Lumber Calculator — Boards & Project Cost Estimator
Enter your project area, board size, waste factor, and price to get the exact number of boards and total cost for a deck, floor, fence, or any coverage project.
ft
ft
in
ft
%
$
Including waste allowance
- 1
Project area
16 × 12 = 192Project length × width in square feet - 2
Coverage per board
(5,5 ÷ 12) × 8 = 3,667Board width (in) ÷ 12 gives feet; multiply by board length (ft) - 3
Raw boards (no waste)
192 ÷ 3,667 = 52,36 - 4
Waste factor
1 + 10 ÷ 100 = 1,1 - 5
Boards needed (rounded up)
⌈52,36 × 1,1⌉ = 58
Hur fungerar denna kalkylator?
Boards needed = ceiling of (project area / board coverage) × (1 + waste%), where board coverage = actual width (in)/12 × length (ft). Add 10–15% waste for typical projects. Always use the actual milled width (e.g. 5.5 in for a 2×6, not 6 in). Multiply total boards by price per board for the project cost.
Formel
How this is calculated
Start by entering the project's length and width in feet — the calculator multiplies them to get the total area in square feet. Each board covers a rectangular area equal to its actual face width (in inches, converted to feet by dividing by 12) times its length in feet. Dividing the project area by the per-board coverage gives the raw number of boards required with no waste.
A waste allowance accounts for boards damaged during cutting, pieces that must be discarded due to defects, and offcuts that cannot be reused. A 10% allowance is typical for straightforward projects; increase to 15–20% for diagonal installations, intricate cuts, or knotty lumber. The calculator rounds up to the nearest whole board after applying waste, because you always buy full boards.
Note that lumber is sold by nominal dimensions (2×4, 2×6, etc.) but the actual dimensions are smaller after milling. Always use the actual face width for this calculation — for example, a 2×6 has an actual face width of 5.5 inches. Prices per board vary widely by species, grade, and region, and are editable estimates; always confirm at your supplier.
Vanliga frågor
Use 10% for straightforward square installations (decks, floors with minimal cuts). Use 15–20% for diagonal layouts, herringbone patterns, rooms with many obstacles, or when using lower-grade lumber with visible defects. Add a few extra boards for long runs where end cuts are frequent.
Always use the actual width. A "2×6" board has a nominal 6-inch width but an actual face width of 5.5 inches after milling. Using 6 instead of 5.5 would underestimate the board count by about 8%.
Longer boards cover more area per piece, so you need fewer of them. However, very long boards are harder to handle and may cost more. A shorter, standard length (8 ft or 10 ft) often gives better value even if you need a few more pieces.
Även känt som
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Lumber Calculator — Boards & Project Cost Estimator [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/sv/calculator/lumber-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Lumber Calculator — Boards & Project Cost Estimator." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/sv/calculator/lumber-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Lumber Calculator — Boards & Project Cost Estimator," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/sv/calculator/lumber-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_lumber_calculator, title = {Lumber Calculator — Boards & Project Cost Estimator}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/sv/calculator/lumber-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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