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Framing & Lumber

Board Foot Calculator

Board feet measure lumber by volume, so a price per board foot only becomes a real number once you know thickness, width, length, and how many pieces you are buying. Enter those four and this calculator returns board feet per piece, the total for the order, the linear footage, and what it costs. Softwood dimensional lumber is figured on nominal size — a 2×6 counts as a full 2 by 6.

Reviewed by The CostToUpgrade Estimating Desk Last reviewed How we estimate

Your project

Board size

Nominal thickness. Softwood is priced on nominal size, so a 2× board counts as a full 2 inches.

Nominal width for softwood; hardwood is tallied at its actual rough width.

Softwood comes in even lengths — 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16 ft.

Order

How many identical boards you are buying at this size.

Pricing

Construction softwood is roughly $1–$3/bf; kiln-dried domestic hardwoods commonly run $4–$12/bf.

Estimate

80bf

Total board feet · Net volume — add waste for cutoffs

Board feet per piece
8bf
Total linear feet
80ft
Estimated lumber cost
$360.00

Estimates are guidance only and exclude tax, labor, and site conditions unless stated. Confirm with a local pro.

How it's calculated

No black boxes — here is the exact math behind your estimate, so you can check it or adapt it for your own quote.

  1. 1Board feet per piece = thickness (in) × width (in) × length (ft) ÷ 12
  2. 2Equivalently: thickness × width × length in inches ÷ 144, since 1 board foot = 144 in³
  3. 3Total board feet = board feet per piece × number of pieces
  4. 4Total linear feet = length (ft) × number of pieces
  5. 5Cost = total board feet × price per board foot

Worked example

Ten 2×6 boards, each 8 feet long, priced at $4.50 per board foot.

Inputs

Thickness
2 in
Width
6 in
Length
8 ft
Number of pieces
10 pcs
Price per board foot
4.5 $/bf

Result

Total board feet
80 bf
Board feet per piece
8 bf
Total linear feet
80 ft
Estimated lumber cost
$360.00

Tools & materials for this project

As an Amazon Associate we may earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.

  • Wood moisture meter Confirm rough lumber is down to 6–8% before you mill it.
    View on Amazon
  • 25 ft tape measure Tally board width and length at the lumber rack.
    View on Amazon
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Frequently asked questions

What exactly is a board foot?
A board foot is a unit of lumber volume, not length: 144 cubic inches, or a piece 1 inch thick, 12 inches wide, and 12 inches long. Because it measures volume, a 1×12 eight feet long and a 2×6 eight feet long both come to 8 board feet. The shop formula is thickness (in) × width (in) × length (in) ÷ 144, or, when your length is already in feet, thickness × width × length (ft) ÷ 12. Sawmills, hardwood dealers, and lumber brokers price almost everything this way.
Do I use nominal or actual lumber dimensions?
For softwood dimensional lumber sold by the piece — 2×4s, 2×6s, 2×10s — board feet are figured on the nominal size, even though a 2×4 actually measures 1½ × 3½ inches after drying and surfacing. That is why a 2×4×8 counts as 5.33 board feet rather than the 3.5 board feet its true volume works out to. Hardwood is different: it is sold in quarters of rough thickness (4/4 = 1 inch, 8/4 = 2 inches) and tallied at its actual rough width, so you pay for the wood the planer removes.
What is the difference between board feet and linear feet?
Linear feet measure length only — an 8-foot board is 8 linear feet whether it is a 2×4 or a 2×12. Board feet measure volume, so they account for thickness and width as well. Home centers price studs, trim, and decking by the piece or by the linear foot; sawmills and hardwood suppliers price by the board foot. That means you cannot convert a per-board-foot price into a per-piece price without knowing the thickness and width, which is exactly what this calculator does for you.
How many board feet are in a 2×6×8?
Multiply 2 × 6 × 8 and divide by 12: 8 board feet per piece, so ten of them is 80 board feet. A few more to keep handy: a 2×4×8 is 5.33 bf, a 1×6×8 is 4 bf, a 2×8×10 is 13.33 bf, and a 4×4×8 is 10.67 bf. Multiply the total by your price per board foot for material cost — at $4.50/bf, those ten 2×6×8s come to $360 before tax and delivery.
Should I add waste to a board foot order?
Yes. This calculator returns the net board feet in the pieces you listed; it does not pad for defects or cutoffs. For dimensional softwood cut to simple lengths, add about 10%. For rough hardwood you will joint, plane, and rip, add 20–30% — you lose material to crook, snipe, checked ends, and the fact that a random-width board rarely yields your exact part cleanly. Buy the extra on the same trip so color and grain match across the project.

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