Hammer & Hoe
Free tool

Flooring & Paint Calculator

Enter a room's size to estimate flooring to order and paint to buy. Results are rounded up so you don't come up short.

Floor area—
Flooring to order—
Paint to buy (walls)—

How the calculation works

Flooring: length times width gives the floor area in square feet. We add your waste factor for cuts and mistakes, then round up. Flooring is sold by the box, so divide by the square feet per box on the product label and round up again.

Paint: the perimeter of the room times the ceiling height gives the wall area. We subtract about 20 square feet per door and 15 per window, multiply by the number of coats, and divide by 350 square feet per gallon, a typical coverage figure. Check the can: coverage varies by product, and rough or porous surfaces need more paint.

Tips before you buy

  • Buy all flooring at once so boxes come from the same production lot, and keep one spare box for future repairs.
  • Use a primer when covering a dark color, fresh drywall or patched areas.
  • Ceilings are usually painted separately; their area equals the floor area.

Choosing a floor? Compare costs in our flooring cost comparison, and see our step-by-step guide on how to paint a room. Working outside? Try the mulch and soil calculator.