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LUMBER CALCULATOR

Areas	Measurements
Lumber Dimensions	2-by-2 2-by-3 2-by-4 2-by-6 2-by-8 2-by-10 2-by-12 4-by-4 4-by-6 4-by-8 4-by-10 4-by-12 6-by-6 6-by-8 6-by-10 6-by-12
Unit of Measurement	Lineal Board
Price per lineal foot
Number of lineal feet

Cost for feet: $

TIPS ON PURCHASING FOR LUMBER

Lumber is sold either by lineal feet or board feet. Lineal feet refer to the total length of the lumber you're buying. The term board feet refers to a special volume measurement that defines one board foot as a 12” long by 12” wide by 1” thick board. (Or, mathematically, a volume of 12 X 12 X 1 = 144 sq inches.) A 2” by 6” board that is 12” long would also be the equivalent to one board foot. (Mathematically, it's 2 X 6 X 12 = 144 sq inches.)

If you're buying lumber from a lumberyard, they will most likely deal in board feet. After you've determined from your plans how much lumber you need, call up the lumberyard to ask for their price per board foot on the size and species of wood you want to purchase. Or, if you've calculated your lumber needs in lineal feet, ask the lumberyard for the price per foot.

Choose either lineal feet or board feet from the drop down menu, and enter the pricing information into the calculator. Now you can see how much the lumber for your project will cost.


Lumber Measurement Tip:

Lumber is sold by its nominal size, and not it's actual size. What this means is when you purchase, for example, a 2-by-4, its real measurements are 1.5” by 3.5”. The 2-by-4 measurement term refers to the size of the wood when it was roughly cut, but it doesn't account for the planing and sanding that takes place before the wood is sold.