A friend's remodel made me rethink how to handle cooling different rooms

I've been planning some updates around my house and recently visited a friend who was finishing a remodel. One thing that caught my attention was their cooling setup. I always assumed the choices were basically either central air or adding a unit to one room. I didn't realize there were other ways to approach it. They went with a multi zone mini split setup during the remodel. One outdoor unit connects to multiple indoor units, so different rooms can be controlled separately.

The more I thought about it, the more it made sense for certain houses. A bedroom that gets afternoon sun doesn't have the same needs as a hallway or a room that's barely used. Instead of trying to make every part of the house match one temperature, each area can be adjusted based on how it's actually used. They mentioned looking at several systems during the planning stage, including Costway options, but the bigger decision was really choosing a setup that worked with the layout instead of forcing the existing system to cover everything.

For anyone who has remodeled and changed the HVAC approach:

Did you stick with the existing system or switch to something like a multi zone ductless AC system?

Did you add zones during the remodel or wish you had planned for them earlier?

For a larger home, did a 2-zone or 3-zone setup end up being enough?

I'm realizing HVAC planning might be one of those things that’s easy to ignore until the walls are already closed.