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Drywall calculator: how many sheets for a room
The short answer
Add wall and ceiling area, subtract openings, add waste and divide by the sheet size. A 14 by 12 foot room with 8 foot walls and a ceiling, minus 50 square feet of openings, is 534 square feet. With 10% waste that’s 19 sheets of 4 × 8, or 13 sheets of 4 × 12.
Enter the room and choose whether to include the ceiling. You’ll see sheets for all three common sizes, and a price if you’re quoting it.
Drywall you need
19 sheets of 4 × 8
534 square feet to cover, 587 with waste.
- 4 × 8 sheets (32 sq ft)
- 19
- 4 × 10 sheets (40 sq ft)
- 15
- 4 × 12 sheets (48 sq ft)
- 13
Price for this job
- Materials (19 × $16.00)
- $304.00
- Labor
- $0.00
- Markup
- $60.80
- Price to quote
- $364.80
How it works
Area = 2 × (length + width) × height + the ceiling − openings. Sheets = area with waste ÷ sheet area, rounded up.
| Sheet | Covers | Sheets per 1,000 sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| 4 × 8 | 32 sq ft | 32 |
| 4 × 10 | 40 sq ft | 25 |
| 4 × 12 | 48 sq ft | 21 |
These are the sizes makers such as CertainTeed (opens in a new tab) list. Longer sheets mean fewer seams, but they’re harder to carry and may not fit up the stairs.
Painting afterward? Take the same room to the paint calculator.
Common questions
How do I calculate how much drywall I need?
How many sheets of drywall for a 12 by 12 room?
Should I subtract doors and windows?
Is 4 × 8 or 4 × 12 better?
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