A 30×40 barndominium is 1,200 square feet on one floor. That is enough for two bedrooms and two baths around an open kitchen and living room, or three bedrooms if the rooms stay compact, and it is one of the most affordable sizes to build because the shell is a simple rectangle under one roof.
The six 30×40 barndominium floor plans below run from 1,200 to 2,520 heated square feet. Two are single-story homes that fill the whole 30 by 40 footprint, three put a 30×40 living space beside a garage or a shop, and one adds a second floor and a loft. Each plan set is $849.99 as a PDF or $1,099.99 for five printed sets.
Is a 30×40 Floor Plan Right for You?
Here are some scenarios where a 1,200 square foot barndominium might be a good fit.
- You are living alone, or with just one or two other people, and you do not need a really spacious home with a lot of individual rooms.
- You do not have a large lot, and you need to keep your home’s footprint small enough to fit.
- You want to keep your energy bills and carbon footprint low, and prefer a smaller home as a result.
Benefits of a 1,200 SQFT Barndominium Homes
A 1,200 square foot barndominium may feel more spacious than other homes this size. The reason is that barndominium construction allows for large, unobstructed clear-span design.
That means that you can have a wide open interior with an open floor plan kitchen, dining room and great room. Many barndominiums leave the space above the great room open to provide an even loftier sense of space and a cathedral ceiling.
At the same time, you can have enclosed, traditional rooms to serve as bedrooms. You may even be able to fit a flex room into a 30×40 barndominium house plan.
One thing to consider when selecting a 1,200 square foot plan is whether or not you want a garage, and if so, how you want to handle it.
An attached garage that is part of the 1,200 square feet will eat up quite a bit of space. So, you may want to plan it in addition to 1,200 square feet of heated living space, or skip it. Another option is a detached garage, if you have room for it on your property.
Barndominiums typically have large porches, even if they are smaller homes. A porch is by no means required, but it is something else to consider when you are allocating square footage. Decide whether this feature is important to you. If you have a second story, you could also consider adding a deck for more outdoor space.
Are 1,200 Square Foot Barndo Kits in Demand?
Demand stats are limited for barndominium sizes, but some builders state that the most common size range for barndos is anywhere from 1,200 to 3,000 square feet. So, 1,200 square foot floor plans are very popular.
Moreover, Rising Trends reports that based on search volume, barndominium kits are the top real estate trend as we head into 2026, with year over year growth of 22%. The affordability crisis, aesthetic trends, rural zoning flexibility, and the desire for a new kind of life are driving more and more people to embrace barndo living.
Featured 30×40 Square Foot Barndominiums
Six Of Our Best-Selling 30×40 Barndominium Floor Plans Compared
| Plan | Heated Sq Ft | Beds / Baths | Size | Stories | Garage / Shop | PDF / Printed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atticus PL-3204 | 1,253 | 2 / 2 | 30’6″ × 40’6″ | 1 | None | $849.99 / $1,099.99 |
| Carla PL-60104 | 1,200 | 2 / 2 | 40′ × 30′ | 1 | None | $849.99 / $1,099.99 |
| Marion PL-60004 | 1,200 | 2 / 2 | 60′ × 30′ overall | 1 | 684 sq ft shop | $849.99 / $1,099.99 |
| Paris PL-2808 | 1,210 | 1 / 2 | 40′ × 30′ living space | 1 | 613 sq ft garage | $849.99 / $1,099.99 |
| Chaston CDD-1005 | 1,493 | 1 / 1 + 2 half | 100′ × 60′ overall | 1 | 2,705 sq ft shop | $849.99 / $1,099.99 |
| Brandon BCO-40034-B | 2,520 | 3 / 3 | 40′ × 30′ | 2 | None | $849.99 / $1,099.99 |
Heated square feet is the living space. Garages, shops and porches are extra. Every plan here offers minor modifications for $400 and major modifications for $1,000 if you want to move a wall or add a room.
30×40 Barndominium Open Floor Plans
Most 30×40 barndominium floor plans are open concept, and for good reason: at 1,200 square feet, walls cost space you can feel. Joining the kitchen, dining area and living room into one room makes the house read larger than its footprint, and a clear-span barndominium shell does not need interior bearing walls to hold up the roof. These two fill the whole 30 by 40 footprint with living space and no garage.
Atticus PL-3204: A Kitchen Island And A Full Master Suite
1,253 sq ft heated · 2 bed / 2 bath · 1 story · 30’6″ × 40’6″ · no garage
$849.99 PDF · $1,099.99 five printed sets
The Atticus puts a large kitchen with a real island at the center of an open living and dining room, which is the layout most people picture when they search for a 30×40 open floor plan. The master suite gets the space a 1,200 square foot plan usually cannot spare: double vanities, a stand-alone tub, a separate shower and a walk-in closet. The second bedroom has its own bath, so it works as a guest room or a home office. Ceilings are 9 feet under a 5:12 roof, on a slab. Building it at $65 to $160 per square foot comes to about $81,000 to $200,000.
Carla PL-60104: 12-Foot Ceilings On 1,200 Square Feet
1,200 sq ft heated · 2 bed / 2 bath · 1 story · 40′ × 30′ · 12′ ceilings
$849.99 PDF · $1,099.99 five printed sets
The Carla is the plan to look at if you want a small house that does not feel small. Its 12-foot ceilings are the tallest in this group, and with a low 3:12 roof the whole 40 by 30 footprint reads as one airy room. Two bedrooms and two full baths sit off an open kitchen and living area, all on one level with no stairs. The plan set includes the porch post details, wall sections and full electrical, plumbing and HVAC layouts. Building cost comes to about $78,000 to $192,000.
30×40 Barndominium Floor Plans With A Garage Or Shop
A 30×40 living space with a garage or shop attached is one of the most common barndominium layouts, because the garage shares a wall and a roofline instead of needing a second building. In these three plans the house itself is about 1,200 square feet and the building is larger. Read the overall dimensions, not just the living space, when you check a plan against your lot.
Marion PL-60004: 30×40 Living With A 684 Sq Ft Shop
1,200 sq ft heated · 2 bed / 2 bath · 1 story · 60′ × 30′ overall · 684 sq ft shop
$849.99 PDF · $1,099.99 five printed sets
The Marion is a 30×40 shop house plan: a 1,200 square foot home with two bedrooms, two baths and an open living area, and a 684 square foot shop attached at one end, for a building 60 feet wide and 30 feet deep. The plan lists red iron framing, which suits the clear span a shop wants. The shop is sized for projects and equipment rather than a fleet of trucks. Building cost for the living space comes to about $78,000 to $192,000, with the shop priced separately.
Paris PL-2808: One Bedroom, A Study And An Attached Garage
1,210 sq ft heated · 1 bed / 2 bath · 1 story · 40′ × 30′ living space · 613 sq ft garage
$849.99 PDF · $1,099.99 five printed sets
The Paris is built around one large bedroom and a separate study, with two full baths, so a guest or a second person working from home has a bathroom of their own. The 30×40 living space opens to a 613 square foot attached garage and a 380 square foot front porch, and 10-foot ceilings under a low 3:12 roof keep the open living area bright. The 40 by 30 figure is the living space; the garage and porch are outside it, and the overall building size is not published. Building cost comes to about $79,000 to $194,000.
Chaston CDD-1005: A One-Bedroom House With A 2,705 Sq Ft Shop
1,493 sq ft heated · 1 bed / 1 bath + 2 half baths · 1 story · 100′ × 60′ overall · 2,705 sq ft shop
$849.99 PDF · $1,099.99 five printed sets
The Chaston is for a buyer whose shop matters as much as the house. A 2,705 square foot three-car shop with 16-foot ceilings and its own half bath takes up most of a 100-foot-wide post-frame building. The residence has one bedroom, a full bath, a half bath, an open living and dining area, a kitchen with an island and pantry, a mudroom and 10-foot ceilings, wrapped in 1,300 square feet of porch. The designer describes the living space as 40 by 30, but lists 1,493 heated square feet, more than a 40 by 30 block holds, so check the floor plan for where the extra space sits. Building cost for the heated area comes to about $97,000 to $239,000, before the shop.
For more plans where the garage or shop leads, see the barndominium with shop plans.
30×40 Two-Story Barndominium With A Loft
A second floor is the cheapest way to add space to a 30×40 barndominium, because it uses the same foundation and the same roof. It also frees the ground floor for an open kitchen and living area, with bedrooms upstairs.
Brandon BCO-40034-B: 2,520 Sq Ft On A 30×40 Footprint
2,520 sq ft heated (1,200 + 1,320) · 3 bed / 3 bath · 2 stories · 40′ × 30′ · loft
$849.99 PDF · $1,099.99 five printed sets
The Brandon more than doubles the living space of a single-story 30×40 without making the footprint any larger. The designer lists 1,200 square feet on the first floor and 1,320 on the second, with three bedrooms, three full baths and a loft, plus a mudroom and laundry and a front porch. The first floor is open concept with 10-foot ceilings, and a steep 10:12 roof brings the overall height to 27 feet. It is drawn on a crawl space foundation rather than a slab. Building cost comes to about $164,000 to $403,000. For more plans with a loft, see the barndominium plans with a loft.
1, 2 And 3 Bedroom 30×40 Floor Plans
At 1,200 square feet on one floor, a 30×40 barndominium fits one bedroom with room to spare, two bedrooms comfortably, or three bedrooms if the rooms stay compact. The Paris and the Chaston are one-bedroom plans, the Atticus, the Carla and the Marion have two bedrooms, and the Brandon reaches three by adding a second floor. For more layouts by bedroom count, see the 1-bedroom barndominium plans, the 2-bedroom barndominium floor plans and the 3-bedroom barndominium floor plans. If 1,200 square feet is too tight, the 40×40 barndominium floor plans add 400 square feet on one floor.
How Much Does A 30×40 Barndo Home Cost?
A finished barndominium typically runs $65 to $160 per square foot, depending on where you build, how you finish it and how much of the work you do yourself. For a single-story 30×40 barndominium at 1,200 square feet, that puts the turnkey cost at roughly $78,000 to $192,000 before land and site work.
The shell is the smaller part of the budget. A metal building package for a 30 by 40 footprint runs about $20 to $35 per square foot, or $24,000 to $42,000, and erecting it adds $10 to $15 per square foot, another $12,000 to $18,000. That is $36,000 to $60,000 for a weathertight shell on a slab. Insulation, drywall, the kitchen, the bathrooms, plumbing and electrical make up most of the rest.
Size And Cost Comparisons
| Heated Size | Typical Build Cost |
|---|---|
| 1,200 sq ft (30×40, one story) | $78,000 to $192,000 |
| 1,600 sq ft (40×40) | $104,000 to $256,000 |
| 2,400 sq ft (30×40, two stories) | $156,000 to $384,000 |
Garages, shops and porches are not in these figures, and neither are a well, septic, a driveway or bringing power to a rural lot. Treat them as planning numbers and get bids from builders in your county before you commit.
FAQ
Can a 1,200 square foot barndo include a second story?
Yes, if you want, there are ways to fit a second floor into a 1,200 square foot barndo home plan. In some cases, it might be a loft. In others, it could be a full second floor.
How many bedrooms can you fit in a 30×40 barndo house plan?
You can typically fit 2-3 bedrooms into a 30×40 barndo house plan. That includes a master bedroom, which usually comes with a master bathroom and a walk-in closet. You probably will not be able to make the other bedrooms as large.
How Much Does A 30×40 Barndominium Cost To Build?
A single-story 30×40 barndominium is 1,200 square feet. At the typical $65 to $160 per square foot for a finished barndominium, that is roughly $78,000 to $192,000 before land, a well, septic and utilities. A garage, shop or large porch adds to that, because per-square-foot figures cover heated living space only.
Are 30×40 Barndominium Floor Plans Open Concept?
Most are, and all six plans on this page use an open kitchen and living area. At 1,200 square feet, combining the kitchen, dining and living room into one space makes the house feel larger, and a clear-span barndominium shell does not need interior walls to carry the roof. The Carla adds 12-foot ceilings to the same idea.
Can A 30×40 Barndominium Have A Garage?
Yes, usually beside the living space rather than inside it. The Paris attaches a 613 square foot garage to a 30×40 living space, the Marion adds a 684 square foot shop, and the Chaston pairs its house with a 2,705 square foot three-car shop. Check the overall building size against your lot, since the garage makes it larger than 30 by 40.
How Many Square Feet Is A 30×40 Barndominium?
A 30×40 barndominium is 1,200 square feet on one floor. A second story on the same footprint roughly doubles that: the Brandon on this page lists 2,520 heated square feet across two floors with a loft. Garages, shops and porches built beside the 30 by 40 block add area on top of the 1,200.