Brick Calculator
Estimate brick quantity, courses, mortar, pallets, waste allowance, and material cost for walls, facades, partitions, garden walls, and masonry projects.
Plan bricks and mortar before ordering
A brick calculator estimates the number of bricks required for a wall, building, or masonry project. Calculate brick quantity by entering wall length, wall height, brick dimensions, and mortar joint thickness. Most brick calculators also estimate material waste, typically adding 5% to 10% extra bricks for cuts and breakage.
Enter the actual brick face length and height, not only a nominal size. The calculator adds the mortar joint to create a modular face size, subtracts doors and windows, and estimates courses, bricks per course, mortar volume, bags, pallets, and cost.
Brick size, bond pattern, corners, piers, returns, cuts, breakage, wall ties, cavity construction, reinforcement, and local masonry requirements can change the final quantity.
Estimated bricks to order
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Bricks with waste
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Courses
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Mortar bags
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Estimated material cost
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Net wall area
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Bricks per course
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Mortar volume
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Full pallets
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Wall thickness
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Brick and mortar breakdown
Shows quantity, ordering basis, and estimated material cost.
| Item | Quantity | Calculation basis | Estimated cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Run the calculator to see the material breakdown. | |||
Planning note: Confirm actual brick dimensions, mortar type, joint profile, bond pattern, wall thickness, lintels, ties, flashing, reinforcement, and supplier pallet quantities before ordering.
How to use the brick calculator
- Measure the wall: Enter the finished wall length and height in feet or meters.
- Subtract openings: Add the combined area of doors, windows, vents, and other spaces that will not contain brick.
- Enter actual brick dimensions: Measure the brick or use the manufacturer specification for length, height, and width.
- Add the mortar joint: Use the planned horizontal and vertical joint thickness so the modular brick face matches the layout.
- Choose wall layers: Use one for a single-wythe wall and additional layers only when the masonry design requires them.
- Review ordering quantities: Compare bricks, mortar bags, pallets, and cost with supplier packaging and the final masonry plan.
Brick calculator formulas
The calculator uses the brick face plus one mortar joint as the modular area occupied by each brick. It subtracts openings before multiplying by the number of wall layers.
Net wall area = wall length x height - openings
Bricks = net wall area / modular brick face x wall layers
Order quantity = bricks x (1 + waste percentage)
For a 20-by-8-foot wall with 16 square feet of openings, the net wall area is 144 square feet. A standard 7 5/8-by-2 1/4-inch brick with a 3/8-inch joint creates an 8-by-2 5/8-inch module, which produces an estimate near 988 bricks before waste for a single layer.
How openings, corners, and bond patterns affect brick count
A rectangular wall produces a clean estimate, but real masonry includes cuts, returns, corners, lintels, piers, and bond adjustments. Use these checks to decide whether the default waste allowance is enough.
| Project detail | Effect on quantity | Planning action |
|---|---|---|
| Doors and windows | Reduce wall-face bricks but may require cuts, closers, sill units, or brick above a lintel. | Subtract the opening area, then retain a reasonable waste allowance for surrounding cuts. |
| Corners and returns | Change the bond at alternating courses and may need full, half, or special corner units. | Measure every return and check the bond layout before finalizing the order. |
| Running bond | Usually uses standard units efficiently but still needs half-brick offsets at ends and openings. | A 5% to 10% waste allowance is often a useful starting range for simple layouts. |
| Decorative or complex bond | Can add headers, soldiers, cuts, color sorting, and pattern-specific units. | Create a course-by-course elevation and use a larger project-specific allowance. |
Mortar, pallets, and delivery planning
Brick quantity is only one part of the order. Mortar yield varies with brick dimensions, joint thickness, frog or core volume, workmanship, waste, bag size, and mix specification.
Mortar bags
Use the bag yield printed by the manufacturer. The calculator's mortar volume is geometric and should be treated as a preliminary estimate.
Pallet quantities
Supplier pallet counts differ by brick size and packaging. Confirm whether partial pallets, returns, and deposits are available.
Delivery staging
Plan stable pallet locations, equipment access, covered mortar storage, and distribution along the wall before delivery.
Mortar compatibility reference: National Park Service - Repointing Mortar Joints in Historic Masonry Buildings.
Common brick sizes and modular coverage
Brick terminology and dimensions vary by region and manufacturer. Always use the actual product dimensions for purchasing, layout, openings, coursing, and wall thickness.
| Example unit | Approximate actual size | Typical modular face | Use in this calculator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard modular brick | 7 5/8 x 3 5/8 x 2 1/4 in | About 8 x 2 5/8 in with 3/8-in joints | Use the standard-brick preset, then verify the supplier specification. |
| Engineer brick | Often longer, wider, or taller than modular brick | Depends on the exact product and planned joint | Enter actual length, height, width, and joint thickness. |
| Metric brick | Common examples near 215 x 102.5 x 65 mm | Often coordinated with a 10-mm joint | Switch to metric and enter the local product dimensions. |
| Thin brick veneer | Face length and height similar to brick, with much less depth | Coverage depends on face dimensions and joint | The brick count can be estimated, but mortar and wall-thickness results may not apply. |
Facing-brick specification reference: ASTM International - ASTM C216-26 Standard Specification for Facing Brick.
How to calculate complex and irregular walls
Do not force an L-shaped, stepped, gable, or variable-height project into one average rectangle. Divide it into simple wall sections, calculate each section separately, and add the brick quantities after applying openings and the appropriate waste allowance.
| Wall shape | How to measure it | Calculation method | Common oversight |
|---|---|---|---|
| L-shaped wall | Measure each straight leg from the outside face and record its own height. | Calculate the two rectangles separately, then add their brick totals. | Avoid counting the corner area twice and allow for bond changes at the return. |
| Stepped wall | Split the elevation wherever the top or base changes course height. | Enter each rectangular step as a separate section with its actual length and height. | Include extra cuts, caps, flashing transitions, and partial courses. |
| Gable end | Measure the rectangular wall below the eaves and the triangular area above it. | Rectangle area = width x height. Triangle area = width x rise / 2. | Raking cuts along the roof slope usually require a higher waste allowance. |
| Piers or columns | Record the face width, depth, height, quantity, and bond on all exposed sides. | Calculate each exposed face or use a course-by-course pier layout. | Area alone may miss internal bond units, closures, reinforcement, and caps. |
Example: gable wall
A 24-foot-wide wall that is 9 feet to the eaves with a 6-foot gable rise has 216 square feet in the rectangle and 72 square feet in the triangle. Subtract openings from the combined 288 square feet, then calculate the brick quantity and increase waste for the sloped cuts.
Course planning around doors, windows, and wall height
The area calculation estimates quantity, but a coursing plan determines whether brick modules align cleanly with sills, lintels, soffits, floor lines, and the top of the wall. Check vertical and horizontal dimensions before construction so small layout differences do not accumulate into narrow cuts or inconsistent joints.
Build a course gauge
Add brick height and bed-joint thickness to find one course module. Mark repeated modules on a story pole or elevation to check wall height and opening levels.
Coordinate opening heights
Compare sill and lintel elevations with full course modules. Adjust framing or joint layout before masonry begins when the design allows it.
Check wall length modules
Brick length plus the head joint creates the horizontal module. Use it to anticipate end cuts, corner bond, movement joints, and spacing around openings.
Separate quantity from layout
Two walls can have the same area but require different cuts and special units. Use the calculator for total quantity and a scaled elevation for exact placement.
Course module = brick height + bed joint
Horizontal module = brick length + head joint
Always verify allowable joint tolerances and dimensions against the project specification.
Complete masonry material takeoff checklist
A brick-and-mortar total is not a complete masonry order. Review the wall assembly, drainage details, support conditions, reinforcement, and finish requirements so accessory materials are identified before delivery.
Wall assembly and support
- Brick and special units: field brick, corners, sills, caps, soldiers, closers, and replacement stock.
- Mortar system: specified mortar type, pigments, sand, water, admixtures, and mixing equipment.
- Support: footing, shelf angle, lintels, bearing, anchors, and temporary bracing.
- Connections: veneer ties, anchors, fasteners, reinforcement, and ladder or truss joint reinforcement.
Moisture and movement control
- Water management: flashing, end dams, drip edges, weeps, drainage mats, and cavity accessories.
- Air and thermal layers: air barrier, insulation, membranes, and compatible transition materials.
- Movement joints: compressible filler, backer rod, sealant, primer, and bond-breaker tape.
- Cleaning and protection: wall covers, scaffold protection, approved cleaner, brushes, and test panels.
Masonry construction safety reference: OSHA - Requirements for Masonry Construction.
Interesting Fact
The Brick Industry Association estimates that 100 square feet of wall requires about 675 modular bricks with a 3/8-inch mortar joint, before waste. That equals 6.75 bricks per square foot, so 1,000 bricks cover only about 148 square feet under the same assumptions. Brick size, joint thickness, bond pattern, openings, and breakage can change that coverage substantially. Source: Brick Industry Association - Dimensioning and Estimating Brick Masonry.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the calculator estimate brick quantity per square foot?
The result depends on the actual face dimensions and the planned mortar joint. A standard modular unit with a 3/8-inch joint often works out near 6.86 bricks per square foot for one wall layer. Larger units cover more area and reduce the required quantity, while smaller units require more.
Should I subtract windows and doors from the wall area?
Yes. Add the area of all openings and enter that total in the opening field for a more realistic construction estimate. Keep a waste allowance because masonry around openings often requires cuts, half units, lintel courses, sills, and bond adjustments. Small openings may be left in the calculation when their material savings would be offset by extra cutting.
What brick wastage percentage should I use?
Five to ten percent is a common planning range for a simple rectangular wall, but the right allowance depends on corners, bond pattern, openings, color variation, cuts, and handling damage. Complex work may need more. Including realistic wastage in the material and cost plan also reduces the risk of ordering a later batch that does not match.
Does mortar joint thickness change the brick count?
Yes. A thicker joint increases the modular face area occupied by each brick, which reduces the calculated count. It also changes coursing, mortar demand, appearance, and compliance with the project specification. The chosen cement, lime, and sand mix should follow the masonry design; changing the mix does not replace the need to enter the correct joint thickness.
What does the wall layers setting mean?
Wall layers represents the number of brick wythes across the wall width or thickness. A single veneer or single-wythe partition uses one layer. Multi-wythe masonry should follow a designed bond, cavity, tie, reinforcement, and moisture-control system rather than simply multiplying the quantity.
How accurate is the mortar estimate?
The mortar estimate is a geometric planning value based on brick length, height, width, and joint dimensions. Actual yield changes with cores or frogs, wall ties, joint tooling, mix consistency, weather, workmanship, and bag formulation. Confirm the manufacturer’s coverage table before purchasing material for the project.
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Disclaimer: This brick calculator is for general educational, budgeting, and preliminary material-planning use only. It estimates brick quantity, wall area, modular coverage, courses, bricks per course, wall thickness, mortar volume, mortar bags, pallets, and cost from user-entered wall dimensions, opening area, brick dimensions, mortar joint thickness, wall layers, allowances, package quantities, and prices. It is not a masonry specification, structural design, construction drawing, engineering calculation, building-code determination, fire-rating analysis, moisture-control design, or substitute for an architect, engineer, building official, manufacturer, masonry contractor, or supplier. Actual quantities can vary because of brick tolerances, nominal versus actual dimensions, bond pattern, corners, returns, piers, arches, lintels, sills, quoins, soldier courses, cuts, breakage, color blending, efflorescence replacement, wall ties, reinforcement, flashing, weeps, cavities, insulation, movement joints, substrate conditions, mortar type, brick absorption, cores, frogs, joint profile, workmanship, weather, packaging, minimum order quantities, delivery damage, and local construction requirements. Mortar estimates are geometric approximations and may differ materially from manufacturer coverage tables. Verify the selected brick, mortar, accessories, structural details, permits, code requirements, supplier quantities, site access, safe storage, lifting methods, and final installation plan before ordering or building.
Last updated: June 10, 2026