer
Generates prelims, BOMs, proposals	Yes, complete package	Partial, layout and visualization only	No	No
Rack-native design	Yes	No, space planning tool	No, general CAD	No, general structural analysis
Cloud-based	Yes, browser only, no install	Yes	Desktop primary, web and mobile available	No, desktop
Starting cost	$150/month	Contact Configura	~$235/month	Contact Risa Technologies
Free trial	30 days, no credit card	Available via Configura	Not typically	Not typically

Which Tool Is Right for Your Workflow

The answer depends on what your projects actually require.

Generating preliminary designs and quotes for pallet rack jobs? OneRack is built for that workflow. The structural analysis runs as you design, the output is a complete preliminary design package, and a PE stamp is available within 2 to 5 business days. For manufacturers competing on turnaround time, that is a real advantage.

Need layout visualization? CET can handle this fairly well, but OneRack also lets you design an engineer-approved prelim while you’re looking at the layout. OneRack’s layout visualization is strong, and it’s extremely helpful to know what it looks like as you make tweaks to the structural side. 

Want 3D presentations? This falls under the “bells and whistles” category, and CET is still the strongest tool for that. OneRack’s prelims are 2D, although both tools give you sharp customer-facing documentation. If you’re looking for more visualization perks, though, CET is worth a look. 

Using AutoCAD for permit-ready stamped drawings? AutoCAD produces drawings, not engineering. The structural work still has to happen separately. If your PE firm is handling that and billing hourly, the combined cost and time is likely higher than a dedicated rack engineering platform. OneRack does both without requiring a structural engineer to do the calculations.

A structural engineer working on projects outside ANSI MH16.1 scope? If the project is still fundamentally a storage-rack job, OneRack is still the more natural fit: it’s built for storage-rack design, supports common rack types and custom parts, runs structural checks as you design, and makes it easy to move toward stamped documents. If the project stops being mainly a rack and starts becoming a broader structural model—something with very unusual geometry, different materials, or a structure that goes beyond the rack itself—RISA is probably the better tool. If you are currently waiting on engineers to complete PE-stamped documentation, start your 30-day free trial and get your first prelim today. Full Pro features, no credit card required.