Interior

Baseboard Calculator: Linear Feet and Sticks to Buy

Linear footage and how many sticks of trim that actually means once you allow for mitre waste and doorways.

Your measurements

12 ft lengths to buy

5sticks

50.6 linear ft including 10% waste

Room perimeter
52 ft
Less doorways2 openings
−6 ft
Net trim run
46 ft
With waste
50.6 ft
Inside corners to copeA rectangular room has four — cope them, do not mitre
4
Material costPrimed MDF at the low end, solid hardwood at the high end, per linear ft
$76 – $405
  • Buy lengths that let you span each wall in one piece where possible. A scarf joint in the middle of a wall is visible forever; a longer stick costs a few dollars.
  • Cope inside corners rather than mitring them. Coped joints stay tight when the house moves seasonally; mitres open up.
  • Order all trim from the same batch and stack it flat in the room for a couple of days before cutting.

How this is calculated

  • Net run is the room perimeter minus the width of each doorway or cased opening.
  • A waste allowance of 10–20% covers mitre and cope offcuts; pick the higher figure for rooms with many corners, or for a stained finish where a bad cut cannot be filled.
  • Sticks are the padded footage divided by the stick length you can actually get into the room, rounded up.
  • The same maths applies to crown moulding and door casing — crown wastes more, so use the 20% option.

Quantities are rounded up, because materials are sold in whole units and a second trip costs more than a spare box. Cost figures are typical US ranges and are not a quote — always price against your own supplier.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate linear feet of baseboard?

Add up the length of every wall — 2 × (length + width) for a rectangular room — then subtract each doorway width. Add 10–20% for mitre and cope waste, then divide by the stick length you are buying.

How much waste should I allow for trim?

10% in a simple square room, 15–20% where there are lots of corners, coped joints, or a stained finish that cannot hide a mistake with caulk and filler.

How much does baseboard installation cost?

$1–$3 per linear foot for the material in primed MDF or finger-jointed pine, $3–$8 for solid hardwood, plus $2–$6 per linear foot for installation. Painting and caulking after the fact typically adds another $1–$2 per foot.

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