Trim Calculator: How Much Baseboard and Casing Do I Need?

Add each room, or estimate a whole house by square footage. Get linear feet, 8, 12 or 16 ft boards to buy, waste and cost for baseboard, casing, crown and quarter round.

Project Details
Enter your measurements and requirements

Rooms

Trim to buy
Results
Calculated estimates for your project

Total trim

146.0 ft

$272 in material across 1 room.

TrimLinear ft16 ft piecesOffcutCost
Baseboard47.8416.2 ft$102
Quarter round / shoe47.8416.2 ft$58
Door casing33.7314.3 ft$67
Window casing16.7215.3 ft$45
15 ft12 ftDoor gaps
Formulas used

Baseboard = 2(L + W) minus each door opening plus its casing on both sides.

Door casing per side = 2H + W + 4 x casing width. Window (picture frame) = 2H + 2W + 8 x casing width.

Pieces = ceil(linear ft x (1 + waste) / board length).

Cutting the corners? Miter angle calculator. Painting the trim? Paint calculator.

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  • 47.8 ft baseboard
  • 34 ft door casing
  • 17 ft window casing
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Project plan · built from your numbers

Baseboard and casing, 98 linear ft

Run 47.8 ft of baseboard and shoe around a 15 x 12 ft room, and case 2 doors and 1 window. Coped inside corners, mitered outside corners, nailed to studs.

Materials
$324
Time
1 day
Level
Easy
7 steps 9 tools 7 materials
  1. 1

    Remove old trim and mark studs

    Pry off existing trim with a flat bar over a scrap block to protect the wall. Mark every stud along the 54 ft perimeter at baseboard height.

    • Score caulk lines before prying
    • Pull nails through the back of trim you plan to reuse
    • Mark studs with tape just above the base height
  2. 2

    Acclimate and prime

    Let the 13 pieces sit in the room for 48 hours, then prime the faces and backs if they are not pre-primed.

    • Stack flat with stickers between pieces
    • Prime raw cut ends later as you go
  3. 3

    Case the 2 doors and 1 window

    Do casing first so baseboard butts into it. Mark a 3/16" reveal on the jambs, cut 45 degree miters at the head, and glue and pin the miters.

    • Mark reveals on each jamb
    • Dry-fit the head miter before nailing
    • Glue and pin each miter
01 · Your numbers
Baseboard
47.8 ft
Door casing
34 ft
Window casing
17 ft
Est. cost
$324
02 · The plan

7 steps · 9 tools · 7 materials

4 more steps, the full tool list and a shopping list you can check off as you go.

03 · Finished

Your plan is 60% built. Save it.

3/5

Baseboard and casing, 98 linear ft

Finished in 1 day · $324 DIY

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Borrow these 9 tools from neighborsFull how-to guide: Install baseboard and door casing

Worked trim examples

How much baseboard for a 12.75 x 9.5 ft attic room?

Perimeter = 2 x (12.75 + 9.5) = 44.5 ft. With no doors to subtract, buy 44.5 x 1.1 = 49 ft: three 16 ft boards or seven 8 ft boards.

Three 15 x 10 ft bedrooms at $4 per foot

Each room is 2 x (15 + 10) = 50 ft, so 150 ft for three, or $600 at $4 per foot before doors and waste. Subtract about 3 ft per door and add 10% to order.

How much trim for a 20 x 30 ft room?

2 x (20 + 30) = 100 ft of perimeter. With 10% waste that is 110 ft, or seven 16 ft boards with 2 ft to spare.

How much baseboard for a house, by square footage

0.30 to 0.35 linear ft of baseboard per sq ft of floor; pieces include 10% waste on the high figure
House sizeBaseboardQuarter round8 ft pieces16 ft pieces
1,000 sq ft300 to 350 ft300 to 350 ft4925
1,200 sq ft360 to 420 ft360 to 420 ft5829
1,500 sq ft450 to 525 ft450 to 525 ft7337
1,600 sq ft480 to 560 ft480 to 560 ft7739
2,000 sq ft600 to 700 ft600 to 700 ft9749
2,500 sq ft750 to 875 ft750 to 875 ft12161
3,000 sq ft900 to 1050 ft900 to 1050 ft14573

Open plans land at the low end; houses with many small rooms and closets land high. Add each room above for an exact count.

Trim prices per linear foot

MaterialBaseboard ($/ft)Casing ($/ft)Notes
MDF, primed$0.75 to $1.75$0.75 to $1.50Cheapest; paint only; swells if wet
Finger-joint pine, primed$1.25 to $2.50$1 to $2Paint grade, holds nails well
Poplar$2 to $4$2 to $3.50Paint grade, hard and smooth
Oak$3 to $8$3 to $6Stain grade
PVC$2 to $4$2 to $4Bathrooms, basements, exterior
Installed labor$2 to $6$50 to $100 per doorCarpenter rates vary by region

How to measure for trim

  1. Measure the walls. Measure each wall at floor level, or the room length and width, in feet.
  2. Subtract the openings. Take out each doorway plus the casing on both sides; baseboard stops at the casing.
  3. Add waste. Add 10% for miters, copes and bad ends; 15% for rooms with many short walls.
  4. Divide by board length. Divide by 8, 12 or 16 ft and round up to get the pieces to buy.

This page covers interior trim and molding. For metal roofing trim (drip edge, rake and ridge), use the roofing calculator. Ceilings take the crown molding calculator, outside corners the corner bead calculator, and new floors the flooring calculator. Adding crown? Follow the crown molding installation guide.

Baseboard calculator: how much baseboard do I need?

Baseboard (ft) = 2 x (length + width) minus about 3 ft per door, plus 10% for waste. Measure each wall at floor level, skip openings, and buy in 8, 12 or 16 ft lengths so long walls need no joints.

Baseboard by room size (3 ft per door, 10% waste)
RoomDoorsNet linear ftBuy (with waste)8 ft pieces
10 x 10 bedroom137 ft41 ft6
12 x 12 bedroom145 ft50 ft7
12 x 14 bedroom246 ft51 ft7
14 x 16 living room254 ft60 ft8
5 x 8 bathroom123 ft26 ft4

Door and window casing calculator

One side of a standard interior door takes about 17 ft of casing (two 7 ft legs and a 3 ft head), so trimming both sides of the door uses about 34 ft. A standard window takes about 12 ft: two legs, a head, and a stool or apron. Picture-frame casing on a 3 x 5 ft window is closer to 16 ft.

  • Buy casing in 7 ft precut legs for doors; header stock can come from the offcuts.
  • Leave a 3/16 in to 1/4 in reveal on the jamb edge so the miter lines up.
  • Wider or built-up casing (a header with a cap) needs a longer head piece: add the overhang on each side.

Quarter round and shoe molding calculator

Quarter round runs the same walls as baseboard, so you need the same linear feet (a 12 x 12 room with one door is about 45 ft, or 50 ft with waste). Count only the rooms with hard flooring that need the expansion gap covered, and stop it at door casings and cabinet toe kicks.

  • Shoe molding is the slimmer profile for the same job; the quantity is identical.
  • Nail quarter round into the baseboard, never the floor, so a floating floor can move.
  • Return the ends at door casings with a small mitered piece instead of a square cut.

Choosing a profile? See the trim molding profiles cheat sheet and how to install baseboard and casing.

Trim calculator FAQ

How much baseboard do I need for a 12x12 room?

A 12x12 room has a 48 ft perimeter. Subtract about 3 ft for one door opening and its casing, giving about 45 ft. With 10% waste that is 50 ft: seven 8 ft pieces, five 12 ft pieces or four 16 ft pieces.

How much baseboard do I need for a 2,000 sq ft house?

About 600 to 700 linear feet, using 0.30 to 0.35 linear ft per sq ft, plus 10% for waste. Open floor plans land at the low end; homes with many small rooms land at the high end.

How much quarter round do I need for 1,000 sq ft?

About 300 to 350 linear feet, the same as the baseboard, since quarter round runs the same walls. With 10% waste, buy about 385 ft: 49 pieces at 8 ft or 25 at 16 ft. Count only rooms with hard flooring.

How much quarter round do I need?

The same as your baseboard length: quarter round runs along the same walls, minus door openings. For a 12x12 room with one door that is about 45 linear feet.

How do I calculate door casing?

For one side of a door: 2 x height + width + 4 x casing width. A 32 x 80 in door with 2.5 in casing takes 2 x 80 + 32 + 10 = 202 in, about 16.8 ft. Double it to case both sides.

How many 16 ft boards do I need?

Divide the linear feet with waste by 16 and round up. 100 ft of baseboard plus 10% is 110 ft, so 7 boards. Long boards mean fewer joints on long walls but are harder to carry; 12 ft is a good compromise.

What does trim installation cost per linear foot?

Material runs about $0.75 to $3 per linear foot for MDF and finger-joint pine and $3 to $8 for oak. A carpenter charges about $2 to $6 per linear foot to install baseboard and $50 to $100 per door to case it, more for tall or built-up profiles.

What is the difference between trim and molding?

Trim is any finish piece that covers a joint (baseboard, casing, crown). Molding is trim with a shaped profile. In practice the words are used interchangeably at the lumberyard.

What size baseboard should I use?

Scale to the ceiling: 3 to 5 in baseboard for 8 ft ceilings, 5 to 7 in for 9 ft, and 7 in or taller for 10 ft and up.

How do I cut baseboard for inside corners?

Cope them: cut the first piece square into the corner, cut the second at 45 degrees, then follow the profile with a coping saw so it fits over the first piece. Coped joints stay tight when the house moves.

Should I install baseboard before or after flooring?

After hard flooring, so the baseboard covers the expansion gap. With carpet, install baseboard first and tuck the carpet under it.

How much window trim do I need?

Picture-frame casing on a 36 x 54 in window takes 2 x 54 + 2 x 36 + 8 x 2.5 = 200 in, about 17 ft. A stool and apron window uses about 12 to 14 ft.

What nails should I use for baseboard?

15 or 16 gauge finish nails, 2 to 2.5 in long, into the studs and bottom plate. Use 18 gauge brads for shoe molding and the inside edge of casing.

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