The receptacles are placed, the lights are on the ceiling, but when you click Power and pick a panel the list is empty. Or you do get a panel, and the load table reads zero everywhere. Both have the same root cause: the project has no electrical grid defined yet, or the panel family does not match the grid you defined.
This article builds a Revit electrical panel in the 2027 release, in the order the software insists on. Define voltages and a 380/220 V three-phase four-wire distribution system, place a floor panel and an apartment panel, feed the apartment panel from the floor panel, then produce a panel schedule with load classifications and demand factors. To learn the whole electrical workflow on one sample building, see the Institute's Revit MEP course.
What a Revit electrical panel calculates, and what the 2026 release dropped
In Revit, a panel is a family in the Electrical Equipment category whose Part Type is Panelboard for a distribution board, or Switchboard for a main board. Once circuits are connected to it, the software adds up the load of every device on each circuit, splits it across the phases, and multiplies by the demand factor of each load classification.
| The 2027 release calculates | The 2027 release does not calculate |
|---|---|
| Connected load (VA) per circuit, per phase and for the whole panel | Voltage drop along the conductors |
| Loads rolled up from sub-panels into the upstream panel | Automatic conductor size from the circuit rating |
| Estimated demand load from load classification and demand factor | Conductor upsizing for ambient temperature |
| Current per phase, number of wires and phases from the distribution system | Short-circuit study or breaker selection |
The right-hand column is the big change of the last two releases. Since the 2026 release, Revit no longer sizes wires automatically and no longer offers the ambient temperature setting or the two maximum voltage drop fields for branch and feeder circuits; the 2027 Electrical Settings page no longer lists them either. The Wiring pane of Electrical Settings in the 2027 release therefore only holds display settings for wires.
Cable data now lives in its own dialog, Manage › MEP Settings › Electrical Conductor and Cable Settings, and you assign it per circuit through the Cable Type and Cable Size parameters.
Files to follow along, and where panel families come from
You need a file with a floor plan and an architectural model to see the rooms in. The article on Revit MEP sample files explains how to take a copy of the Institute sample file and link the Snowdon Towers architectural model that ships in the Samples folder of the installation.
Panel families come from three places. First, the sample file itself: look under Project Browser › Families › Electrical Equipment. Second, Autodesk online content: Insert › Load from Library › Load Autodesk Family, then search for panelboard or switchboard.
Third, build your own, which is the subject of the article on MEP equipment families.
Wherever it comes from, a usable panel family needs two things: a Part Type of Panelboard or Switchboard, and an electrical connector whose voltage and pole count match a distribution system in the project. This is where downloaded libraries usually fail. The Autodesk panelboard families are built for the American 208 V and 480 V grids, so in a 380/220 V project the Distribution System field offers nothing to choose.
Steps 1–5: revit voltage definitions and the distribution system
The order matters: voltages first, then distribution systems, then the panel.
Step 1. Go to Manage › Settings › MEP Settings › Electrical Settings. The dialog opens with eleven items in the left-hand tree, from Hidden Line to Circuit Naming.
Step 2. Click Voltage Definitions. A company file often has a single Default row at 0 V. Click Add and edit the new row: Name 220 V, Value 220, Minimum 200, Maximum 240.
The minimum and maximum are not decoration. Autodesk's page on voltage definitions describes each definition as a range, so that equipment from different manufacturers still matches. A device rated 230 V falls inside 200–240 and therefore connects to the 220 V grid.
Step 3. Click Add again: 380 V, Value 380, Minimum 360, Maximum 420. That range also covers equipment rated 400 V.
Step 4. Click Distribution Systems, then Add. Name it 380/220 V 3P4W. Set Phase to Three; Revit fills Configuration with Wye and Wires with 3. Change Wires to 4 and the L-G Voltage column becomes available. Set L-L Voltage to 380 V and L-G Voltage to 220 V. What people search for as a revit distribution system is exactly this table.
Step 5. Add a second row for apartment panels: Name 220 V 1P2W, Phase Single, Wires 2, L-G Voltage 220 V. The L-L column greys out, because a single-phase two-wire system has no line-to-line voltage. Click OK.
Steps 6–10: place the panel, assign the system, feed a sub-panel
Step 6. Open the electrical floor plan of the level you are working on. Go to Systems › Electrical › Electrical Equipment. The ribbon switches to the Modify | Place Equipment tab.
Step 7. Pick the panel type in the Type Selector; type part of the name in the search box if the list is long. A face-based family adds a Placement panel where you choose the hosting mode first; a level-based family is placed with a single click in the plan.
Step 8. Select the panel you placed and read the Properties palette. Set Panel Name to the name used in your drawings, for example DB-T3. Under Electrical - Circuiting, if only one distribution system matches the voltage of the panel, Revit assigns it automatically in Distribution System; if several match, pick one from the list. The Number of Wires and Number of Phases rows right below confirm that the software read the grid correctly.
Max Number of Single Pole Breakers is the number of single-pole slots in the board. Enter the real figure, 12 or 24 for instance, because a panel schedule template can take its slot count from this parameter.
Step 9. Place the apartment panel with a single-phase family and set its Panel Name to DB-A301. Its distribution system is 220 V 1P2W.
Step 10. Select DB-A301 and click Create Systems › Power. The ribbon switches to Modify | Electrical Circuits. Click Select Panel, then click the floor panel DB-T3 in the plan. The Panel box on the ribbon now reads DB-T3 and Connection Type reads Breaker.
From here the apartment panel is one circuit inside the floor panel. Receptacles and lights inside the apartment connect to DB-A301 the same way; see drawing power in Revit and placing lights in Revit.
Select the new circuit and the Properties palette shows every figure the software derives: load name, breaker rating, voltage, apparent power, current per phase and circuit length.
Steps 11–15: the revit panel schedule
Step 11. Select the panel and click Create Panel Schedules on the Modify | Electrical Equipment tab. The button offers Use Default Template and Choose a Template. For several panels at once, use Analyze › Reports & Schedules › Panel Schedules, or the PS shortcut, and tick the panels in the dialog.
Step 12. The schedule opens in the drawing area and is stored under Project Browser › Panel Schedules. A panel schedule has four parts: header, circuit table, loads summary and footer. While it is open the ribbon shows the Modify Panel Schedule tab. It holds Move Up, Move Down, Move Across and Move To for rearranging circuits, Assign Spare and Assign Space for empty slots, Lock/Unlock to pin a circuit, and Group/Ungroup to keep a set of circuits together. Rebalance Loads redistributes circuits until the three phases are as equal as possible.
Step 13. The template decides which columns the schedule has. Go to Manage › Panel Schedule Templates › Manage Templates. Choose the Template type, Branch Panel, Data Panel or Switchboard, choose the Panel configuration, then click the pencil to edit the selected template. The same dialog duplicates, renames and deletes templates, and sets the default.
Step 14. In the template view, click a cell of the circuit table, set Choose Category to Electrical Circuits and Add Parameter to Load Name. Repeat for a Rating column. Set Template Options holds the total width, the number of slots shown and the switches for header, loads summary and footer. Click Finish Template when you are done.
Step 15. A schedule built from an older version of the template is marked with an asterisk. Open Manage Templates › Apply Templates, select the schedule and click Update Schedules; answer Yes when Revit warns that typed-in text may be lost. Finally, drag the schedule from the Project Browser onto a sheet. It keeps updating with the model: move one receptacle and the numbers follow.
Load classifications and the revit demand factor
A panel schedule only says something useful when every load carries a group name. That group is the Load Classification, defined in Manage › MEP Settings › Load Classifications. A sample file usually ships with Lighting, Power, HVAC, Motor, Other and Spare.
Each classification takes a demand factor, defined in Manage › MEP Settings › Demand Factors. There are three calculation methods: Constant, one factor for every load; By quantity, by the number of connected devices; and By load, by bands of connected power. The last two can be applied incrementally per band or as a single percentage of the total.
The figures come from the design code your project follows; Revit suggests none. Estimated demand load is connected load times the factor, and according to Autodesk's page on load calculations an upstream panel adds the loads of every panel below it.
From CAD to Revit: panel symbols and load tables
In AutoCAD a panel is three separate things: a block on the floor plan, a one-line diagram drawn by hand, and a load table typed into a spreadsheet. The drafter hunts for a panel symbol to insert, then adds up the load manually.
| Task | AutoCAD | Revit |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol on the plan | A block inserted into the drawing | 2D linework inside the panel family |
| Circuit list | Typed into a table | Generated from connected circuits, numbered automatically |
| Phase balancing | Added up and split by hand | The Rebalance Loads button |
| Total and demand load | A separate spreadsheet | Calculated in the panel by load classification |
| Changing one receptacle | Edit the drawing, then edit the table | The schedule follows the model |
Moving to Revit changes the habit: you do not draw the table, you connect circuits and the table appears. In exchange, your company panel symbol has to live inside the family so that every panel looks the same.
When the panel takes no circuit
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The Distribution System list is empty | The family has no electrical connector, or its voltage falls outside every voltage definition | Use another family, or add a voltage definition whose range covers that voltage |
| Select Panel offers no panel | Device and panel differ in voltage or pole count, or the panel has no distribution system | Assign the distribution system first, then check the device voltage |
| L-G Voltage cannot be set | The three-phase system is still set to 3 wires | Change Wires to 4 |
| A voltage cannot be deleted | A distribution system is using it | Delete that distribution system first |
| The schedule opens with no rows | The template in the file is empty, or the slot count is zero | Manage › Panel Schedule Templates › Edit a Template, then check Set Template Options |
| The panel does not show on the plan | A face-based family found no host, or the Electrical Equipment category is switched off | Place it on a work plane, or switch the category on in Visibility/Graphics |
Three things people often get wrong
| What people say | What the 2027 release does |
|---|---|
| Revit sizes the conductors and warns about voltage drop | Not since the 2026 release; cable size is chosen by hand through Cable Type and Cable Size |
| A panel schedule is an ordinary schedule | It comes from its own template, edited in Panel Schedule Templates, not from the New Schedule dialog |
| Any panel can feed any panel | Select Panel only lists panels that match the voltage and pole count of the circuit |
Frequently asked questions
Why is the Distribution System list of my panel empty?
Because no distribution system matches the voltage and pole count of the connector inside the panel family. Check Voltage Definitions, or use a different panel family.
How is a revit panel schedule different from an ordinary schedule?
It is not created through the New Schedule dialog. It is generated from a dedicated template, reads the circuits connected to the panel, and is formatted in Panel Schedule Templates.
Does the 2027 release calculate voltage drop?
No. Automatic conductor sizing and the maximum voltage drop fields were removed in the 2026 release. Check voltage drop in a spreadsheet, in Dynamo, or with an add-in.
Where do I set a revit demand factor?
Manage › MEP Settings › Demand Factors, then assign the factor to a load classification in the Load Classifications dialog.
Where do panel families come from?
From your company template, or Insert › Load from Library › Load Autodesk Family, searching for panelboard or switchboard. Check the connector voltage before you use one.
Related articles
- What is Revit MEP — the three M, E and P systems and what an MEP engineer does
- Drawing power in Revit — receptacles, switches, circuits and wiring
- Placing lights in Revit — ceiling lights, wall lights, switches and lighting circuits
- Cable tray in Revit — ladder, tray and conduit
- Schedules in Revit — ordinary schedules and how to export them