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Board Feet Chart and Calculator

Board feet is used as a volume measurement of lumber.

Wood - Lumber - Board feet chart

One board foot of lumber is one square foot that is one inch thick. Board foot is a volume measurement used for lumber, where

  • 1 board foot = 144 in3 = 1⁄12 ft3 = 2360 cm3 = 2.360 liters = 0.002360 m3

board foot

Board feet can be calculated as

BF = t wft

    = t win L / 12             (1)

where

BF = board feet

wft = nominal lumber width (ft)

win = nominal lumber width (in)

t = nominal lumber thickness (in)

L = nominal lumber length (ft)

Note the use of inches vs. feet.

Board Feet Calculator

board feet example

Default values for a piece of lumber with dimensions 2" x 4" x 6'.

Board Feet Chart - HardWood & Softwood

Example - Beard Feet

The board feet for lumber 3 inches thick, 2 inches wide and 12 ft long - can be calculated as

BF = (3 in) (2 in) (12 ft) / 12

    = 6 board feet

- as indicated in the table above.

Quick Approximation for Calculating Board Feet

  • 1 x 4 - divide linear length (feet) by 3 - (length x 1/3)
  • 1 x 6 - divide linear length (feet) by 2  - (length x 1/2)
  • 1 x 8 - multiply linear length (feet) by 0.66  - (length x 2/3)
  • 1 x 12 - linear length (feet) equals board feet  - (length x 1) 
  • 2 x 4 - multiply linear length by 0.66 - (length x 2/3)
  • 2 x 6 -  linear length (feet) equals board feet - (length x 1)
  • 2 x 8 - multiply linear length by 1.33  - (length x 1 1/3)
  • 2 x 12 - multiply linear length by 2  - (length x 2)

Related Topics

  • Miscellaneous

    Engineering related topics like Beaufort Wind Scale, CE-marking, drawing standards and more.

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