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Board Foot Calculator

Price a lumber order in seconds — board feet, waste allowance and total cost for every board.

Boards

Enter thickness in inches (4/4 = 1, 5/4 = 1.25, 8/4 = 2). Fractions like 3 1/2 work everywhere.

QtyThick (in)Width (in)Length (ft)Species$ / bfBoard ft

How board feet work

A board foot is a volume of wood 12" × 12" × 1" (144 cubic inches). Hardwood is sold by the board foot using its rough (nominal) thickness, so a board sold as 4/4 is counted as 1" thick even after it is planed to 13/16".

Formula: thickness (in) × width (in) × length (ft) ÷ 12. Add 15–30% for defects, snipe and grain matching — more for figured or knotty stock.

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