LunchBox
Free Grasshopper plugin for parametric paneling, structures, and machine learning
Open-source Grasshopper plugin providing 169 components for surface tessellation, parametric paneling, structural patterning, data workflow, and machine learning. The most downloaded plugin for Grasshopper, developed by Proving Ground and used by top AEC firms for computational design and generative form-making.
- Pricing
- Completely free — open source under LGPL license
- Alternatives
- BHoM, DiRoots, Branch Technology
- Who it's for
- Architecture, Structural Engineering, Interior Design
Why This Tool Exists
Architects and computational designers working in Grasshopper must hand-code complex surface paneling, space truss patterns, and parametric geometry operations — tasks that require deep scripting expertise and hours of component wiring. Machine learning integration in Grasshopper historically required leaving the design environment entirely.
LunchBox provides 169 ready-made Grasshopper components covering parametric paneling (quad grids, diamonds, hexagons, triangles), structural patterning (diagrids, space trusses), mathematical surfaces, mesh tools, data I/O (CSV, Excel, JSON, XML), and a full machine learning toolkit (LunchBoxML) supporting regression, neural networks, probabilistic classifiers, and clustering — all without leaving Grasshopper.
How You Use It
Data Transparency
Exactly what this tool uses and how
Not applicable — local Grasshopper plugin; no web APIUse Cases
- ·Generate complex facade paneling systems (diagrids, hexagonal patterns, quad panels) without custom scripting
- ·Design and rationalize space truss structures for structural engineers
- ·Apply machine learning regression and classification models directly within Grasshopper for performance optimization
- ·Export parametric design data to Excel for quantity takeoffs and cost estimation
- ·Create parametric building massing studies with LunchBox mass components
- ·Encode and serialize Grasshopper geometry for interoperability with external systems
Pricing
Sources & Research NotesResearch date: 2026-07-08
- https://apps.provingground.io/lunchbox/
- https://apps.provingground.io/install-lunchbox-for-grasshopper/
- https://provingground.io/tools/lunchbox/
- https://provingground.io/2025/06/03/lunchbox-reflections-on-the-past-present-and-future-of-grasshoppers-most-downloaded-plugin/
- https://grasshopperdocs.com/addons/lunchbox.html
- https://provingground.io/about/nathan-miller/
- https://apps.provingground.io/privacy/
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