DRYWALL PLANNING
How many sheets of drywall do I need?
Estimate total wall area, divide by the area of one sheet, and add waste for cuts and damaged panels.
Example
A 12-by-10-foot room with 8-foot walls has about 352 square feet of wall area before subtracting openings. A 4-by-8 sheet covers 32 square feet, so the raw estimate is 11 sheets. With a 10% allowance, plan on about 13 sheets after rounding up.
What to consider
- Subtracting large openings can improve accuracy.
- Longer sheets may reduce seams in some layouts.
- Ceilings should be estimated separately when included.
- Moisture, fire, and location requirements can affect drywall type.