Free Unbiased Carpet and Flooring Information
Carpet Measuring Guide &
Room Yardage Chart
Measuring for Carpet Yourself? Use My Free Room Yardage Chart!
Need some help measuring your rooms for carpet? Here is a handy chart to help you figure out how much carpet you need to order based on your room measurements.
Why Measure For Carpet Yourself?
There are some sleazy carpet retailers who may try to sell you more carpet than you actually need. This is a very common carpet scam and rip-off.
My room yardage chart will also help you verify the measurements of any bids or estimates you receive. For example, if you get three free estimates and they all show a different amount of material your job requires, then my Room Yardage Chart can help you identify the bid or estimate that is the most accurate.
Why are all their estimates different?
Some carpet salespeople are better at measuring than others. If you are doing more than one room, waste from one room can be used to fill-in an area in a different room. This is how an experienced estimator can strategically save you money by limiting material waste and optimizing as much as possible.
Some carpet salespeople are inexperienced and fear not ordering enough material to finish the job. To prevent embarrassment and save face, they may add a few extra yards to your order.
Measuring for carpet yourself is a smart way to potentially save money on your new carpet purchase. However, it is only ONE of dozens of smart ways that you can save money on new carpet that you need to know about. How To Measure For Carpet in 4 simple steps
Room Yardage Chart
Instructions:
Measure your room length and width carefully and make sure you measure all the way into closets and through doorways. Add 3 extra inches to the length and width for trimming purposes. This will give you a close estimate of how many yards of carpet your room requires. To calculate the square footage, just multiply the yardage amount by 9. Always round up.
(10 square yards is the same as 90 square feet. 10 X 9 = 90)
1. Find your room WIDTH (in feet)
2. Find your room LENGTH (in feet)
3. Discover the amount of Square Yards
(click on image to view or print)
NOTE: You usually have to buy carpet in widths of 12 feet. If you have a room that is 10 feet by 10 feet you will have to buy a rug that is 12 feet by 10 feet. To convert square yards to square feet, multiply SY by 9. ( 12 sy x 9 = 108 sf )
Expect to have some material waste. You usually have to buy carpet in widths of 12 feet. For example, if you have a room that is 10 feet by 10 feet you will have to buy a carpet that is 12 feet wide by 10 feet long. That will create some leftover material waste.
Carpet Seams
If you have a room wider than 12 feet you will need to have a seam. For example: A room 15 feet wide by 16 feet long will require a 3 foot by 16 foot seam along one side of the room.
There must be enough extra carpet to do the seams. Usually 5 to 10% more depending on the size of your rooms and the number of seams used to fill the space. See my Carpet Seaming Diagram
How To Measure For Carpet Seams
