About Drywall Planner

Why this site exists

Drywall is one of the last big remodeling materials that is still bought by the sheet, on the day, from a counter. That makes a fast, accurate takeoff genuinely useful, and it makes a wrong one expensive: an extra trip across town for one sheet, or 60 pound panels leaning against a garage wall until they warp.

Drywall Planner turns those takeoff steps into free browser-based calculators. Each tool shows the assumptions behind its result, including opening deductions, sheet area, waste allowance and finishing-material coverage, so you can check the arithmetic before ordering.

Where the numbers come from

The calculators combine standard area formulas with clearly labeled estimating allowances. Installation guidance is checked against manufacturer and Gypsum Association references, while local codes and tested assembly instructions always take priority. The core assumptions are:

• Waste allowance: 10% by default, adjustable, which is the standard figure for a rectangular room.
• Opening deductions: 21 sq ft per door (3 ft by 7 ft), 15 sq ft per window (3 ft by 5 ft) and 112 sq ft per garage door (16 ft by 7 ft), plus any custom openings you enter.
• Sheet count: every wall and ceiling laid out sheet by sheet, reusing offcuts and ripped strips, plus the waste allowance as spare sheets, and never less than area plus waste divided by the sheet area.
• Finishing materials: $18 per 4.5 gallon box of compound, $5 per 250 ft roll of tape and $8 per pound of screws.
• Joint compound: about 140 lb per 1,000 sq ft of board for taping plus two finish coats.
• Joint tape: about 370 linear feet per 1,000 sq ft of board.
• Screws: an approximate purchasing allowance of one per square foot on walls and 1.25 per square foot on ceilings, not a fastening schedule.

Where a figure varies by region, such as a price per sheet or a labor rate, we ask you to enter your own rather than presenting a national average as if it were your local price. The cost pages show typical ranges in the article text and label them as ranges.

Who writes and checks it

The calculators and articles are built and maintained by Inam Ur Rehman, a product experience lead and frontend architect with more than ten years of experience building web tools. Sources are linked on every page that relies on them, changes are dated, and corrections are welcome. We do not claim trade licenses, engineering credentials or first-hand project experience that has not been supplied and verified.

How the tools are built

All of the math runs in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded, stored or logged, which is also why the calculators keep working when a basement kills your signal. There is no account to create and no email required to see a result.

The pages are pre-rendered static HTML, so they load fast on a phone over a weak connection, and they work with a keyboard and a screen reader. If you find a place where they do not, that is a bug and we want to hear about it.

What we are not

We are not your supplier, your estimator or your engineer. These calculators are planning aids. For anything you are ordering in quantity, or anything structural, fire rated or covered by a permit, confirm the numbers with your supplier and your local building department. Our disclaimer spells that out in full.

Get in touch

Corrections are the most welcome kind of message. If one of the rules of thumb above is wrong for your market, or a calculation does not match your takeoff, tell us which page and which numbers you used and we will check it. You can reach us on the contact page or at hello@drywallplanner.com.