Drywall takeoff calculator.
Type in your wall lengths. Get the whole material list — metal studs, track, board, screws, mud, tape, corner bead — and download it as a proper Excel takeoff template with live formulas.
| Wall / partition | Length (ft) | Height (ft) | Board sides | Layers | Wall SF |
|---|
| Material | Qty | Unit | How it’s figured |
|---|
How the math works
Every factor in this calculator is a standard estimating rule of thumb, and every one of them is visible in the Excel download so you can audit or adjust it:
- Metal studs — wall length × 12 ÷ spacing, rounded up, plus one closing stud per wall. Your waste % covers corners, intersections, jacks at openings and bent pieces.
- Track — two runs (top + bottom) × wall length, bought in 10′ pieces.
- Drywall — length × height × sides × layers, divided by board SF, plus waste.
- Drywall screws — ≈1 per SF of hung board (a 4×8 sheet at 16″ OC takes ~32 screws).
- Framing screws — 4 pan-heads per stud (two top, two bottom) plus track fasteners at 24″ OC.
- Joint compound — one 4.5-gal bucket finishes ≈450 SF of board, tape-coat through Level 4.
- Joint tape — ≈37 LF per 100 SF of board, in 500′ rolls.
- Corner bead — one 10′ stick per outside corner per 10′ of height.
This is the easy 20%. The other 80% is on your drawings.
A length-based calculator prices the walls you already understand. What it can’t do is read a 40-sheet set: the wall-type legend, the gauge change above 10′, the Level 5 lobby hiding in the finish schedule, the 2-hour shaftwall that doubles your board. That’s the part of a drywall bid that leaks money — and it’s exactly what Pilars AI takeoff does from your actual plans: it builds an assembly per wall type, classifies every segment on every sheet, and returns board, framing, track, fasteners and compound by type. $100 per trade, per plan.
Questions estimators actually ask
How does the calculator figure metal studs?
For each wall: length × 12 ÷ stud spacing (16″ or 24″ on center), rounded up, plus one closing stud. The waste factor covers corners, intersections, jack studs at openings and damaged pieces.
What materials does it calculate from wall length?
Metal studs, top and bottom track in 10′ pieces, drywall sheets by board size and layer count, drywall screws, pan-head framing screws, track fasteners, joint compound buckets, joint tape rolls, corner bead and optional insulation area.
Can I download the takeoff as an Excel file?
Yes — one click exports a real .xlsx workbook with a Walls sheet and a Materials sheet. The cells carry live Excel formulas, so you can change lengths, spacing or waste inside Excel and everything recalculates. There’s a blank reusable template too.
Does it handle double-layer or two-sided walls?
Yes — each wall row has a sides setting (board one side or both) and a layers setting (single or double layer for rated assemblies), and board, screws, mud and tape all scale with them.
Is this as accurate as a real plan takeoff?
It’s a fast estimating tool built on standard industry factors. It doesn’t read your wall-type legend, finish schedule or rated-assembly callouts — that’s what Pilars does from your actual drawings for $100 per trade.
Let Pilars take off your whole set.
Upload your plans. Pilars reads the partition legend, applies stud gauge by height, catches Level 5 zones and rated assemblies, and returns the full drywall takeoff. $100 per trade.