PreConstruct AIFree calculator
Drywall calculator — sheets, screws, tape and compound
Type the wall length and height, the faces you board and the openings, add a ceiling if there is one, and get the sheets, screws, tape and joint compound — with every rate yours to change.
Sheets
54
4 × 8 ft
Board area
1,568 SF
145.67 m²
Screws
1728
Tape
581 LF
177.09 m
Joint compound
15.68 gal
3.48 pails of 4.5 gal
The working
- walls 96 LF × 9 ft × 2 faces − openings 80 SF × 2 = 1,568 SF
- 1,568 SF × waste of 10 per cent ÷ 32 SF a sheet = 54 sheets
- screws 54 sheets × 32 per 4×8, scaled to 32 SF = 1728
- tape 1,568 SF × 370 LF per 1,000 SF = 581 LF
- compound 1,568 SF × 10 gal per 1,000 SF = 15.68 gal (59.35 L)
A starting figure, not an engineered quantity. Sizes, reinforcing and code requirements come from your drawings, your specifications and your engineer — check them before you order.
Where a calculator stops
This does one run, from numbers you type. A bid is every run on every sheet.
- — It doesn't read the drawing set or its schedules
- — It doesn't measure on the PDF or keep the lengths
- — It doesn't show what an addendum changed
- — It doesn't price, add labour or build a proposal
Board area
Wall area is length × height, on each face you board — two for a partition, one for an exterior wall — less the doors and windows on each face. Add the ceiling's length × width.
(LF × ft − openings) × faces + ceiling = SF
Sheets
Add your waste allowance, then divide by one sheet: 32 SF for a 4 × 8, 40 SF for a 4 × 10, 48 SF for a 4 × 12. Taller walls often go 4 × 12 to cut butt joints.
Screws, tape and compound
The defaults are common starting rates, not rules: about 32 screws a 4 × 8 sheet on walls at 16 in centres; about 370 LF of paper tape per 1,000 SF; and roughly 10 gallons of ready-mixed all-purpose compound per 1,000 SF, from USG's published coverage. Ceilings, levels of finish and your crew change all three — type your own.
What a calculator misses
Backing, corner bead, control joints, bulkheads and access panels all come off a real takeoff and none of them come off a room size. Our drywall takeoff checklist lists twelve things that go missing.
Questions estimators ask
- How many sheets of drywall do I need for a room?
- Add up the wall length, multiply by the height and the number of faces, take off the doors and windows, add the ceiling, add your waste allowance, and divide by the area of one sheet — 32 SF for a 4 × 8.
- How many screws per sheet of drywall?
- A common starting figure is about 32 screws for a 4 × 8 sheet on walls with studs at 16 inches, more on ceilings. Check the fastening schedule for the assembly you are building, especially fire-rated walls.
- How much joint compound per 1,000 square feet?
- USG publishes roughly 9 to 10 gallons of its ready-mixed all-purpose compounds per 1,000 SF of board. Your level of finish and your finishers change it, so the calculator lets you set the rate.
- Does it work in metric?
- Sizes are entered in feet, and the board area, tape and compound are shown in square metres, metres and litres as well.
Stop retyping sizes into a calculator
On PreConstruct AI you measure on the PDF, type the sizes the drawings print, and the concrete, forms, bars, board and stringers come out with the arithmetic beside every line — in imperial, metric or both. Your first bid is free, with no card.