Flooring Calculator: How Many Packs of Laminate?

Estimate only. Check the product label and the building regulations where you live before you buy or build.

Quick answer

Multiply each room’s length by its width, add the rooms together, add 10% for offcuts (15% for a diagonal layout), then divide by the square metres in one pack and round up. A 4 × 3.5 m room is 14 m², or 15.4 m² with 10% waste, which is 9 packs of 1.835 m² laminate.

How to use the flooring calculator

Measure each room wall to wall at floor level and enter its length and width in metres. Add a room for every space that gets the same flooring, or switch to Total area if you already know the square metres. If your room sizes are in feet, switch to Imperial first.
Choose the flooring type and the layout. The layout sets the waste allowance: 10% for straight rows, 15% for diagonal and herringbone. You can change the percentage under Waste, doorway width and product sizes.
Type the m² per pack printed on your pack. The number of packs updates as you type and is always rounded up to whole packs.
Under Skirting board and underlay, enter the number of doorways to get the skirting length and the number of boards, and choose whether you need rolls of underlay.

How do you work out how much flooring you need?

Add up the floor area, add a waste allowance, divide by the area one pack covers and round up. Flooring is sold in whole packs, and each pack states how many square metres it covers. The allowance pays for the offcuts at the ends of rows and along the walls that are too short to use again.

Skirting follows the walls instead of the floor: add up the room perimeters, take off the width of each doorway, and divide by the length of one board. Underlay covers the floor area itself, so it gets no waste allowance and is rounded up to whole rolls.

floor area = length × width, added up over the roomsarea with waste = floor area × (1 + waste % ÷ 100)packs = area with waste ÷ m² per pack, rounded upskirting length = room perimeters − doorways × doorway widthskirting boards = skirting length ÷ board length, rounded upunderlay rolls = floor area ÷ m² per roll, rounded up

How many packs of laminate do I need for my room?

A 4 × 3 m room needs 8 packs of 1.835 m² laminate with a 10% waste allowance, or 9 packs of 1.596 m². The table works out other room sizes the same way: length × width, plus 10%, divided by the pack size and rounded up. Both pack sizes are 8 mm laminate packs of 7 planks from one maker’s UK product pages.

Packs of laminate by room size, straight layout with a 10% waste allowance (pack sizes in m²)
Room (m)	Area with waste (m²)	Packs of 1.835	Packs of 1.596
3 × 2.5	8.25	5	6
3 × 3	9.9	6	7
3.5 × 3	11.55	7	8
4 × 3	13.2	8	9
4 × 3.5	15.4	9	10
4.5 × 4	19.8	11	13
5 × 4	22	12	14
6 × 4	26.4	15	17
6 × 5	33	18	21

For a diagonal or herringbone layout, set the waste allowance to 15% in the calculator instead.

Worked examples

Laminate in a 4 × 3.5 m bedroom

The bedroom is 4 m by 3.5 m, so the floor is 4 × 3.5 = 14 m². Laid in straight rows, it gets a 10% waste allowance: 14 × 1.1 = 15.4 m². The laminate comes in packs of 1.835 m², and 15.4 ÷ 1.835 = 8.39, so buy 9 packs. Together they cover 16.52 m².

The perimeter is 2 × (4 + 3.5) = 15 m. Taking off one 0.9 m doorway leaves 14.1 m of skirting, which is 6 boards of 2.4 m. Underlay in 15 m² rolls takes 14 ÷ 15 = 0.93, so 1 roll.

Engineered wood laid diagonally in two bedrooms

Bedroom one is 3.6 × 3 m (10.8 m²) and bedroom two is 3 × 2.6 m (7.8 m²), 18.6 m² in total. A diagonal layout starts at a 15% allowance: 18.6 × 1.15 = 21.39 m². With 2.075 m² per pack, 21.39 ÷ 2.075 = 10.31, so buy 11 packs, which cover 22.83 m².

The two perimeters are 13.2 m and 11.2 m, 24.4 m together. Two 0.9 m doorways leave 22.6 m of skirting, which is 10 boards of 2.4 m. The 18.6 m² floor takes 2 rolls of 15 m² underlay.

How much extra flooring should I buy?

Buy 10% more than the floor area for straight rows and 15% more for a diagonal layout. Quick-Step’s UK product pages tell buyers to order 10% extra to cover cutting loss, and Egger’s UK guide gives the same 10% for waste and mistakes, rising to 15% for less experienced fitters and for patterned or tile-effect boards. A hardwood maker gives 10% to 15% for a diagonal layout, because every board along the walls is cut at an angle.

One wood flooring supplier gives 15% for herringbone and chevron floors in areas under 100 m² and 12% above that, so the calculator starts herringbone at 15%, the same as diagonal. If your product’s fitting instructions give a number, type that into Waste allowance instead. Raise the percentage for rooms with a chimney breast, alcoves or fitted wardrobes to cut around.

How many square metres are in a pack of flooring?

The packs we checked cover 1.596 to 2.128 m², and the figure changes with plank size. One laminate maker sells packs from 1.39 m² to 2.54 m² and says many of its packs cover 1.99 m². These are the products the calculator starts with, taken from the makers’ UK product pages.

Coverage per pack, roll or board of flooring products sold in the UK
Product	Size checked	Coverage
Laminate	1380 × 190 × 8 mm, 7 planks	1.835 m² per pack
Laminate	1200 × 190 × 8 mm, 7 planks	1.596 m² per pack
Vinyl plank (LVT)	1251 × 189 × 5 mm, 9 planks, underlay attached	2.128 m² per pack
Engineered wood	1820 × 190 × 13 mm, 6 planks	2.075 m² per pack
Solid wood	No pack size confirmed	Starts at 2 m²: type your own
Underlay	2 mm, for laminate and parquet	15 m² per roll
Skirting board	77 × 14 mm parquet skirting	2400 mm per board

Always use the coverage printed on your own pack or roll.

Questions

How many packs of laminate do I need for a 4 × 3 m room?

A 4 × 3 m room needs 8 packs of 1.835 m² laminate. The floor is 12 m², and with a 10% waste allowance you need 13.2 m². Dividing 13.2 by 1.835 gives 7.19, which rounds up to 8 packs covering 14.68 m². With smaller 1.596 m² packs, 13.2 ÷ 1.596 = 8.27, so you need 9 packs.

How much skirting board do I need for a room?

You need the room perimeter minus the doorways. A 4 × 3.5 m room has a perimeter of 15 m, and one 0.9 m doorway leaves 14.1 m, which is 6 boards of 2.4 m. The count assumes you join boards along a wall. Each corner is mitred, which uses up a little length, so buy one more board if the room has a chimney breast or several corners.

Do I need underlay for laminate flooring?

Yes, unless the planks have underlay attached: allow one 15 m² roll for every 15 m² of floor, rounded up. Quick-Step lists its 2 mm Basic Plus underlay for laminate and parquet floors, while its Blos vinyl planks come with underlay attached, so they need no separate roll. The calculator switches underlay off when you choose vinyl and on for the other types, and you can change it. Follow the underlay type your floor’s fitting guide names.

Should I buy a spare pack of flooring?

Yes, one or two spare packs are worth keeping. Egger’s UK guide suggests an extra pack or two, especially when the flooring comes from a limited batch, and a hardwood maker recommends one or two extra cartons so that boards damaged later, for example by a leak, can be replaced with matching ones. The calculator does not add these spares, so add them to the pack count yourself.

My room is measured in feet. How do I use the calculator?

Switch the calculator to Imperial and type the room in feet: it converts the pack size to square feet for you, so 1.835 m² becomes 19.75 sq ft. A 13 × 11 ft room is 143 sq ft, or 157.3 sq ft with 10% waste, which is 8 packs. Write inches as decimals, so 11 ft 6 in is 11.5 ft.

How do I measure an L-shaped room or a bay for flooring?

Split the floor into rectangles, measure each one and enter them as separate rooms. A 5 × 4 m living room with a 2 × 1.5 m bay is 20 + 3 = 23 m², which is 14 packs of 1.835 m² with a 10% allowance. Do not use the two perimeters for skirting, because the line between the rectangles is not a wall: measure the real walls and type their total into Wall length for skirting.

Sources

Quick-Step UK, Laminate Impressive IM8258 Ivory oak (checked 19 October 2026)1380 × 190 × 8 mm planks, 7 per pack, 1.835 m² per pack; order 10% extra for cutting loss.
Quick-Step UK, Laminate Classic CLM5801 Sandy oak (checked 19 October 2026)1200 × 190 × 8 mm planks, 7 per pack, 1.596 m² per pack.
Quick-Step UK, Vinyl Blos AVSPU40039 Canyon oak natural (checked 19 October 2026)1251 × 189 × 5 mm planks, 9 per pack, 2.128 m² per pack, underlay attached.
Quick-Step UK, Hardwood Cascada CASC3888 Toffee brown oak extra matt (checked 19 October 2026)1820 × 190 × 13 mm planks, 6 per pack, 2.075 m² per pack.
Quick-Step UK, Basic Plus underlay QSUDLBP15 (checked 19 October 2026)2 mm underlay, 15 m² per roll, for laminate and parquet floors.
Quick-Step UK, Parquet skirting QSPSKR05493 (checked 19 October 2026)77 × 14 mm skirting in 2400 mm lengths.
Egger, How much laminate flooring do I need? (checked 19 October 2026)10% extra for waste and mistakes, up to 15% for less experienced fitters and patterned boards; packs from 1.39 m² to 2.54 m²; an extra pack or two for repairs.
Mullican Flooring, How to Calculate the Correct Footage When Purchasing Hardwood Flooring (PDF) (checked 19 October 2026)10% to 15% extra for a diagonal installation, and 1 to 2 spare cartons for repairs.
Havwoods, Everything you need to know about wastage (checked 19 October 2026)15% wastage allowance for herringbone and chevron in areas under 100 m², 12% above; 10% and 7% for plank flooring.

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