Storefront is a non-load-bearing glazing system installed inside an opening, between the floor and the structure above — usually one story, roughly 10–12 ft tall at most. Curtain wall hangs from the building’s structure, runs continuously past the floor slabs across multiple stories, and is engineered for higher wind loads, building movement and drainage at every horizontal mullion.
From the street both look like “aluminum and glass”, which is why the two terms get mixed up on drawings, in specs and in Revit models. This guide covers the real differences — height, anchoring, frame depth, glazing, drainage and cost — then shows how to model each one correctly in Revit, where both are built with the same system family.
Storefront vs curtain wall: quick comparison
| Storefront | Curtain wall | |
|---|---|---|
| Typical height | One story, usually up to about 10–12 ft | Multiple stories; no practical height limit |
| Where it sits | Inside the opening, between floor and structure above | Outside the structure, passing in front of the slab edges |
| Anchoring | Head, sill and jambs | Anchors at each slab edge, designed for building movement |
| Frame size (Kawneer reference) | Trifab 451: 2″ sightline × 4-1/2″ depth | 1600 Wall System: 2-1/2″ sightline × 6″, 7-1/2″ or 10-1/2″ depth |
| Glazing | Front, center or back set; field-glazed | Pressure plates and caps, gaskets or structural silicone; stick-built or unitized |
| Water management | All water weeps down to the sill flashing | Drains at each horizontal mullion |
| MasterFormat section | 08 41 13 – Aluminum-Framed Entrances and Storefronts | 08 44 13 – Glazed Aluminum Curtain Walls |
| Cost and installation | Lower cost, simpler field installation | Higher cost; often needs lifts or cranes |
| In Revit | Curtain Wall system family, embedded in a host wall | Curtain Wall system family, modeled as a continuous wall in front of the slabs |
Frame dimensions come from Kawneer’s product comparison and vary by manufacturer and system — always check the product data for the system you specify.
What is a storefront system?
A storefront is a non-load-bearing, aluminum-framed glazing system that fills an opening in the building — the classic glass front of a shop, a lobby or a main entrance. It carries its own weight and the wind load on the glass, and transfers both to the floor below and the structure above. It is not designed to span past floor slabs.
Storefront framing is shallow and narrow: around 4-1/2″ deep, with sightlines close to 2″. It is usually fabricated and glazed on site, and most systems let the installer set the glass toward the front, center or back of the frame. Entrance doors are designed to drop straight into the framing, which is one of the main reasons storefront dominates ground floors.
Where storefront is used
- Retail frontages and showrooms at street level
- Building entrances and vestibules
- Lobbies and ground-floor commercial spaces in mid-rise buildings
- Interior glazed partitions (interior storefront)
Limitations
Storefront collects any water that gets into the frame and sends it down to the sill, where it weeps out through the sill flashing. On a one-story opening protected by a canopy or overhang, that works well. On tall, exposed elevations the sill has to handle all the water from above, and the lighter framing is not designed for the higher wind pressures found further up a building. That is the point where designers switch to curtain wall.
What is a curtain wall?
A curtain wall is an exterior glazing system that hangs from the building’s structure like a curtain. It is non-structural — it carries only its own weight and the wind loads acting on it — but it does that over several floors, anchored at each slab edge and running continuously in front of the structure.
Because it covers a much larger area of the façade, a curtain wall uses deeper mullions (6″ and up), drains water out at every horizontal mullion instead of at a single sill, and has anchors designed to absorb building movement between floors.
Stick-built vs unitized
- Stick-built: mullions and transoms are installed piece by piece on site, then glazed. It is flexible and common on low- and mid-rise buildings.
- Unitized: large panels are assembled and glazed in a factory, then lifted into place floor by floor. It installs faster and with better quality control, which is why it is standard on high-rises.
When curtain wall is required
Use curtain wall when the glazing runs past a floor slab, spans more than one story, or covers a tall or highly exposed elevation. As a rule of thumb, many owner design guides switch to curtain wall for vertical spans above about 12 ft — the University of Michigan design standards, for example, call for curtain wall on “multi-story, vertical spans of greater than twelve feet and extended horizontal lengths” (DG 084413).
What about window wall?
Window wall is the third system that often gets confused with curtain wall. It looks like curtain wall from outside, but it is installed between the slabs, one floor at a time, sitting on the slab and fixed to the slab above. A slab-edge cover hides the floor line. It costs less than curtain wall and is easy to replace floor by floor, which is why it is common on residential towers. The tradeoff is more joints at every slab edge and a visible line at each floor.
- Storefront: inside an opening, one story
- Window wall: slab to slab, one story at a time, repeated on each floor
- Curtain wall: continuous in front of the slabs, across multiple stories
How to choose: 4 questions
- Does the glass cross a floor slab? If yes, it is curtain wall (or window wall repeated on each floor), not storefront.
- How tall is the opening? Single-story openings up to about 10–12 ft suit storefront. Beyond that, check the manufacturer’s span tables or move to curtain wall.
- How exposed is the elevation? Ground floors under a canopy are ideal for storefront. High, windy or unprotected elevations need curtain wall’s deeper mullions and drainage at every horizontal.
- What is the budget and schedule? Storefront is cheaper and simpler to install. Curtain wall costs more but is the right system for envelope performance at height.
Many buildings use both: storefront at the entrance level, with curtain wall above starting at the second floor.
How to model storefront vs curtain wall in Revit
In Revit there is no separate “storefront” category. Both systems are built with the Curtain Wall system family — a family that lives inside the project and can only be modified through its types (see What Is a Revit Family? for the difference between system and loadable families). The difference is in how you set up the type and where you place the wall.
Modeling storefront: the embedded type
Revit 2026’s default template ships with three curtain wall types: _Not Defined (a blank type with no grids or mullions), Exterior Glazing and Storefront. The Storefront type is set up to behave like real storefront:
- Automatically Embed is checked, so when you draw it along an existing wall, it cuts its own opening in the host wall.
- The vertical grid uses Maximum Spacing at 5′, so Revit divides the length into equal bays no wider than 5′ — no manual gridding.
- The horizontal grid uses a Fixed Distance of 8′, which places the transom line above the doors and lower glazing.
- Mullions (2.5″ × 5″ rectangular by default) are already assigned to every grid line and border, giving you a framed system straight away.
The workflow is simple: draw the Storefront type over an existing exterior wall on the ground floor, set its Base and Top constraints to fit the opening (for example, Level 1 to a head height below Level 2), and Revit carves the opening. To match a real system more closely, duplicate the type and assign a mullion closer to a typical 2″ × 4-1/2″ storefront section.
Modeling a real curtain wall
For a curtain wall, place the wall in front of the slab edges rather than inside a host wall:
- Duplicate the Exterior Glazing type and give it a clear name such as CW – Stick 2.5×6.
- Leave Automatically Embed unchecked.
- Draw the wall along the façade with a location line offset so it runs outside the slab edges.
- Set the Base Constraint to the lowest level and the Top Constraint to the roof (or the last level it covers) so it spans multiple stories as one element.
- Define grid spacing to match floor-to-floor heights so a horizontal mullion lines up with each slab edge, and use opaque system panels at the spandrels.
- Assign deeper mullion profiles (6″ or more) to reflect real curtain wall sections.
For a full step-by-step with screenshots, follow our tutorial How to Make a Curtain Wall in Revit.
Doors in storefront and curtain wall
Doors in a curtain wall are not hosted by a wall — they replace a curtain panel. Select the panel (Tab to cycle to it), unpin it if needed, and swap its type for a curtain wall door family. Revit 2026 includes single and double curtain wall door families for this: go to Insert → Load Autodesk Family, open Doors and look for the families whose names start with Door-Curtain-Wall-. If you need more options, browse our curtain wall families, which include curtain wall doors, panels and mullion systems.
Free curtain wall and storefront families
Start your model with ready-to-use content from our library. These packages include curtain wall systems, panels and glazing families you can load straight into your project:
- Kawneer 1600 curtain wall system — a stick-built curtain wall based on the 1600 Wall System
- Butt joint glazing family — for frameless, silicone-jointed glazing
- All curtain wall families — panels, mullions and curtain wall doors
For the rest of the architectural library — doors, windows, stairs and more — see our guide to architectural Revit families.
Frequently asked questions
Is storefront cheaper than curtain wall?
Yes. Storefront uses lighter, shallower framing, is usually glazed on site and installs without heavy lifting equipment, so it costs less per square foot than curtain wall. Curtain wall costs more because of its deeper framing, more complex anchoring and drainage, and the equipment needed to install it on upper floors.
Can storefront be used on upper floors?
It can be used as a punched opening on upper floors when the opening sits within a single story and the wind loads are within the system’s limits. It should not be used to span past a floor slab or across multiple stories; that is the role of curtain wall or window wall.
What is the height limit for storefront?
Storefront is typically limited to about 10–12 ft in height. The exact limit depends on the system, the mullion reinforcement and the design wind load, so always check the manufacturer’s span charts for your project.
Is window wall the same as curtain wall?
No. Window wall sits between the floor slabs and is installed one story at a time, with a slab-edge cover at each floor. Curtain wall runs continuously in front of the slabs across several stories. They can look similar from outside, but they are installed, detailed and priced differently.
How do I make a storefront in Revit?
Use the Curtain Wall system family with a type that has Automatically Embed checked — such as the default Storefront type — and draw it along a basic wall. Revit cuts the opening in the host wall automatically, and the type’s grid layout places the mullions for you.
