Sod Calculator
Sod farms sell by the pallet, but a pallet holds anywhere from 400 to 700 square feet depending on who cut it. Measure your lawn in as many pieces as you need, take out the patio and flower beds, and this calculator tells you how many square feet to order, how many slabs or rolls that is, how many pallets to expect, and what the job costs with or without an installer.
Net lawn area: —
Sod farms suggest 5 to 10% extra for cutting around edges and curves. Go to about 15% for lots of curves, beds, or trees.
Slabs are typical for warm-season grass in the South. Rolls are more common for bluegrass and fescue up north.
Pallets usually hold 400 to 700 sq ft depending on the farm, grass, and piece size. 450 is the most common. Ask your supplier and enter their figure.
Your sod order will appear here
Add your lawn areas, pick the piece size and pallet coverage, then click calculate.
Typical sod sizes
These are common sizes, not a standard. Farms stack pallets to suit their own trucks and harvesting machines, so treat the table as a starting point and use your supplier's figures in the calculator.
| Format | Piece size | Covers | Typical pallet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slab (mostly southern grasses) | 16 × 24 in | 2.67 sq ft | 400, 450 or 500 sq ft |
| Mini roll (northern grasses) | 40 × 18 in | 5 sq ft | 400, 450 or 500 sq ft (80 to 100 rolls) |
| Large roll | 60 × 24 or 80 × 18 in | 10 sq ft | 500, 600 or 700 sq ft |
| Big roll (laid by machine) | varies | about 360 to 450 sq ft | sold per roll |
Quick Answer
Multiply length by width for each part of the lawn, add the parts together, and add 5 to 10% for cutting waste. Divide that total by the coverage of one piece (2.67 sq ft for a 16 × 24 inch slab) to get the piece count, and by your farm's pallet coverage (often 450 sq ft) to get pallets, rounding both up.
How It Works: Formula & Variables
Sod to order (sq ft) = (Σ added areas − Σ subtracted areas) × (1 + waste % ÷ 100)
- Rectangle
- length × width
- Circle
- π × (diameter ÷ 2)²
- Triangle
- ½ × base × height
- Pieces
- round up (sod to order ÷ sq ft per piece)
- Pallets
- round up (sod to order ÷ sq ft per pallet)
- Piece size from inches
- length (in) × width (in) ÷ 144
- Total cost
- sod cost + (lawn area × install price per sq ft) + delivery
- Metric
- 1 sq ft = 0.0929 m²
Worked Examples
Example 1: backyard with a patio, slabs
- Backyard 50 × 30 ft = 1,500 sq ft
- Subtract a 10 × 12 ft patio: 1,500 − 120 = 1,380 sq ft
- Add 10% waste: 1,380 × 1.10 = 1,518 sq ft to order
- 16 × 24 in slabs: 1,518 ÷ 2.67 = 569.3, so 570 slabs
- 450 sq ft pallets: 1,518 ÷ 450 = 3.37, so 4 pallets, or 3 full pallets plus 63 loose slabs if the farm sells singles
If the farm quoted, say, $200 a pallet (a made-up figure for the arithmetic), four pallets come to $800. Buying three pallets and 63 loose slabs could be cheaper, depending on the per-slab price.
Example 2: round front lawn and a side strip, mini rolls
- Circle 30 ft across: π × 15² = 706.9 sq ft
- Side strip 40 × 20 ft = 800 sq ft, for a total of 1,506.9 sq ft
- Add 5% waste: 1,506.9 × 1.05 = 1,582.2 sq ft
- 5 sq ft mini rolls: 1,582.2 ÷ 5 = 316.4, so 317 rolls
- 500 sq ft pallets (100 rolls each): 4 pallets, or 3 pallets plus 17 rolls
Key Concepts
Price per square foot is the fair comparison: Because pallet sizes differ, a cheaper pallet can be the more expensive sod. Sod Solutions recommends asking for both the price per square foot and the square feet on each pallet.
Waste comes from the edges: Rows are laid in a staggered brick pattern, and pieces that run past a border get trimmed with a sod knife. A long straight lawn wastes little. A lawn wrapped around curved beds wastes a lot more.
Timing is looser than with seed: NC State Extension says cool-season sod can go down any time the ground isn't frozen, and warm-season sod once the soil is above 55°F. Seed has a much narrower window.
Common Mistakes
Using someone else's pallet size: A calculator that assumes 450 sq ft will be off by almost 20% if your farm loads 540. Always enter the figure your supplier gives you.
Forgetting to take out hardscape: Measuring the whole yard and ordering for it means paying for sod that would sit on your patio. Subtract beds, paths and pads.
Ordering more than you can lay in a day: If the job is big, split the delivery. Penn State Extension warns that sod deteriorates within 24 to 48 hours in warm weather.
Laying on wet soil: Penn State Extension says the soil should be dry to slightly moist when you lay sod, never wet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Usually somewhere from 400 to 700 sq ft, and it depends on the farm. Sod Solutions lists slab pallets at 400, 450 or 500 sq ft, mini-roll pallets at the same three sizes, and large-roll pallets at 500, 600 or 700 sq ft. 450 sq ft is the figure you will hear most often, but Tri-Turf Sod Farms, for one, loads 540 sq ft of Bermuda or fescue per pallet. Ask your supplier for their number and type it into the calculator.
A standard slab is 16 by 24 inches, which covers about 2.67 sq ft. Mini rolls are 40 by 18 inches (5 sq ft) and larger rolls are 60 by 24 or 80 by 18 inches (10 sq ft). Slabs are the norm for Bermuda, zoysia, St. Augustine and centipede in the South. Rolls are more common for bluegrass and fescue farther north.
Sod farms generally say 5 to 10% on top of your measured area. Use the low end for a plain rectangle and the high end, or a bit more, when the lawn curves around beds, trees and paths, because every curve means cutting pieces and losing the offcuts.
Roughly 1,500 to 3,000 lb, depending mostly on how wet the soil is. Sod Solutions says a pallet can weigh 50% more when wet. Check the payload rating of your truck or trailer before you plan to collect it yourself.
Add three numbers: the sod itself (price per sq ft, per pallet or per piece, times what you order), labor (an installer's price per sq ft times your lawn area), and delivery. Enter whichever of those you have quotes for and the calculator totals them and gives you an all-in cost per square foot, which makes it easy to compare a DIY job with a contractor.
Sod gives you a finished lawn in a day and can go down almost any time the ground isn't frozen, but it costs much more. Seed is cheaper and offers more grass choices, but it takes a season to fill in and has to go down in the right window. St. Augustinegrass can't be seeded at all, so sod, plugs or sprigs are the only options for it. Our grass seed calculator handles the seed side.
The same day if you can. Penn State Extension notes that sod deteriorates within 24 to 48 hours in warm weather. If you can't get it all down, unroll the leftover pieces grass side up somewhere shady and keep them watered.
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Sources
- Sod Solutions: How Many Square Feet are in a Pallet of Sod? (piece sizes, pallet sizes, pallet weight, 5 to 10% extra)
- Tri-Turf Sod Farms: Sod Calculator (540 sq ft Bermuda/fescue pallets, 450 sq ft zoysia pallets, big roll sizes, waste factor)
- Penn State Extension: Lawn Establishment (laying pattern, watering, sod deteriorating within 24 to 48 hours)
- NC State Extension: Carolina Lawns (sodding season, St. Augustinegrass not available as seed)