Calculator Tools
Brick Calculator
Estimate how many bricks and bags of mortar you need for a wall. Adjustable brick size, mortar joint, waste percent, openings, wall thickness, and cost.
Inputs
Measurement system
Wall unit only. Brick size and mortar joint can be set separately below.
Wall layout
Use One wall for a single face. Use Two walls to add a second wall to the same estimate.
Wall dimensions
Measure the full wall face. Subtract doors and windows in the openings field below.
Brick size
Brick presets
Mortar joint, thickness, waste
Typical values: 3/8 in (0.375) for US brick, 10 mm for UK and EU brick.
A single-leaf wall is one brick thick on its narrow edge. A one-brick wall is two leaves and needs twice the bricks.
Openings and mortar (optional)
Total area of all doors and windows. Leave blank for a solid wall.
Rule of thumb is about 7 standard bags of mortar mix per 1000 bricks. Adjust for your mix and joint.
Cost (optional)
Result
Bricks to buy
1,207
Covers 160 sq ft of wall with a 10% waste allowance. Plan for about 9 bags of mortar mix.
Wall area (net)
160 sq ft / 14.864 sq m
Length times height of the wall (no openings subtracted).
Bricks per area
6.86 per sq ft / 73.8 per sq m
One leaf, including the mortar joint. A handy density to memorise.
Brick face (with joint)
0.1458 sq ft per brick
(brick length + joint) x (brick height + joint).
Raw bricks required
1,097.1
Net area divided by brick face, times 1 leaf/leaves.
Bricks after 10% waste
1,206.9
Raw count multiplied by 1 plus the waste percent.
Mortar bags
9 bags
At 7 bags per 1000 bricks, rounded up.
Math runs entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded.
How the math works
- Wall area is the length times the height of each wall, minus the total area of any doors and windows you subtract.
- Effective brick face is (brick length + joint) times (brick height + joint). Each brick in the wall takes up its own face plus half of every mortar joint around it, so the grid cell is the brick plus one full joint on two sides.
- Bricks per leaf is the net wall area divided by the effective brick face. A wall more than one leaf thick multiplies that count by the number of leaves.
- Bricks to buy adds the waste allowance for cuts and breakage, then rounds up to whole bricks. Mortar is estimated from your bags-per-1000 figure.
How much waste should I add?
- 5% suits a plain, straight running-bond wall with few or no openings, where almost every brick is laid whole.
- 10% is the standard rule of thumb most bricklayers use to cover normal cuts and the occasional broken brick.
- 15% fits a wall with several doors and windows, since each opening forces extra cuts around its edges.
- 20% is for arches, curves, decorative bonds, and reclaimed brick, where breakage and colour matching waste more material.
- Order a little extra of any special brick. If the line is discontinued, spares are invaluable for future repairs.
How to use
- Pick imperial or metric, then enter the wall length and height. Switch to Two walls to add a second wall.
- Subtract the total area of any doors and windows in the openings field.
- Choose a brick preset or type your own brick length and height, then set the mortar joint width.
- Select the wall thickness in brick leaves and pick a waste preset or enter a custom percent.
- Optionally estimate mortar bags and enter a price per brick or per 1000 plus a price per mortar bag.
- Read the bricks to buy, then click Copy summary to send the estimate to your notes or supplier.
About this tool
Brick Calculator estimates how many bricks and bags of mortar you need to build a wall by combining the wall face area, the brick size, the mortar joint width, the wall thickness, and a waste allowance. Enter one wall or sum two walls, then subtract the total area of any doors and windows so you only pay for the bricks the wall actually needs. Brick dimensions accept inches, centimeters, or millimeters with one-click presets for US modular, US standard, US queen, UK and EU 215 x 65 mm, and common modular sizes. The mortar joint accepts inches or millimeters and the math uses the standard masonry rule that each brick is responsible for half the joint on every side, so the effective brick face is (length + joint) x (height + joint). A wall thickness selector covers single-leaf (half-brick), one-brick (double-leaf), and brick-and-a-half walls by multiplying the count by the number of brick leaves. The waste field defaults to the bricklayer standard 10 percent with presets for plain walls, walls with many openings, and arches or curves. An optional mortar estimate uses the rule of thumb of about 7 standard bags of mortar mix per 1000 bricks, which you can tune, and an optional price per brick or per 1000 plus a price per mortar bag in eight currencies produces a total project cost. The result also reports a bricks-per-square-foot and bricks-per-square-meter density you can reuse on future jobs. All math runs locally in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Free to use. Works in your browser. No signup, no login.
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