How these five groups map to published frameworks
This is an editorial mapping, not official equivalence. RIBA’s eight stages and AIA’s contract-dependent design-bid-build examples have different boundaries.
Swipe sideways to see the other columns. The first column stays visible.
| This guide | RIBA 2020 | AIA service examples |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Brief | 0 Strategic Definition; 1 Preparation and Briefing | Programming within schematic work or separately appointed |
| 2. Concept / schematic | 2 Concept Design | Schematic design |
| 3. Development | 3 Spatial Coordination | Design development |
| 4. Technical documents | 4 Technical Design | Construction documents; bidding / negotiation is a separate phase |
| 5. Construction services | 5 Manufacturing and Construction; 6 Handover | Construction / contract administration within the appointment |
| Beyond these groups | 7 Use | Confirm any post-occupancy services separately |
Procurement and approvals follow the project route. RIBA permits technical-design / construction overlap; Use starts alongside Handover and continues through the building’s life. Confirm aftercare scope.
Why there are stages at all
Stage gateways record decisions before dependent work proceeds.
Move a staircase during concept design and you redraw a plan. Move it after the structural engineer has designed the floor plates and the services have been routed around it, and architecture, structure and services may all need revision. This is an illustrative change, not a fee or duration estimate.
Stage 1: Brief
Establishes what the building has to do. Who uses it, what happens where, what the budget and programme actually are, and what the site and the regulations will and will not allow.
What gets fixed: the problem definition.
Common failure: a brief that lists rooms but not requirements. “Four bedrooms” is a schedule. “Four bedrooms, two of which are used as offices during the day and must be acoustically separated from the living space” is a brief.
Stage 2: Concept and schematic design
Tests arrangements. Massing, orientation, how the building sits on the site, rough room relationships, circulation. Study outputs support comparison before development.
What gets fixed: the selected arrangement, with open items recorded for development.
Common failure: falling in love with a render before the arrangement has been tested against the brief. See floor plan vs elevation vs section for why a render is not a commitment to anything.
Stage 3: Design development
Fixes what was loose. Dimensions, structural approach, envelope build-up, service routes, principal materials. Coordination between architecture, structure and services happens here.
What gets fixed: principal coordinated decisions; record cost assumptions and remaining scope.
Common failure: deferring material decisions past this point. Materials have structural, fire and detailing consequences — choosing them late means reopening resolved work. The material selection process belongs here, not after.
Stage 4: Technical design and construction documents
Produces what a contractor prices and builds from: fully dimensioned drawings, details, schedules and specifications.
What gets fixed: the instruction set.
Common failure: treating this as drawing production alone. Junctions need materials, tolerances and sequencing; unresolved decisions need owners.
Stage 5: Construction stage
Answering queries, reviewing submittals, carrying out agreed site visits and administering the contract where included in the appointment. Confirm the responsibilities and handover scope.
What gets recorded: construction decisions, changes, completion and handover information. Change implications depend on the work already committed.
What the price is based on
A stage name is not a price commitment. Read the estimate or contract alongside its stated scope.
| Stage | Cost information to review |
|---|---|
| Brief | Budget scope, fees and contingency assumptions |
| Schematic design | Estimate basis and unresolved options |
| Design development | Updated cost plan and coordination gaps |
| Technical / procurement | Priced documents, exclusions and allowances |
| Construction | Contract basis, changes and remaining project costs |
AIA’s change-order guidance describes changes to work, contract sum and time. A contract price is subject to its terms and agreed changes; it does not automatically fix the whole project budget.
What to do with this
Use this editorial sign-off record at each gateway rather than treating stage approval as a formality.
| Decision / gateway | Record before sign-off |
|---|---|
| Deliverable and revision | Drawing / specification / cost plan: ___ |
| Agreed and open decisions | Decision: ___; outstanding item and owner: ___ |
| Dependencies and assumptions | Approval / procurement / other discipline: ___ |
| Change effect and authorisation | Fee / construction cost / time impact: ___; approver / date: ___ |
Ask what a proposed change reopens before authorising it. Keep the decision record with the approved revision, including handover and any use-stage responsibilities.
For responsibility across these tasks, see what does an architect do and the architectural design process guide.
Frequently asked questions
How long does each stage take?
Duration depends on project scale, procurement, coordination and approval requirements. There is no supported universal ratio here. Ask for a project programme showing dependencies, submission periods, deliverables and the assumptions behind each stage duration.
Can stages overlap?
They often do, particularly on fast-track projects. Overlapping increases risk, because later stages are being built on decisions the earlier stage has not yet finished making, and rework follows when those decisions move.
What is the difference between RIBA stages and AIA phases?
They are different frameworks, not interchangeable lists. RIBA runs 0–7 from Strategic Definition to Use. AIA's design-bid-build examples include schematic design, development, construction documents, bidding or negotiation, and construction services. The table shows our approximate editorial mapping; check the actual appointment.
At which stage should I fix the budget?
Set the budget and its scope in the brief, then review it against developing information and procurement prices. Record allowances, exclusions, contingencies and proposed changes. Design development improves information; it does not itself fix the total cost.
Sources
- RIBA Plan of Work 2020 Overview — Stages 0–7, template and procurement notes — Royal Institute of British Architects Accessed October 8, 2026.
- Defining the architect's basic services — design-bid-build examples — American Institute of Architects Accessed October 8, 2026.
- Change orders — scope, contract sum and time — AIA Contract Documents Accessed October 8, 2026.