Introduction to Happy Island Designer
Happy Island Designer is a free, open-source online tool that helps Animal Crossing: New Horizons players plan and visualize their island layouts before implementing changes in the game. Whether you're planning a complete island makeover or just rearranging your villager homes, this tool makes the planning process much easier — and saves you thousands of Bells in the process.
The tool runs entirely in your web browser with no downloads, no account, and no cost required. Just open it and start designing.
This site embeds Happy Island Designer directly so you can access it here, alongside guides and tutorials to help you get the most out of it.
Why Do You Need an Island Planner?
If you've played Animal Crossing: New Horizons for more than a few weeks, you've probably experienced this frustration: you spend in-game currency to move a building, only to realize the new placement still isn't quite right. Or you terraform a section of your island, then wish you'd planned the river differently.
In ACNH, mistakes are expensive:
- Moving a building costs 50,000 Bells each time
- Terraforming a large area takes days or weeks of real time
- You can't "undo" terrain changes instantly — removing cliffs or rivers takes just as long as building them
An island planner lets you experiment freely on a digital canvas before you commit to anything in-game. It's the difference between renovating your house by trial and error, versus having blueprints first.
What Can You Do with Happy Island Designer?
🗺️ Plan Your Full Island Layout
The tool displays your island as a top-down grid that matches the exact dimensions of the ACNH game world. Every square on the planning canvas corresponds to one tile in the game, so the layout you create here will translate perfectly when you build in-game.
You can:
- See your entire island at a glance
- Identify wasted space or poor traffic flow
- Experiment with entirely different layouts side by side
🏘️ Place Every Building Type
Happy Island Designer includes all the major buildings and facilities in ACNH:
| Building | Notes |
|---|---|
| Resident Services | Fixed at your island's original placement |
| Museum | Drag to any valid location |
| Nook's Cranny | Plan for your shopping district |
| Able Sisters | Position alongside Nook's for a shopping street |
| Villager homes | Up to 10 homes, freely placed |
| Campsite | Typically placed in a scenic spot |
| Airport | Fixed position on your island |
Being able to see all your buildings together on one screen makes it easy to spot when things feel crowded, or when a building is in an awkward spot.
⛰️ Design Your Terrain
One of the most powerful features is terrain design. You can draw and reshape:
- Rivers — meander them naturally across the island, or create clean geometric channels
- Ponds — standalone bodies of water for scenic spots or Koi-garden themes
- Cliffs — create multi-level elevation, from subtle one-step rises to dramatic three-story plateaus
- Waterfalls — place them where cliffs meet water for that satisfying ambient sound
- Beaches — plan what your shoreline looks like
Terraforming is easily the most time-consuming thing to redo in ACNH. Planning your terrain before you start can save you literal weeks.
🛤️ Lay Out Paths and Infrastructure
Beyond buildings and terrain, you can plan:
- All path types (stone, brick, dirt, sand, wooden, custom)
- Bridges across rivers (you're limited to 8 bridges total, so plan carefully)
- Inclines up cliffs (limited to 8 as well)
- Fences and boundaries to separate zones
- Trees, flowers, and decorative plantings
Having your path network laid out in advance helps you avoid the classic mistake of putting buildings or terrain in spots that break the flow of your main walkways.
💾 Save and Share Your Design
Once you've finished planning, you can export your design as an image file. Use it as a reference on a second screen or tablet while you build in the game.
You can also share your design with friends online — whether you're planning collaboratively with family who share an island, or just showing off your vision on Reddit or Discord.
How to Get Started: Step-by-Step
Step 1: Open the Tool
Click the planner on the Happy Island Designer homepage. It loads directly in your browser — nothing to install.
Step 2: Set Up Your Fixed Elements
Before you start designing, mark the things on your island that cannot be moved:
- Airport — this is fixed in one corner when your island was created
- Resident Services plaza — fixed at its original location
- River mouths — the points where rivers meet the sea cannot be moved
- Secret beach — the small beach behind your island is fixed
Place these on your canvas first, so all your subsequent planning works around them.
Step 3: Place Your Buildings
Start with the buildings that are most important to your island's feel:
- Your own house (this sets home base)
- Villager homes (think about clustering vs. spreading out)
- Museum (often goes on elevated ground for dramatic effect)
- Shops (grouped near Resident Services or in a dedicated commercial district)
Don't overthink the first draft — you can drag everything around freely.
Step 4: Design the Terrain
With buildings in rough positions, now draw in your rivers and cliffs:
- Think about water features as natural dividers between zones
- Cliffs can elevate certain areas for privacy or visual interest
- Leave room for bridges and inclines at logical crossing points
Step 5: Add Paths
Connect everything with paths. Start with your main road (the route you'll walk every day), then add secondary paths to each village home, shop, or scenic area.
Step 6: Review and Screenshot
Look at the whole layout. Ask:
- Can you reach every area easily?
- Does the residential area feel organized?
- Are any areas too cramped?
- Is there room for seasonal decorations?
When you're happy with it, export or screenshot the plan and use it as your building reference.
Tips for First-Time Users
Start with the Essentials, Leave Room to Breathe
New players often try to plan every single square of their island from the start. Resist this urge. Leave open areas that can evolve over time — your tastes and ideas will change as you play more.
A good first plan covers:
- Where all buildings will go
- The rough shape of rivers and major cliffs
- The main path network
That's enough to avoid expensive mistakes. Details like flower placement and furniture can be figured out organically.
Consider How You'll Move Around Daily
The most functional islands are designed around how you actually play. Every day in ACNH you probably:
- Visit Nook's Cranny and Able Sisters
- Check in on your villagers
- Water flowers
- Grab resources from trees and rocks
Plan your main paths to make these daily tasks feel natural and efficient — not like obstacle courses.
Use Cliffs Thoughtfully
Cliffs add visual drama and a sense of depth to your island, but they also create hard barriers. Every cliff needs at least one incline to get up or down, and you're limited to 8 inclines total. If you use all 8, and later realize a section of cliff needs another access point, you're stuck.
A good rule: plan your incline locations carefully on the digital canvas before you start building cliffs in-game.
Think About the View from the Ground
The island planner shows a top-down view, but the game is played at ground level. When planning cliff shapes, try to think about what something will look like standing next to it, not just from above.
Sharp, straight cliff edges can look very geometric in-game. Rounded edges with diagonal corners tend to look more natural.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Happy Island Designer free? Yes, fully free to use. The original tool is open-source, developed by eugeneration.
Do I need an account or download? No account and no download. The tool runs entirely in your browser.
Does my island plan save automatically? Your work is saved in your browser's local storage. If you clear your browser data, your plan may be lost — so export/screenshot your design regularly.
Can I plan an island I've already built? Absolutely. You can recreate your current island as the starting point and then plan future changes from there. Many players use the planner to map out a "phase 2" renovation even years into playing.
Does this work on mobile? Yes. The tool works in mobile browsers, though desktop is more comfortable for detailed work. If you're on a tablet, the fullscreen button (available on this site) helps a lot.
Which game does this support? Happy Island Designer is built around Animal Crossing: New Horizons for Nintendo Switch.
Conclusion
Happy Island Designer is an essential companion for any ACNH player who wants to build with intention rather than guesswork. By planning your layout before you commit to expensive terraforming and building moves in-game, you'll save time, Bells, and a lot of frustration.
Start by placing your fixed elements, rough out your buildings and terrain, trace your main paths, and once it feels right — build with confidence.
Ready to start? Open the planner on our homepage and try it now.
See also: