Board Foot Calculator
A board foot is the volume unit lumberyards price hardwood by — one board foot is a piece 1 inch thick, 12 inches wide, and 12 inches long (144 cubic inches of wood).
Total board feet
4bd ft
- Per piece
- 4 bd ft
How it’s calculated
Board feet = (thickness × width × length, all in inches) ÷ 144, multiplied by the number of pieces. With every dimension in inches, the 144 converts cubic inches to board feet. If your length is in feet, multiply by 12 first — an 8-foot board is 96 inches.
Worked example
A 2-inch by 6-inch board, 8 feet (96 inches) long: (2 × 6 × 96) ÷ 144 = 1,152 ÷ 144 = 8 board feet. Ten identical boards come to 80 board feet.
FAQs
- Should I use nominal or actual board size?
- It depends on the lumber. For softwood framing — a “2×6” — use the nominal size; that's how it's sold and tallied even though the dressed board is a bit smaller. Hardwood is different: board feet are figured from the actual rough dimensions, with thickness in quarters (4/4 = 1 in, 8/4 = 2 in) and no nominal “2×6.” When in doubt, use the size your supplier quotes.
- What's the difference between a board foot and a linear foot?
- A linear foot measures length only. A board foot measures volume — it factors in thickness and width too — so two boards of the same length can have very different board footage.
- Does the length go in feet or inches?
- This calculator takes all three dimensions in inches. If your length is in feet, multiply by 12 first: an 8-foot board is 96 inches.
Sources
- Board foot defined as 144 cubic inches of lumber (1 in × 12 in × 12 in) — standard US/Canadian lumber convention.