How many flooring boxes do I need?
Measure rooms, subtract areas you will not floor, and use carton coverage to plan whole boxes.
Short answer
Add the rooms that use the same flooring, subtract exclusions, apply an allowance, and divide by the square-foot coverage on the carton.
For homeowners planning flooring across one or more rooms before comparing cartons.
How to do it
Measure each room
Add a row for every room or section that will use the same product.
Remove non-flooring areas
Subtract islands, closets, or other spaces that will not receive that flooring.
Set the allowance
Choose the buffer that fits the room shape and installation pattern.
Enter carton coverage
Use the package coverage to round the target to whole boxes.
Formula
Included room area minus exclusions gives net area. Add the allowance, divide by box coverage, and round up.
Illustrative example
A 20 × 15 ft room is 300 sq ft. With a 10% allowance the target is 330 sq ft. At 22 sq ft per box, the purchase is 15 boxes.
Common mistakes
- Using the room's longest dimensions for an irregular shape
- Forgetting an allowance
- Mixing cartons from different lots without checking the product
Before you buy
Confirm carton coverage, plank length mix, lot or dye number, transitions, stairs, and whether the pattern needs more allowance.
What this guide does not cover
The estimate does not create a plank layout or account for stairs, subfloor repairs, underlayment, transitions, labor, or product changes between rooms.
Use the calculator
Flooring Calculator is the primary tool for this guide. You can also browse the other interior calculators.