Flooring calculator
How much flooring to buy for a room: square feet and boxes of laminate, vinyl plank or hardwood with the extra for cuts, or carpet in square yards off the roll.
Flooring to buy
154 sq ftsq yd
- Boxes
- Floor area
- 144 sq ft (16.0 sq yd)
- In square yards
- 17.1 sq yd
- In square feet
- 154 sq ft
- Roll widths
- 0 widths, 0 seams
- Off the roll
- 0.0 linear ft
- Estimated cost
Includes your 7% extra, rounded up to whole boxes when you enter the box size. Mullican Flooring suggests 5–7% for straight rows, 10–15% on a diagonal, and 1–2 spare boxes for repairs. Carpet widths run the length of the room with 3 in. at each wall for trimming (CRI 105). The count uses full widths; an installer can sometimes cut a narrow fill strip from crosswise pieces and use less. Patterned carpet needs extra to match.
How much flooring do I need?
Measure the room's length and width, multiply for square feet, and add extra for the pieces cut off at walls and doorways. Carpet is different: it comes off a roll of fixed width, so the room has to be covered in whole widths.
- Floor area = length × width (square yards = square feet ÷ 9)
- Plank, laminate, vinyl or wood = area × (1 + extra %); boxes = that ÷ square feet per box, rounded up
- Carpet widths = (shorter side + 6 in.) ÷ roll width, rounded up, laid along the longer side
- Carpet = widths × (longer side + 6 in.) × roll width, in square yards
Worked examples
Vinyl plank in a 12 × 12 ft room: 12 × 12 = 144 sq ft. With 7% extra for straight rows, 144 × 1.07 = 154.1 sq ft. If the box label says 20 sq ft, that's 154.1 ÷ 20 rounded up = 8 boxes.
Carpet in an 11 × 14 ft bedroom: the short side plus 6 in. of trim is 11.5 ft, which fits 1 width of a 12 ft roll. Cut it 14.5 ft long: 14.5 × 12 = 174 sq ft, or 19.3 sq yd for a 154 sq ft room.
Flooring for common room sizes
Hard flooring with Mullican's top-of-range extra (7% straight, 15% diagonal); carpet on a 12 ft roll with 3 in. of trim at each wall.
| Room | Area | Straight | Diagonal | Carpet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 10 ft | 100 sq ft | 107 sq ft | 115 sq ft | 14.0 sq yd |
| 12 × 12 ft | 144 sq ft | 154 sq ft | 166 sq ft | 33.3 sq yd |
| 11 × 14 ft | 154 sq ft | 165 sq ft | 177 sq ft | 19.3 sq yd |
| 12 × 15 ft | 180 sq ft | 193 sq ft | 207 sq ft | 41.3 sq yd |
| 16 × 20 ft | 320 sq ft | 342 sq ft | 368 sq ft | 54.7 sq yd |
How much extra flooring to buy
From Mullican Flooring, How to Calculate the Correct Footage When Purchasing Hardwood Flooring. Follow your product's own installation instructions where they say otherwise.
| Layout | Extra |
|---|---|
| Straight rows | 5–7% |
| Diagonal | 10–15% |
| Spares for repairs | 1–2 boxes |
Flooring questions
How much flooring do I need for a 12x12 room?
A 12 × 12 room is 144 sq ft. With 7% extra for straight rows you'd buy about 154 sq ft of plank, laminate or hardwood, or 166 sq ft laid on a diagonal at 15%. Enter the square feet per box from the label to round up to whole boxes.
How much carpet do I need?
Carpet is sold by the square yard but cut from a roll, often 12 ft wide, so you pay for whole widths. An 11 × 14 bedroom fits one width: 19.3 sq yd. A 12 × 12 room is a surprise: with 3 in. of trim at each wall it's just over 12 ft wide, so it takes 2 widths and a seam, 33.3 sq yd for a 16 sq yd floor. Ask whether the style comes in a wider roll, and enter that width above.
How do I convert square feet to square yards for carpet?
Divide square feet by 9, because a square yard is 3 × 3 ft. A 144 sq ft room is 16 sq yd of floor. The calculator shows both, and carpet prices per square yard go in the price box when Carpet is selected.
How much extra flooring should I buy?
Mullican Flooring says to add 5–7% for straight rows and 10–15% on a diagonal, more for lower grades with more character you may cut out, and to keep 1–2 extra boxes for repairs. Herringbone and rooms with many corners waste more; your product's instructions come first.
How many boxes of flooring do I need?
Boxes hold different amounts by product, so use the square feet printed on the box label. Divide the square feet to buy (with the extra) by the square feet per box and round up. Buy all the boxes at once and check they share a lot or run number, since color can vary between runs.
How much does flooring cost?
Enter the price per square foot (or per square yard for carpet) and the calculator multiplies it by what you're buying, extra included. Installation, underlayment, trim and removing the old floor are extra and vary by region, so get quotes and use these quantities to check them.