Drywall cost per square foot and sheet calculator

Enter one wall type at a time, then the ceilings, then the board size and your costs. The results update as you type.

1. Walls. Wall length in lineal feet, the height the board runs to, sides boarded and layers per side. Use the wall type schedule for layers.
2. Openings. Enter the square feet you deduct per side. Many estimators deduct only large openings.
3. Ceilings. Ceiling area and layers, if the same board type.
4. Board assumptions. Sheet width, sheet length and waste.
5. Mud, tape and screws. Pick the joint compound. Tape and screws start at USG’s published rates; change them to your own. Add outside corners and the bead length for a corner bead count.
6. Your unit costs. Board per sheet, hang labor, tape and finish labor, finishing materials and any lump sum.

Run each wall type separately. A 5/8 in Type X rated partition and a 1/2 in standard partition are different line items with different costs.

Plan on about 10 gallons of ready-mixed all purpose joint compound for every 1,000 SF of drywall. That is USG’s published coverage for Sheetrock All Purpose. The calculator above turns your board area into gallons or pounds of mud, pails, tape, screws and corner bead.

USG says these figures approximate the compound needed to treat the flat joints, inside corners and outside corners with metal corner bead in a typical room. It also says coverage can vary widely with the substrate, the tools, the application method and other job factors.

How much mud for each finish level?

The coverage figures do not name a finish level. The Gypsum Association’s GA-214 defines six levels, from Level 0 (temporary work, no taping) to Level 5, the highest quality finish. Higher levels add coats and sanding, so the calculator has a box for your own extra percentage instead of a made-up number per level.

Worked example: mud, tape and screws for 4,000 SF

• All purpose compound: 4,000 / 1,000 x 10 gal = 40 gal, or 9 pails of 4.5 gal
• Joint tape: 4,000 / 1,000 x 370 = 1,480 LF
• Screws: 4,000 / 1,000 x 2.7 lb = 10.8 lb

Using setting-type compound instead, the same area takes 4,000 / 1,000 x 52 = 208 lb of powder.

Fictional example. A drywall contractor is pricing 200 LF of interior partition boarded both sides, one layer, full height to 10 ft, with 4 x 10 sheets and 10% waste.

• Board area: 200 x 10 x 2 sides x 1 layer = 4,000 SF
• With waste: 4,000 x 1.10 = 4,400 SF
• Sheets: 4,400 / 40 = 110 sheets

A second check on a 1,000 SF ceiling with 4 x 12 sheets and 12% waste gives 1,000 x 1.12 / 48 = 23.3, so 24 sheets. The drywall cost per square foot comes from the contractor’s own board price and labor rates divided by the board area.

This tool measures board and sheets for one assembly at a time. A commercial drywall estimate carries more items, and these are the common scope gaps:

• Metal stud framing by gauge, depth and spacing, plus track, headers and bracing
• Wall types that change by room, rating or acoustic requirement
• Fire-rated assemblies, head-of-wall joints and firestopping where your scope includes them
• Insulation and acoustic sealant inside partitions
• Ceiling framing, soffits, bulkheads and shaft walls
• Blocking and backing for casework, grab bars and wall-mounted equipment
• Finish level changes between areas
• Addenda that change wall types or heights

A plan-based takeoff measures each wall type from the floor plans and the partition schedule. See drywall and framing estimating for what Bidmere measures.