How Much Baseboard Do I Need? Linear Feet by Room Size
Add up the length of the walls, subtract about 3 ft for each doorway, and add 10% for corners and cuts. A 12 × 12 ft bedroom with two doorways needs 42 linear feet, so buy about 47 ft: 3 pieces of 16 ft or 6 of 8 ft. The baseboard calculator does the math for any room, or several at once.
How to measure for baseboard
- Measure each wall along the floor. For a plain rectangle, the perimeter is 2 × length + 2 × width.
- Subtract each doorway, including closet doors and open archways. Baseboard stops at the door casing, so use the opening plus trim, usually about 3 ft.
- Add 10% for miter and cope cuts, or 15% for rooms with lots of short walls.
- Divide by the length of the pieces you'll buy and round up.
linear feet = perimeter − doorways × 3 ft
pieces = linear feet × 1.1 ÷ piece length
Baseboard for common rooms
Includes 10% extra.
| Room | Example | Linear ft | 8 ft pieces | 12 ft pieces | 16 ft pieces |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 10 ft | Small bedroom | 37 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| 11 × 12 ft | Bedroom | 43 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| 12 × 12 ft | Bedroom with closet | 42 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| 12 × 14 ft | Primary bedroom | 46 | 7 | 5 | 4 |
| 14 × 16 ft | Living room | 54 | 8 | 5 | 4 |
| 15 × 20 ft | Large living room | 61 | 9 | 6 | 5 |
| 8 × 10 ft | Bathroom | 33 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
Whole house estimate
If you're doing a whole floor, a rough rule is about 1 linear foot of baseboard per 1.5 to 2 square feet of floor in a house with average-sized rooms. A 1,500 sq ft home often needs around 700 to 900 linear feet. Measure each room for an accurate order.
Corners and joints
- Outside corners: cut both pieces at 45 degrees (a miter), so they meet at a sharp point.
- Inside corners: run one piece straight into the corner and cope the other, cutting its profile to fit over the first. A cope stays tight when the wall isn't square or the wood shrinks. Mitered inside corners are quicker but tend to open up.
- Long walls: join two pieces with a scarf joint, two 45 degree cuts that overlap. Put it over a stud and glue it so it disappears under paint.
Each corner and joint uses a few inches of extra trim, which is why rooms with lots of corners need 15% extra rather than 10%.
Nailing baseboard
Use 2 to 2.5 inch finish nails, 15 or 16 gauge, into each stud. Studs are usually 16 inches apart. Put one nail low into the bottom plate and one higher into the stud. A 12 × 12 room takes about 60 nails. Add construction adhesive on the back where the wall is uneven, and fill the nail holes and the top edge with caulk before painting.
Which length to buy
- 16 ft pieces mean fewer joints on long walls but need a truck or roof rack.
- 8 ft pieces fit in most cars and are easier to handle, but every wall longer than 8 ft gets a joint.
- Primed MDF is the cheapest, at roughly $1 to $2 per linear foot. Pine and poplar run about $2 to $4, and oak more, so a 12 × 12 room costs about $50 to $180 in material.
- The same measurements work for quarter round and shoe molding. Crown molding runs over doors, so don't subtract doorways for crown.