Gonzalo JL

Revit Updates

Revit changes significantly from year to year, and sometimes even between builds. Here is a quick visualization of the main updates over the years, tracking from my graduation in Architecture in 2019 to the present day.

2020

Released: April 2019

  • No workaround needed to import PDF: you could finally import a PDF directly into a project and use it as an underlay. (No linking yet)
  • You could now draw plans with elliptical walls
  • View Filters could filter by system-family category (doors, floors, ramps, stairs, walls), not only by parameter.
  • Legends could be copied and pasted between sheets, the same way schedules already worked.
2021

Released: April 2020

  • Slanted walls. More flexibility and removing the need for in-place families.
  • Improved real-time visual quality for the Realistic view style, closer to a dedicated rendering tool.
  • PDFs could be linked instead of embedded, avoiding huge file-size.
  • Schedules could freeze header and column headers while scrolling.
  • Not strictly a Revit update but BIM360 was beginning to fall behind as per ACC, the modern CDE system.
  • New European-based servers (Ireland) for new projects.
2022

Released: April 2021

  • Tapered walls: a wall layer's thickness can now vary from top to bottom, controlled by type or instance parameters.
  • "Show Wall Core Only": hide non-core wall layers in plan views for cleaner drawings, available through visibility graphics.
  • Big step for OpenBIM: Revit 2022 achieved IFC4 export certification for architecture and structure.
  • Grids became visible in 3D views, not just in 2D.
  • Fully customizable revision-numbering sequences (minimum digit count, custom logic).
  • Long schedules could be split and auto-distributed across multiple sheets.
2023

Released: April 2022

  • Shared Parameters managed centrally through Autodesk Construction Cloud instead of local shared-parameter files.
  • Dynamo Player redesigned with UI graph properties (thumbnail, author, description) visible before running a script.
  • Dedicated "Pick a Plane" button, "PK" shortcut and named reference planes.
  • View list became searchable by string, useful on large projects with hundreds of views.
  • Filled regions can now be created directly inside 3D families, instead of importing them as separate detail items.
2024

Released: April 2023

  • Toposurface was replaced by Toposolid as the site/topography element, a solid, layered element with structural layers instead of a thin surface.
  • The cut tool between different-category elements got a big expansion, many more categories can now cut each other cleanly.
  • Native dark theme for the interface.
  • Dynamo migrated to CPython 3 support alongside IronPython, unlocking access to modern Python libraries.
2025

Released: April 2024

  • More advanced features for Toposolid.
  • Revit Personal Accelerator got upgrades for cloud model performance and a more intuitive experience.
  • Tabbed Project Browser: you can now isolate views, legends, schedules, etc. instead of scrolling through one giant tree.
  • Improved Manage Links dialog: merged into one tree with grouped counts, cross-type search, and filtering.
  • Area wall joins improved, making placing/manipulating walls more predictable.
2026

Released: April 2025

  • Walls can now be generated from a room's perimeter ("walls by room"), including an option to skip columns.
  • GPU-accelerated graphics mode (Tech Preview) aimed at smoother pan/zoom/orbit in large or detailed models.
  • Imported CAD files now appear in the Manage Links dialog with a count, easier to audit CAD imports.
  • Faster file opening, model regeneration, and background processing, plus better memory management.
  • Title blocks: the hardcoded "As indicated" scale text can now be replaced with custom text in type properties.
2027

Released: April 7, 2026

  • Autodesk Assistant (Tech Preview): an in-product AI chat panel that queries and edits the live model using plain language.
  • Revit Public MCP Server (Tech Preview): exposes the open model over the Model Context Protocol so external AI tools can read live model data.
  • Accelerated Graphics graduated from Tech Preview to a supported, production-ready mode for modeling and navigation.
  • Rule-based automatic numbering (e.g., doors numbered by the room they sit in, re-applies as you add more doors).
  • Revit became Autodesk's first Forma Connected Client (Tech Preview), pulling geolocated Forma Site Design data directly into Revit.