Architecture doesn't have to be confusing. Learn about the history and key characteristics of architectural styles you can spot around your neighborhood.

French cottage
18 French Cottages That'll Give You Wanderlust
California-style living space
15 Mediterranean Style Homes to Transport You to Another Country
Ranch-style home in Palm Springs
What Is a Ranch-Style Home?
A hacienda-style home.
What Is Hacienda Architecture?
What is a rowhouse?
What Is a Rowhouse?
Railroad-style apartment
What Is A Railroad-Style Apartment?
A traditional French country home.
What Is French Country Architecture?
A traditional Tuscan-style home.
What Is Tuscan Architecture?
A Mediterranean-style villa with a pool.
What Is Mediterranean Architecture?
A Spanish mission.
What Is Spanish Architecture?
Image of a balcony filled with potted plants and a bistro set in the middle
The Difference Between a Terrace and a Balcony
What is Art Nouveau architecture
What Is Art Nouveau Architecture?
cottage with ivy on side of house
These 15 Cottage Style Homes Are Oh-So-Sweet
What is Renaissance architecture
What Is Renaissance Architecture?
Rococo Architecture
What Is Rococo Architecture?
Queenslander house
What Is a Queenslander House?
What is a Storybook House?
What Is a Storybook House?
Haussmann architecture
What Is Haussmann Architecture?
What is a McMansion
What Is a McMansion?
What is a Saltbox House?
What Is a Saltbox House?
Taj Mahal
What Is Islamic Architecture?
Tudor-style home
What Is Tudor Revival?
American Colonial-style home
What Are American Colonial-Style Homes?
The exterior of a Spanish Colonial home.
What Is Spanish Colonial Architecture?
Red roof with dormer
Should You Consider Having Dormers on Your Home?
Illustration of different types of houses
This is the Type of Home That's Right for You, Based on Your Myers-Briggs Personality Type
Seth Peterson Cottage
7 Stunning Frank Lloyd Wright Homes
Zaha Hadid Architects03 Courtesy of Helene Binet01 Courtesy of Helen Binet 02 Courtesy of Iwan Baan03Heydar Aliyev Center0201As part of the former Soviet Union, the urbanism and architecture of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan on the Western coast of the Caspian Sea, was heavily influenced by the planning of that era. Since its independence in 1991, Azerbaijan has invested heavily in modernising and developing Baku’s infrastructure and architecture, departing from its legacy of normative Soviet Modernism.Zaha Hadid Architects was appointed as design architects of the Heydar Aliyev Center following a competition in 2007. The Center, designed to become the primary building for the nation’s cultural programs, breaks from the rigid and often monumental Soviet architecture that is so prevalent in Baku, aspiring instead to express the sensibilities of Azeri culture and the optimism of a nation that looks to the future.Design conceptThe design of the Heydar Aliyev Center establishes a continuous, fluid relationship between its surrounding plaza and the building’s interior. The plaza, as the ground surface; accessible to all as part of Baku’s urban fabric, rises to envelop an equally public interior space and define a sequence of event spaces dedicated to the collective celebration of contemporary and traditional Azeri culture. Elaborate formations such as undulations, bifurcations, folds, and inflections modify this plaza surface into an architectural landscape that performs a multitude of functions: welcoming, embracing, and directing visitors through different levels of the interior. With this gesture, the building blurs the conventional differentiation between architectural object and urban landscape, building envelope and urban plaza, figure and ground, inHeydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan
The Stunning Work of Architect Zaha Hadid
Contemporary house
These Contemporary Homes Show Off the Best Features of This Style
balustrade at Lake Como
What's the Difference Between a Baluster and a Balustrade?
Barnes Foundation
The Work of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects
Famous Gothic cathedral, Cologne Cathedral
Learn About the Dramatic and Unique Features of Gothic Architecture
A row of Charleston single houses.
The History and Facts Behind Charleston Architecture
The exterior of a bungalow-style home.
The History of Charming Bungalow Architecture
The exterior of a split-level home.
What Is Split-Level Architecture?
A southern-style home.
What Is Southern Architecture?
A white ranch style home with green grass, a large low-hanging tree, and flowering shrubs.
What Is Ranch Architecture?
Villa Finale, San Antonio, TX
What Is Italianate Architecture?
A House for Essex
What Is Postmodern Architecture?
Connecticut Hall, Yale University
Learn About the History and Characteristics of Georgian Architecture
What is a Craftsman House
What Is a Craftsman House?
The Breakers, Newport, RI
What Is Beaux-Arts Architecture?
Row of detached homes
24 Popular Types of Architectural House Styles
Victorian Painted Ladies in San Francisco.
15 Top Architectural Styles
Solar panels on a home
Sustainable Architecture: Definition, History, and Future
U.S. Supreme Court building
What Is Neoclassical Architecture?
Large and Old Brick Industrial Building
Learn All About Industrial Architecture
what is vernacular architecture
What Is Vernacular Architecture?
Mission style home with palm trees outside
10 Mission-Style Homes You'll Love
One Police Plaza in NYC
What Is Brutalism?
baroque architecture definition
What Is Baroque Architecture?
classical architecture definition
What Is Classical Architecture?
Prairie style building
What Is Prairie-Style Architecture?
art deco architecture
What Is Art Deco Architecture?
Victorian Painted Ladies in San Francisco.
What Is Victorian Architecture?
White cube, modern home
What Is Contemporary Architecture?
Greek Revival house in Greenfield Village, Michigan.
Greek Revival Architecture Explained
Bauhaus main building designed by Walter Gropius
What Is Bauhaus Architecture?
Cape Cod house in Chatham, Mass.
What Is Cape Cod Architecture?
tudor style house
What Is Tudor Architecture?
Japanese architecture
What Is Japanese Architecture?
Classic Spanish Colonial home with cream exterior
9 Spanish Colonial Homes and Their Trademark Characteristics
ranch style home
16 Ranch-Style Homes Perfect for Desert Living
A-frame treehouse with deck
9 A-Frame Houses Built for Outdoor Enthusiasts