About Materials

Materials control how model elements display in views and rendered images.

To work with materials in Revit, click Manage tab Settings panel Materials.

They allow you to specify the following information:

• graphical
• appearance
• thermal
• physical

Materials define the following:

• Graphics characteristics that control how the material looks in a non-rendered such, such as:
  • The color that displays in a shaded project view.
  • The color and pattern that display on the surface of an element.
  • The color and fill pattern that display when the element is cut.
• Identity information about the material, such as description, manufacturer, cost, and keynotes.
• The appearance that displays in a rendered view, Realistic view, or Ray Trace view.
• Physical properties used for structural analysis.
• Thermal properties used for energy analysis.

Materials created in Revit can be shared with Autodesk Inventor and Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D.

Note: Revit LT does not support physical or thermal assets for materials. See About Materials in Revit LT.