How to Make Skylights in Revit

Updated October 2026: There are four reliable ways to make a skylight in Revit: cut an opening in a roof, fill that opening with sloped glazing, build the skylight from an in-place mass and a curtain system, or place a skylight family. Each method below has numbered steps, and the roof and sloped glazing steps are checked against Autodesk’s Revit help pages (the versions we could open were 2023 and 2025).

You will learn how to create, insert, and edit different types of skylights using a roof footprint (methods 1 and 2), an in-place mass (method 3), and imported families (method 4). Method 2 gives you the most control over the shape of the skylight. Method 4 shows you how to import and set up skylight families.

✨ Tip: Skylights are also used in certain cases to manipulate the rendering atmosphere, because they let daylight into an interior scene.

Method 1: Cut a Skylight Opening in a Roof

Details: Create a skylight on a roof using the Extrude feature, by subtracting a footprint from the solid roof. This is the first half of every glazed skylight in Revit, because sloped glazing does not cut into the roof below it.

Steps

1. Click the roof surface twice to enter its footprint sketch.
2. In the Draw panel, select the Rectangle tool.
3. Uncheck Defines Slope (in the Options bar, or on the ribbon in releases where the Options bar controls have moved).
4. Draw the boundary of the skylight to subtract its footprint from the solid roof.
5. Press Finish Edit Mode.

Method 2: Sloped Glazing Skylight in Revit

Details: Fill the opening from Method 1 with a sloped curtain wall, which in Revit is a roof of the Sloped Glazing type. This is the most flexible way to make a skylight in Revit, because you control the outline, the slope, and the grid and mullion layout.

Steps

1. Go to the Architecture tab > Roof drop-down menu > click Roof by Footprint.
2. In the Draw panel, select the Pick Lines tool.
3. Click the lines around the void.
4. Select the magenta lines.
5. In the Properties palette, uncheck Defines Roof Slope.
6. In the Properties palette, under Dimensions, change the slope to match the roof around the opening.
7. Click Finish Edit Mode.
8. Change the roof type in the Properties palette > Type Selector drop-down menu > select Sloped Glazing.

✨ Tip: Press TAB on the keyboard to select and pick multiple connected lines at once.

Autodesk’s help notes that the type properties of a Sloped Glazing roof are very different from a basic roof: under Construction you control the Curtain Panel and the Join Condition. You can also place curtain grids on the glazing and press Tab to switch between horizontal and vertical grids. To add mullions, see Add Mullions below.

If you are interested in manipulating slopes of regular surfaces in your project, read our blog post about creating sloped ceilings.

Method 3: Sloped Atrium Skylight with an In-Place Mass

Details: Create a skylight window using Revit massing tools. Use this method for a sloped atrium, a ridge skylight, or any glass shape that a simple roof footprint cannot describe.

Steps

1. Click twice on the wall that will support the atrium.
2. In the Draw panel, select the Line tool.
3. Draw the slope line for the atrium.
4. Modify panel > Trim/Extend to Corner.
5. Join the edges of the profile to create a closed loop.
6. Repeat the steps for the opposite wall.

✨ Tip: In edit mode, you can press Tab while moving the mouse pointer over the profile created on the parallel side to select the same profile lines and apply them to the second profile.

7. Go to the Massing & Site tab > click In-Place Mass.
8. Assign a name for the mass > click OK.
9. In the Work Plane panel, click Set Work Plane.
10. Click the wall profile of the atrium.
11. In the Draw panel, select the Pick Lines tool.
12. Click the lines around the atrium.
13. Select the magenta lines > go to the Form panel > click Create Form.
14. Click and drag the mass surface to the other end of the facade.
15. In the In-Place Editor panel, click Finish Mass.
16. Go to the Architecture tab > Build panel > click Curtain System.
17. Select the faces of the atrium.
18. In the Multiple Selection panel, click Create System.

When you set a work plane, any mass lines will extrude perpendicular to it.

Press on the line at the end of the new in-place mass surface, then grab the green x-axis arrow to the other wall.

You can also pick the mass faces with Roof by Face and set the roof type to Sloped Glazing instead of using a curtain system. Both work from the same mass.

Add Mullions

1. Click once on the curtain wall.
2. Go to the Properties palette > click Edit Type.
3. Under Grid 1 Mullions and Grid 2 Mullions, change the None entries to preferred families.
4. Press OK.

Here is a video tutorial on tracing a curved atrium mass in Revit:

Method 4: Add a Skylight Family in Revit

Details: Add a skylight family to a roof in Revit. Face-based families cut their own opening in the host, so you do not need to edit the roof footprint.

Steps

1. Click on the family file and drop it in the viewport.
2. Go to the Architecture tab > Component drop-down menu > click Place a Component.
3. In the Properties palette, select the imported family.
4. Click the face to insert a face-based skylight family.

Edit a Skylight Family

1. Click on the family component.
2. In the Properties palette, click Edit Type.
3. Change the properties of Materials and Dimensions.
4. Click OK.

That’s it!

Pick the method by the result you need: Method 1 and 2 for a standard glazed opening, Method 3 for atriums and unusual shapes, Method 4 for a ready-made unit. All four keep the skylight in the model, so it shows in sections, 3D views, and renderings.

FAQs

How do you make a skylight in Revit?

Cut an opening in the roof by editing its footprint, then create a second roof over the opening with Roof by Footprint and change its type to Sloped Glazing. For custom shapes, use an in-place mass with a curtain system, or place a face-based skylight family.

What is sloped glazing in Revit?

Sloped Glazing is a roof type that behaves like a curtain wall. It has curtain panels, grids and mullions instead of layered roof construction, which makes it the standard way to model glass skylights.

Why does my sloped glazing not cut a hole in the roof?

Sloped glazing does not cut into other roofs. First edit the main roof footprint and sketch a closed loop to make the opening (Method 1), then place the glazing roof in that opening (Method 2).

How do I add mullions to a skylight in Revit?

Select the glazing, click Edit Type in the Properties palette, and change the None entries under Grid 1 Mullions and Grid 2 Mullions to the mullion families you want. You can also place curtain grids by hand and press Tab to switch between horizontal and vertical.

Is there a Revit practice file for this tutorial?

Yes. The Revit project file for this lesson is available to Mashyo members on Patreon for $5.5/month, together with the practice files for the other Mashyo tutorials. You can cancel at any time. Open the skylight practice file on Patreon.

Mohamed Fakhry

Mohamed Fakhry has helped thousands of architects and designers find their next project with step-by-step guidance on his blog, mashyo.com. About Mohamed

His journey began during his university years when he recognized the need for information-rich 3D models to accelerate learning and improve production processes. Now, Mohamed shares his expertise through Revit tutorials that are accessible to all.