Board Feet Calculator
One board foot equals 144 cubic inches of lumber (1 in × 12 in × 12 in). Use the calculator below to price hardwood, softwood, or rough-sawn stock instantly.
Board feet formula
Board Feet = (Thickness in × Width in × Length in) ÷ 144. If your length is in feet instead of inches, use ÷ 12 instead of ÷ 144. Always use nominal (rough) thickness when buying rough lumber — a "4/4" board is priced at 1 inch even after it's planed to 3/4 in.
Common examples
- 1×6×8 ft board = 1 × 6 × 96 ÷ 144 = 4 BF
- 2×4×8 ft stud = 2 × 4 × 96 ÷ 144 = 5.33 BF
- 4/4 × 8" × 10 ft walnut = 1 × 8 × 120 ÷ 144 = 6.67 BF
Board feet vs linear feet vs square feet
Linear feet only measures length. Square feet measures area. Board feet measures volume — the only unit that matches how hardwood lumber is actually priced. Two boards with the same linear feet can have very different board feet if their thickness or width differs.
Waste factor
Add 15–20% to your BF total for kerf, defects, and mistakes. For live-edge or heavily figured stock, 25–30% is safer. The WoodCraft cut list calculator handles kerf automatically so you don't over- or under-buy.
Skip the math — try the free calculator
WoodCraft Utility Engine builds a live cut list from your real measured wood thickness, kerf, and cabinet dimensions. Imperial or metric, fractions or decimals.
Launch the cut list calculator →