Carpet Calculator
Enter a room's length and width and pick a roll width to get the drops, seams, linear feet and square yards, with the drops run both ways and the shorter kept, rounded up once to your supplier's cut. A drawn shape is counted as its bounding rectangle.
Estimates for planning, not professional advice. Read the full notice.
The drawing did not open. Length and width are still here.
Room: shape and size
Skip the drawingDrag a round corner to move it. The small hollow diamond on a side is its curve handle: drag it across the side to curve the side (it is not a corner). To add a corner (a new point), tap the side itself, then choose Add a point here. Tapping a corner or a side opens its actions. Drag empty space to move the view; pinch, or Ctrl and the mouse wheel, to zoom. The keys are listed under Keys.
Keys
- Tab
- next corner; each says how far it is from corner 1
- Arrow keys on a corner
- move it one square; ten with Shift; 1/16 in with Alt
- Delete or Backspace
- remove the corner; its two sides join in one straight side
- + on a corner
- add a corner halfway along the next side
- Arrow keys on the drawing
- move the view; farther with Shift
- + and - on the drawing
- zoom in and out
- 0 on the drawing
- show the whole shape
- Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z on a Mac)
- undo, except inside a typed field (it keeps its own)
- Ctrl+Shift+Z or Ctrl+Y
- redo
- Escape while dragging
- put it back where it was
- Enter on a corner or side
- go to its actions
- Escape in the actions
- close them and go back to the drawing
The drawing did not load. Check your connection and try again.
- Area
- 195 ft²
- Perimeter
- 56 ft
- Cut-out edges
No area until the shape is fixed.
Estimate for planning, from what you entered and the product data shown. Check product labels and your supplier before you buy.
Shape: Rectangle Change
Sides
Corners
Cut-outs
Feet and inches, like 12' 6"
Example: a bedroom
26 carpet, by the linear foot
- Carpet bought 312 ft²
- Square yards bought 34.67 sq yd
- Drops 2 drops
- Seams 1 seam
- The other way: linear feet 30 ft
Your project
Enter a size to see your total.
Each product is rounded up once for the whole project, so the total can be less than the items bought alone added together. A line counted from a cut layout (sheets, boards or tiles laid out piece by piece) is counted for each item and added.
Shopping list
| Item | Size | Buy |
|---|---|---|
| Carpet, by the linear foot | carpet, by the linear foot | 26 |
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Worked example: a bedroom
Show the working
- Full drops across, and the fill strip left 15 ft ÷ 12 ft[1] = 1 full drop
- Add the fill strip as one more drop 1 drop + 1 fill strip = 2 drops
- Linear feet: drops times the length of a drop 2 drops × 13 ft = 26 ft
- Square yards: linear feet times the roll width, over nine 26 ft × 12 ft[1] = 34.67 sq yd
Assumptions
The figures behind the example. Sourced figures link to their source below; a default is a starting value to check against your label or supplier.
| Assumption | Value | Details and changes |
|---|---|---|
| Roll widths the Carpet and Rug Institute lists | 12 ft 13.5 ft 15 ft[1] | |
| The Carpet and Rug Institute says broadloom carpet can be 12, 13.5 or 15 feet wide. | ||
| Trim on each drop | 0 in | |
| Default Extra length on every drop, your own allowance. Check your label or supplier. | ||
| Cut length step | No default | |
| Default The length your supplier cuts the roll to. Check your label or supplier. | ||
Feet and inches, like 12' 6"
The drops run both ways
Drops, fill strip, linear feet, square yards and seams for the example room with the drops run along each side
| Layout | Drops | Fill strip width | Linear feet | Square yards | Seams |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drops run along the longer, 15 ft side | 2 | 1 ft | 30 ft | 40 | 1 |
| Drops run along the shorter, 13 ft side | 2 | 3 ft | 26 ft | 34.67 | 1 |
The calculator keeps the way that needs fewer linear feet, and the fewer seams on a tie. Pile runs the same way on every drop and no pattern is matched.
The same room on each roll width
Linear feet, square yards and seams for the example room on each of the three broadloom widths the Carpet and Rug Institute lists
| Roll width | Linear feet | Square yards | Seams |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 ft | 26 ft | 34.67 | 1 |
| 13.5 ft | 15 ft | 22.5 | 0 |
| 15 ft | 13 ft | 21.67 | 0 |
Source: [1]
Each row takes the better of the two ways. A wider roll can need fewer drops, and so fewer seams.
Questions
Why not multiply the area by a waste factor?
Carpet comes in a fixed roll width, and the room is covered by whole drops with seams between them. A room a little wider than the roll needs a whole extra drop for the strip left over, so the roll length decides the buy, not the area. The tables show the drops and seams.
Which roll width do I use?
The Carpet and Rug Institute lists three broadloom widths, and the second table shows the example room on each. Choose the width of the roll your supplier cuts from.
What if I draw an L-shaped room?
A drawn shape is counted as its bounding rectangle, the smallest rectangle that holds it, so the count can be more than the shape needs. Type each part as its own room for a closer count.
Does the calculator match a pattern or pile direction?
No. Every drop runs the same way, which keeps the pile direction the same, and no pattern repeat is allowed for.
Sources (1)
-
Finding the Right Carpet (opens in new tab), The Carpet and Rug Institute, web page, undated.
Standards or industry body.
“Broadloom carpet can be 12 feet, 13.5 feet, or 15 feet in width.”
Checked November 12, 2026. Figures and codes change; verify with the source. Back to where this is used (Source 1)
These are summaries of what the sources say, not professional advice. Codes and product data change. Check with your building department and the product label about your own project.
Sources
- [1] The Carpet and Rug Institute, Finding the Right Carpet. Checked November 12, 2026. https://carpet-rug.org/carpet-for-business/finding-the-right-carpet/