Pocket reference
Board Foot Cheat Sheet
One number per size is all you need. Memorize the board feet per linear foot below, multiply by the board's length, and you can total any stick in your head at the yard. Print it or screenshot it — the calculator works offline too.
How do I actually use this cheat sheet at the yard?
I've carried a dog-eared version of this list in my back pocket since my first year on the buying desk, and it does exactly one job: it lets me total a stack of lumber out loud while the yard hand is still pulling boards. Every nominal size has a fixed board-feet-per-foot figure, so once it's memorized, the only live number left is length. The full reasoning behind each figure lives in how to calculate board feet, but for raw speed at the counter, the table below is all I touch.
Here's how a real tally sounds out loud. A customer wants framing for a small deck — twelve 2x6s at 12 ft and six 2x8s at 10 ft. I read 1.0 BF/ft for the 2x6 (12 boards × 12 ft = 144 BF) and 1.333 for the 2x8 (6 × 10 ft × 1.333 ≈ 80 BF). That's roughly 224 board feet (estimate) in my head before anyone has written a ticket. I say "estimate" out loud on purpose, because a few sticks always run long or short until they're measured.
Why do I trust the memorized per-foot number over re-deriving the formula each time? Speed kills errors. When I'm juggling a phone, a clipboard, and a forklift beeping behind me, a fixed 2.0 for a 2x12 is far safer than mentally running 2 × 12 ÷ 12 on the spot. I round the mental total to the nearest whole board foot, flag it as an estimate, then confirm it against the calculator once I'm back at the desk and writing the real purchase order.
What are the board feet per linear foot for each size?
Find your size, read the BF/ft, then multiply by length in feet. Example: a 14-ft 2x10 = 1.667 × 14 = 23.3 BF.
| Nominal size | BF per linear foot | 6 ft | 8 ft | 10 ft | 12 ft | 14 ft | 16 ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1x2 | 0.167 | 1.00 | 1.33 | 1.67 | 2.00 | 2.33 | 2.67 |
| 1x4 | 0.333 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 4.67 | 5.33 |
| 1x6 | 0.500 | 3.00 | 4.00 | 5.00 | 6.00 | 7.00 | 8.00 |
| 1x8 | 0.667 | 4.00 | 5.33 | 6.67 | 8.00 | 9.33 | 10.67 |
| 1x10 | 0.833 | 5.00 | 6.67 | 8.33 | 10.00 | 11.67 | 13.33 |
| 1x12 | 1.000 | 6.00 | 8.00 | 10.00 | 12.00 | 14.00 | 16.00 |
| 2x2 | 0.333 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 4.67 | 5.33 |
| 2x4 | 0.667 | 4.00 | 5.33 | 6.67 | 8.00 | 9.33 | 10.67 |
| 2x6 | 1.000 | 6.00 | 8.00 | 10.00 | 12.00 | 14.00 | 16.00 |
| 2x8 | 1.333 | 8.00 | 10.67 | 13.33 | 16.00 | 18.67 | 21.33 |
| 2x10 | 1.667 | 10.00 | 13.33 | 16.67 | 20.00 | 23.33 | 26.67 |
| 2x12 | 2.000 | 12.00 | 16.00 | 20.00 | 24.00 | 28.00 | 32.00 |
| 4x4 | 1.333 | 8.00 | 10.67 | 13.33 | 16.00 | 18.67 | 21.33 |
| 4x6 | 2.000 | 12.00 | 16.00 | 20.00 | 24.00 | 28.00 | 32.00 |
| 6x6 | 3.000 | 18.00 | 24.00 | 30.00 | 36.00 | 42.00 | 48.00 |
Two sizes share a row value on purpose: a 4x4 and a 2x8 are both 16 square inches of nominal cross section, so both carry 1.333 BF per foot. Same for 2x12 and 4x6 at 24 square inches. Match the cross-section area, not the look of the stick.
What does a post or joist run add up to?
Per-foot numbers only matter once they're stacked into a real takeoff. Two I run constantly:
A 48-ft fence line, 4x4 posts at 8 ft centres. 48 ÷ 8 + 1 = 7 posts, each 8 ft (2 ft buried, 6 ft above grade). 7 × 8 ft = 56 linear feet × 1.333 = ~75 board feet. Specify ground-contact treated stock for anything buried — above-ground 4x4s look identical on the rack and fail early in soil. Order a foot longer than the finished height so you can trim the top square after setting.
A 12 ft × 12 ft room framed in 2x8s at 16″ on centre. Joists span the 12-ft width → about 10 joists at 12 ft = 120 linear feet, plus two 12-ft rim joists = 24, for 144 linear feet × 1.333 = ~192 board feet. A double 2x8 header over a 6-ft opening is only 12 linear feet, about 16 BF. Put the repetitive members and the one-off headers on the same cut list so blocking and headers don't get forgotten.
How does the per-foot multiplier work?
BF per foot is just (thickness × width) ÷ 12 using nominal inches. A 2x6 is 12 ÷ 12 = 1.0; a 2x12 is 24 ÷ 12 = 2.0. That's the whole trick — once you know the per-foot figure, length does the rest. The reasoning is in the formula explained.
Should you use nominal or actual size here?
These figures use nominal sizes because that's how softwood is priced. The actual board is smaller, but you pay for the nominal call — see nominal vs actual. For exact totals on a full project, drop your boards into the cut list calculator.
Frequently asked questions
What is the fastest way to estimate board feet?
Memorize board feet per linear foot for the sizes you use most: a 2x4 is 0.667 BF/ft, a 2x6 is 1.0, a 2x12 is 2.0. Multiply that figure by the board's length in feet to get its board feet instantly, then round to the nearest whole foot and treat it as an estimate until the boards are measured.