Board feet by size and length (nominal)
Lumberyards that price softwood by the board foot normally use the nominal size. The chart below uses that convention: thickness × width in nominal inches × length in feet ÷ 12. The last column is board feet per linear foot, which is handy for odd lengths: multiply it by the length you need.
| Size | 6 ft | 8 ft | 10 ft | 12 ft | 14 ft | 16 ft | BF / ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1×4 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 4.67 | 5.33 | 0.33 |
| 1×6 | 3.00 | 4.00 | 5.00 | 6.00 | 7.00 | 8.00 | 0.50 |
| 1×8 | 4.00 | 5.33 | 6.67 | 8.00 | 9.33 | 10.67 | 0.67 |
| 1×10 | 5.00 | 6.67 | 8.33 | 10.00 | 11.67 | 13.33 | 0.83 |
| 1×12 | 6.00 | 8.00 | 10.00 | 12.00 | 14.00 | 16.00 | 1.00 |
| 2×2 | 2.00 | 2.67 | 3.33 | 4.00 | 4.67 | 5.33 | 0.33 |
| 2×4 | 4.00 | 5.33 | 6.67 | 8.00 | 9.33 | 10.67 | 0.67 |
| 2×6 | 6.00 | 8.00 | 10.00 | 12.00 | 14.00 | 16.00 | 1.00 |
| 2×8 | 8.00 | 10.67 | 13.33 | 16.00 | 18.67 | 21.33 | 1.33 |
| 2×10 | 10.00 | 13.33 | 16.67 | 20.00 | 23.33 | 26.67 | 1.67 |
| 2×12 | 12.00 | 16.00 | 20.00 | 24.00 | 28.00 | 32.00 | 2.00 |
| 4×4 | 8.00 | 10.67 | 13.33 | 16.00 | 18.67 | 21.33 | 1.33 |
| 4×6 | 12.00 | 16.00 | 20.00 | 24.00 | 28.00 | 32.00 | 2.00 |
| 6×6 | 18.00 | 24.00 | 30.00 | 36.00 | 42.00 | 48.00 | 3.00 |
Example: a 2×6 that is 12 feet long is 2 × 6 × 12 ÷ 12 = 12.00 board feet. Ten of them are 120 board feet. If your supplier quotes a price per thousand board feet (MBF), divide that price by 1,000 to get the price per board foot.
Nominal vs. actual board feet
A surfaced 2×4 actually measures 1½ × 3½ inches, so the wood you take home holds less volume than the nominal tally suggests. Use the actual figure for weight estimates, shipping, or comparing products; use the nominal figure to check a lumber invoice. The full list of surfaced sizes is in the nominal vs. actual lumber size chart.
| Size | Nominal BF / ft | Actual BF / ft | Nominal BF, 8 ft | Actual BF, 8 ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1×4 | 0.33 | 0.22 | 2.67 | 1.75 |
| 1×6 | 0.50 | 0.34 | 4.00 | 2.75 |
| 1×8 | 0.67 | 0.45 | 5.33 | 3.63 |
| 1×10 | 0.83 | 0.58 | 6.67 | 4.63 |
| 1×12 | 1.00 | 0.70 | 8.00 | 5.63 |
| 2×2 | 0.33 | 0.19 | 2.67 | 1.50 |
| 2×4 | 0.67 | 0.44 | 5.33 | 3.50 |
| 2×6 | 1.00 | 0.69 | 8.00 | 5.50 |
| 2×8 | 1.33 | 0.91 | 10.67 | 7.25 |
| 2×10 | 1.67 | 1.16 | 13.33 | 9.25 |
| 2×12 | 2.00 | 1.41 | 16.00 | 11.25 |
| 4×4 | 1.33 | 1.02 | 10.67 | 8.17 |
| 4×6 | 2.00 | 1.60 | 16.00 | 12.83 |
| 6×6 | 3.00 | 2.52 | 24.00 | 20.17 |
Hardwood board feet per linear foot
Hardwood is sold in random widths and lengths, so a per-piece chart is not practical. Instead, find the thickness and width of a board below to get its board feet per linear foot, then multiply by the board's length in feet. Hardwood is tallied from the rough quarter thickness: 4/4 counts as 1 inch even when it is surfaced to 13/16 inch.
| Width | 4/4 | 5/4 | 6/4 | 8/4 | 12/4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 in | 0.25 | 0.31 | 0.38 | 0.50 | 0.75 |
| 4 in | 0.33 | 0.42 | 0.50 | 0.67 | 1.00 |
| 5 in | 0.42 | 0.52 | 0.63 | 0.83 | 1.25 |
| 6 in | 0.50 | 0.63 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 1.50 |
| 7 in | 0.58 | 0.73 | 0.88 | 1.17 | 1.75 |
| 8 in | 0.67 | 0.83 | 1.00 | 1.33 | 2.00 |
| 9 in | 0.75 | 0.94 | 1.13 | 1.50 | 2.25 |
| 10 in | 0.83 | 1.04 | 1.25 | 1.67 | 2.50 |
| 12 in | 1.00 | 1.25 | 1.50 | 2.00 | 3.00 |
Example: a 6/4 walnut board 7 inches wide and 9 feet long is 0.88 BF per foot × 9 = 7.88 board feet. A stack of mixed boards is faster in the lumberyard tally calculator, which keeps a running total as you pull boards from the rack.
Board foot conversions
- 1 board foot = 12 × 12 × 1 inch = 144 cubic inches.
- 1 board foot = 1/12 cubic foot ≈ 0.0833 ft³.
- 1 board foot ≈ 2.36 liters ≈ 0.00236 cubic meters.
- 1 cubic foot = 12 board feet.
- 1 cubic meter ≈ 423.8 board feet.
- 1 MBF = 1,000 board feet; MMBF = one million board feet.
A board foot is a volume, not an area. One square foot of 1-inch-thick wood is one board foot, but one square foot of 2-inch stock is two board feet. Linear feet ignore both thickness and width, so you cannot convert linear feet to board feet without knowing the cross section; the BF / ft columns above give that factor for each common size.
How to use these numbers when buying
Charts are reliable for the volume math, but the price you pay depends on how your supplier tallies. Big-box stores sell construction lumber by the piece, so board feet are mainly useful there for comparing the cost of different sizes. Hardwood dealers sell by the board foot and may round each board's surface measure before multiplying by thickness, which can make the invoice differ slightly from an exact calculation. Always add a waste allowance for defects, end checks, and milling; the lumber waste factor guide explains how much to add for different projects.
For anything not shown here, such as a mixed stack of sizes, metric dimensions, lengths in inches, or a price and sales-tax total, use the board foot calculator. It has the same nominal and actual presets for 1× and 2× lumber and quarter presets from 4/4 to 16/4 hardwood.
Quick answers
How many board feet are in a 2×4×8?
A 2×4×8 contains 5.33 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 3.50 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 2×4×10?
A 2×4×10 contains 6.67 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 4.38 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 2×6×8?
A 2×6×8 contains 8.00 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 5.50 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 2×6×10?
A 2×6×10 contains 10.00 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 6.88 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 2×8×8?
A 2×8×8 contains 10.67 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 7.25 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 2×2×10?
A 2×2×10 contains 3.33 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 1.88 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 1×6×8?
A 1×6×8 contains 4.00 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 2.75 board feet of wood.
How many board feet are in a 1×8×8?
A 1×8×8 contains 5.33 board feet using its nominal size, which is how lumber is normally tallied. Using its actual surfaced size it holds 3.63 board feet of wood.
How much is 100 board feet?
100 board feet is 14,400 cubic inches, 8.33 cubic feet, or about 0.236 cubic meters. In 4/4 (1-inch) hardwood that is roughly 100 square feet of board surface; in 8/4 stock it is about 50 square feet.
How many board feet are in a cubic meter?
One cubic meter equals about 423.8 board feet, and one board foot equals about 0.00236 cubic meters (2.36 liters).