If you develop land, you already know the real bottleneck. It is not drawing a building. It is deciding, fast and cheaply, which sites are worth pursuing and what you can afford to pay before someone else grabs them. The pain is spending hours modelling a site that never stacked up, or losing a good deal because your feasibility took a week. This page compares two tools that attack different parts of that problem, and it is written to help you pick the right one rather than to pretend one product does everything.
Both Archistar and GoSiteHunt help property developers, investors and acquisition managers assess development potential. But they start from opposite ends of the workflow. Archistar starts from planning and design: feed it an address and it generates compliant 3D building envelopes and massing options against zoning, setbacks and height limits. GoSiteHunt starts from the acquisition decision: feed it an address and it tells you what you can build, what it could be worth, the most you should pay for the land, and whether it is a GO or a NO-GO. Understanding that difference is the whole comparison.
What Archistar does well (2026)
Archistar, an Australian platform, is best known for turning planning rules into geometry. Its generative-design engine reads an address against zoning, planning overlays and site constraints, then automatically produces multiple compliant massing studies and 3D building envelopes. For an architect or feasibility analyst who needs to visualise what physically fits on a site, and to compare several compliant scenarios, that is a serious capability and it is the core of the product.
Its planning data has historically been deepest in Australia, covering zoning, overlays, flood and bushfire layers and rich site summaries, with imagery and market listings integrated from third parties. In 2026 Archistar has extended its generative-design technology beyond Australia through an integration with Autodesk Forma, and has leaned further into AI-driven plan review and compliance pre-checking for developers, certifiers and government. It is a premium platform, sold on subscription tiers that have historically been structured per Australian state, aimed at firms that want detailed planning and design output. If your day job is producing compliant massing and design-stage feasibility inside Australia, Archistar is a strong, purpose-built choice.
What GoSiteHunt does well
GoSiteHunt (gositehunt.com, owned by Madison Jade Pty Ltd) is built for the moment before design: the buy decision. Type any address in 35+ countries and, in seconds, it returns the zoning and what you can build, an indicative dwelling and lot yield, a development feasibility view, a residual land value, and a clear GO/NO-GO screen. Residual land value is the number acquisition teams live by: it is the most you should pay for the land once end value, build cost, yield and target margin are accounted for. GoSiteHunt puts that at the centre of the answer rather than leaving it as a downstream calculation.
It is also a site finder, not just a site checker. You can search a suburb by project type, such as greenfield subdivision, townhouses, apartments, mixed-use, retail and bulky-goods, billboards, or energy and data-centre land, then scan the whole area and rank the strongest parcels. It checks subdivision potential, watches development applications near an address so you see momentum in a pocket, and even has an owner side: estimate what a site is worth and sell off-market direct to developers with no agent and no commission, including sell-together amalgamation where neighbouring owners combine sites.
The point of GoSiteHunt is throughput. It is global, end-to-end (find, then feasibility, then maximum land price, then GO/NO-GO), instant and affordable. You start free with 50 trial credits, where a site report costs 1 credit and an area scan costs 5, so you can screen a whole shortlist before you spend anything. Paid products are bought individually rather than locked behind a single enterprise seat: a residual land value-backed $49 vendor's report, Deal Flow alerts from $49/month, a DocFlow planning report at $249 instant or $990 planner-reviewed, White-label at $99/month, and operator tiers such as Assembly Pro at $299/month and Billboard or Energy Operator at $499/month each.
Archistar vs GoSiteHunt: side by side
| Capability | Archistar | GoSiteHunt |
|---|---|---|
| Core purpose | Planning and generative design; compliant 3D massing | Address-to-decision feasibility and site finding |
| Automated 3D building envelope / massing | Strong — core, generative, multiple compliant options | Not the focus; yield and feasibility, not architectural massing |
| Instant GO/NO-GO acquisition screen | Design-stage feasibility, more detailed workflow | Strong — GO/NO-GO in seconds from the address |
| Residual land value (max land price) | Available within feasibility tooling | Central output, tied directly to the GO/NO-GO logic |
| Site finding by suburb and project type | Site-finding algorithms on higher AU tiers | Yes — subdivision, townhouses, apartments, mixed-use, retail, billboards, energy/data-centre land |
| Geographic coverage | Deepest in Australia; global generative design via Autodesk Forma add-on | 35+ countries for instant screening |
| DA / permit activity monitoring near an address | Focus on plan review and compliance pre-check | Yes — watches development applications near a site |
| Owner / off-market selling side | Not the focus | Yes — value a site, sell direct to developers, sell-together amalgamation |
| Entry cost | Premium subscription tiers, historically per AU state | Free to start with 50 trial credits; pay per product after |
Positioning above reflects each provider's publicly stated capabilities as of 2026. We do not quote a specific Archistar price here because their tiers vary by market and change; check archistar.ai for current pricing. GoSiteHunt outputs are indicative screening only — not a valuation, planning, financial or legal advice.
Where Archistar is genuinely better
We will not pretend GoSiteHunt wins everywhere, because it does not. If your priority is generating detailed, compliant 3D building envelopes and comparing several architectural massing scenarios automatically, Archistar is the stronger tool and it is built exactly for that. Its generative-design output is more sophisticated than anything GoSiteHunt attempts, and for design-stage work inside Australia its planning-data depth is excellent. Teams whose core deliverable is compliant massing, or certifiers and planners running AI plan-review and compliance pre-checks, will get more from Archistar than from a screening tool.
Where the two products separate is intent. Archistar answers "what could this building look like, and does it comply?" GoSiteHunt answers "should I chase this site, and what can I pay?" Those are different jobs. The honest recommendation is not one or the other for every developer; it is to match the tool to the stage. Screen wide and cheap first, then invest in detailed design once a site earns it.
Reject weak sites in seconds
Most sites should die at the shortlist stage. GoSiteHunt gives you a GO/NO-GO fast, so you never model a deal that was never going to stack up.
Commission 3D once it's worth it
When a site passes screening, that is the moment to invest in detailed massing and architectural feasibility — in Archistar or with your design team.
One tool across borders
If you look at deals in more than one country, GoSiteHunt's 35+ country coverage keeps your screening workflow consistent everywhere.
How GoSiteHunt helps
GoSiteHunt is designed so the data actually changes your bid. Here is where to start, depending on what you are trying to do:
- Development feasibility software — run an instant feasibility and GO/NO-GO from any address.
- Development site finder — search a suburb by project type and scan a whole area for candidates.
- Residual land value calculator — work out the most you should pay for the land.
- Zoning lookup — check the zone and what it allows before you go deeper.
- Subdivision potential checker — test whether a lot can be split and how many parcels it yields.
- How many townhouses fit — get a fast indicative yield for a townhouse site.
- Guide: how to find development sites — a repeatable method for building a pipeline.
- Guide: how to calculate residual land value — the maths behind the number that sets your offer.
Australia-based? Start local with development sites and feasibility in Adelaide, or compare the wider market on our best feasibility software roundup. New here? See how it works or read the FAQ.
Frequently asked questions
Is GoSiteHunt a replacement for Archistar?
Not exactly. Archistar is a planning and generative-design platform that produces detailed 3D building envelopes and massing studies, with deep Australian planning data. GoSiteHunt is an address-to-decision feasibility and site-finding tool that works in 35+ countries and answers what you can build, what it could be worth, the most you should pay for the land, and whether it is a GO or a NO-GO. Many developers screen and rank sites in GoSiteHunt first, then commission detailed 3D design once a site is worth it.
Which tool is better for automated 3D building massing?
Archistar is genuinely stronger here. Its generative-design engine produces multiple compliant massing options and 3D envelopes automatically, and that is a core part of its product. GoSiteHunt focuses on yield, feasibility and residual land value rather than architectural massing, so if photorealistic compliant 3D envelopes are your priority, Archistar is the better fit.
Does GoSiteHunt work outside Australia?
Yes. GoSiteHunt returns instant screening for addresses in 35+ countries, including the UK, US, Canada, New Zealand and much of Europe. Archistar's deepest planning data and generative design have historically been Australia-first, with global generative design offered through an Autodesk Forma add-on. If you develop across multiple countries, GoSiteHunt's global coverage is a practical advantage.
How much does GoSiteHunt cost compared with Archistar?
GoSiteHunt is free to start with 50 trial credits, where a site report costs 1 credit and an area scan costs 5. Paid add-ons are priced per product, such as a $49 vendor's report, Deal Flow alerts from $49/month, a $249 instant DocFlow planning report, and higher-tier operator plans. Archistar uses subscription tiers with premium pricing, historically structured per Australian state. Always check each provider's current pricing before you decide.
What does GoSiteHunt actually return for an address?
For any address it returns, in seconds, the zoning and what you can build, an indicative dwelling and lot yield, a development feasibility view, a residual land value (the most you should pay for the land), and a GO/NO-GO screen. It can also find candidate development sites by suburb and project type, scan whole areas, check subdivision potential and watch development applications near an address.
Can GoSiteHunt find development sites, not just assess one?
Yes. You can search a suburb by project type, such as greenfield subdivision, townhouses, apartments, mixed-use, retail, billboards or energy and data-centre land, then scan the whole area and screen the strongest parcels. There is also an owner side for estimating what a site is worth and selling off-market direct to developers with no agent and no commission.
Are GoSiteHunt outputs valuation or planning advice?
No. GoSiteHunt outputs are indicative screening only. They are not a valuation, planning, financial or legal advice. Use them to reject weak sites fast and prioritise the promising ones, then confirm with your own due diligence and professional advisers before you commit.
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GoSiteHunt outputs are indicative screening only and are not a valuation, planning, financial or legal advice. Always confirm with your own due diligence before committing to a purchase or development.