🪚 Board Foot Calculator
Hardwood is often priced by the board foot. Enter the board size and quantity to find total board feet and cost.
How the Board Foot Calculator works
A board foot is 144 cubic inches — a board 1 inch thick, 12 inches wide and 1 foot long. Use nominal sizes when that is how the yard prices it.
Step-by-step calculation
- 1Enter thickness, width and length.
- 2Multiply T × W × L(ft) ÷ 12.
- 3Multiply by quantity and price.
Worked example
Ten boards 2 inches × 6 inches × 8 ft: 2 × 6 × 8 ÷ 12 = 8 board feet each, 80 in total — $320 at $4 per board foot.
Board Foot Calculator examples
| Thickness (in) | Board feet |
|---|---|
| 2 | 80 board feet |
| 4 | 160 board feet |
| 10 | 400 board feet |
| 20 | 800 board feet |
| 200 | 8,000 board feet |
Other inputs kept at the calculator's default values. Results calculated by this calculator.
Why use a Board Foot Calculator?
Estimate lumber cost for hardwood projects.
Important factors that can affect your results
- Nominal vs actual size.
- Waste from defects.
- Price per board foot varies by species.
Frequently asked questions
Nominal or actual size?
Lumber yards usually price by nominal size (a "2×6" is actually about 1.5 × 5.5 inches).
What is a linear foot?
Just length, ignoring thickness and width — used for trim and dimensional lumber.
Related calculators
Last reviewed November 2026 · How we build and check our tools · Report a problem