How do you want to calculate it?
Enter each wall, side, or run you measured. The calculator totals the linear feet, adds waste, and tells you how many sticks to buy.
Measured Lengths (feet)
Enter each wall, side, or run. For a room perimeter, enter all four walls. Leave the rest blank.
Cuts, miters, and defects. 10% is standard, 15% for diagonals or busy layouts
Length of the boards or sticks you buy (e.g. 16 ft trim). Gives you a piece count.
Price per foot of material to estimate total cost
Enter your measured lengths on the left to see total linear feet, how many sticks to buy, and your material cost.
Common Linear-Footage Jobs and Typical Material Costs
Rough 2026 material ranges to sanity-check your own numbers. Prices are material only, sold per linear foot, and vary by region, grade, and supplier - always get local quotes.
| Material | Sold By | Typical Cost / Linear Ft | Common Waste |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primed MDF baseboard | Linear foot | $1.50 - $3.50 | 10% |
| Solid wood crown molding | Linear foot | $3.00 - $8.00 | 15% |
| Pressure-treated deck board (5/4x6) | Linear foot | $2.00 - $4.50 | 10% |
| Cedar fence picket run | Linear foot of fence | $15 - $30 | 10% |
| Seamless aluminum gutter | Linear foot | $6.00 - $13.00 | 5% |
Last updated: June 2026. Material-only ranges for US residential work; labor is separate and prices vary by region. Get local quotes before you bid.
Linear Footage Guide for Contractors
What linear footage measures, how to calculate it for any run, and the waste factors that keep your material order honest.
What Linear Footage Actually Measures
Linear footage is just the total length of a run, measured along a single line, with no regard for width or thickness. If you laid every piece end to end, linear feet is how long that line would be. It is how trim, baseboard, crown, fencing, gutter, deck boards, and countertop edge all get priced and ordered.
- Linear foot: One foot of length, period. A 16 ft stick of trim is 16 linear feet no matter how wide the profile is.
- Square foot: Length times width - an area. Flooring and tile sell this way.
- Board foot: A volume measure for rough lumber (12 in x 12 in x 1 in).
The mistake I see most is a homeowner pricing baseboard by the square foot of the room. That is not how it works. You walk the perimeter, add up the wall lengths, and that total is your linear footage. Mixing up linear feet and square feet is one of the fastest ways to blow a material order.
Key Takeaways
- Linear footage = total length of a run, width does not matter
- Trim, baseboard, fencing, gutter, and deck boards are all sold by the linear foot
- Do not confuse linear feet (length) with square feet (area) when ordering
How to Calculate Linear Feet for a Job
Add up every length you measured, then add a waste factor before you buy. For trim and baseboard, walk the room and total the wall lengths. For a fence, it is the total run of the fence line. For flooring sold by the linear foot, divide the square footage by the board width in feet.
- Total run: Linear Feet = Wall 1 + Wall 2 + Wall 3 + Wall 4 (and any other segments)
- From area: Linear Feet = Square Footage / (Board Width in inches / 12)
- With waste: Order Quantity = Linear Feet x (1 + Waste %)
- Pieces to buy: Sticks = Order Quantity / Stock Length, always rounded up
Worked example. A 12 ft by 14 ft room needs baseboard. The perimeter is 12 + 14 + 12 + 14 = 52 linear feet. Add 10% for miter cuts and you are buying about 57 linear feet. At 16 ft per stick that is 57 / 16 = 3.6, so you grab 4 sticks. At $2.50 a foot, your 57 ft runs about $143 in material.
Area example. Say you have 200 sq ft of flooring sold by the linear foot in a 5.25 in plank. That is 200 / (5.25 / 12) = 200 / 0.4375 = 457 linear feet before waste.
Key Takeaways
- Total run: add every wall or segment length together
- From area: divide square footage by the board width in feet
- Add 10% waste for straight runs, 15% for diagonals or busy layouts, then round up to full sticks
Waste Factors and Why Contractors Always Round Up
Your measured length is never the number you order. Cuts, miters, defects, and the board you split and cannot reuse all eat material. I build a waste factor into every takeoff, and I have been burned the one time I did not.
- 10% waste: Standard straight runs - baseboard, fencing, simple trim.
- 15% waste: Diagonal layouts, lots of corners, or short busy walls where offcuts pile up.
- Round up to full sticks: You cannot buy 3.6 boards. Order 4. Running back to the supply house for one stick costs you more in time than the extra board.
One more field note: measure twice before you order once. A linear footage takeoff is only as good as the measurements feeding it, and a 2 ft error on every wall adds up fast across a whole house of trim. When I build a real bid, every one of these runs flows into the estimate so nothing gets left off the order.
Key Takeaways
- Always add waste before ordering - 10% standard, 15% for diagonals and busy layouts
- Round up to whole sticks, you cannot buy a partial board
- A bad measurement ruins the takeoff, so measure twice and order once
How to Use This Calculator
Pick How You Are Measuring
Use "Add Up Lengths" when you have measured walls, sides, or runs (baseboard, trim, fencing). Use "Square Feet to Linear Feet" when you have an area and a material width, like flooring sold by the foot.
Enter Your Measurements
In length mode, type each wall or run in feet - for a room, enter all four walls. In area mode, enter the square footage and the face width of the board in inches.
Set Your Waste Factor
Add a waste percentage for cuts, miters, and defects. 10% covers most straight runs; bump it to 15% for diagonals or busy layouts with lots of corners.
Read Your Order Quantity
See total linear feet with waste, how many full sticks to buy at your stock length, and the material cost. Round up to whole pieces - you cannot buy a partial board.
Linear Footage Formulas
Total Linear Feet = Length 1 + Length 2 + ... + Length N
Linear Feet (from area) = Square Footage / (Board Width in inches / 12)
Order Quantity = Linear Feet x (1 + Waste % / 100)
Pieces to Buy = Order Quantity / Stock Length (round up)
Material Cost = Order Quantity x Cost per Linear FootWhere:
- Length 1...N
- = Each wall, side, or run you measured, in feet
- Square Footage
- = Total area when converting from square feet (material sold by the linear foot)
- Board Width
- = Face width of the board or plank in inches
- Waste %
- = Extra material for cuts, miters, and defects - 10% standard, 15% for diagonals
- Stock Length
- = Length of the sticks or boards you buy (e.g. 16 ft)
- Cost per Linear Foot
- = Material price per foot
- Order Quantity
- = Total linear feet to buy after adding waste
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is linear footage?
Linear footage is the total length of a run measured along one line, with no regard for width. A 16 ft stick of trim is 16 linear feet whether the profile is 2 inches or 6 inches wide. Trim, baseboard, crown, fencing, gutter, and deck boards are all sold and ordered by the linear foot. Use the linear footage calculator above to total your runs and add waste.
How do you calculate linear feet?
Add up every length you measured. For trim or baseboard, walk the room and total the wall lengths: a 12 ft by 14 ft room is 12 + 14 + 12 + 14 = 52 linear feet. To convert from area, divide the square footage by the board width in feet. Always add a waste factor and round up to whole sticks before you order.
How do I convert square feet to linear feet?
Use the math: Linear Feet = Square Footage / (Board Width in inches / 12). For 200 sq ft of flooring in a 5.25 in plank, that is 200 / (5.25 / 12) = 200 / 0.4375 = 457 linear feet before waste. This only works for material sold by the linear foot in a fixed width. For tile or sheet goods, stay in square feet and use the square footage calculator instead.
How much waste should a contractor add to a linear footage order?
For pricing a job, I add 10% waste on straight runs like baseboard and fencing, and 15% on diagonal layouts or busy rooms with lots of corners where offcuts pile up. Then I round up to full sticks - you cannot buy 3.6 boards, you buy 4. Running back to the supply house for one stick costs more in time than the extra board. The board foot calculator helps when you are pricing rough lumber instead.
How do contractors use linear footage to price a job?
Linear footage drives the material order, then labor gets priced per foot installed. Trim carpenters often quote baseboard and casing at a rate per linear foot, so the same takeoff feeds both the material list and the labor line. I run every run - trim, fencing, deck boards - into the estimate so nothing gets left off the order or the bid. Build the full estimate in EstimationPro and the proposal, follow-up, and invoice come with it.
What is the difference between linear feet and square feet?
Linear feet measure length only; square feet measure area (length times width). Baseboard is sold by the linear foot because you only care how long the run is. Flooring is sold by the square foot because it covers an area. The classic homeowner mistake is pricing trim by the room's square footage - that number has nothing to do with how much baseboard you need. Measure the perimeter for linear feet, measure length times width for square feet.
Related Tools
- Square Footage Calculator - measure area for flooring, tile, and paint
- Board Foot Calculator - price rough lumber by volume
- Lumber Calculator - board counts and cost for framing and carpentry
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