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Estimating Wallpaper Needed

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Wallpaper is priced by the single roll but typically sold in double rolls. However, wallpaper rolls come in different sizes, which make a big difference in the amount of square footage you get out of a roll. Use a yardstick or steel tape measure to get accurate measurements. Measure the wall height from floor to ceiling excluding all baseboards and/or moldings, rounding up to the next half-foot or foot for all walls in the room. Find the total square feet of the wall by multiplying ceiling height by total wall length. Allow extra for a repeat pattern and for the extra that you will trim for the ceiling and baseboards. Subtract the areas that you won’t be covering. This should give you the total number of square feet, which in turn should help you to determine the number of rolls needed.

It can be very confusing to determine the amount of wallpaper you need. Most wallpaper stores are happy to help you with your measuring and figuring the amount of paper needed. There are also many online web sites that have tables to help you determine how many rolls to buy. It is advisable to do some research before buying because buying too little paper means you have to buy or possibly order additional paper taking the risk that you will get a different run number with slightly different dye lots.

For borders, instead of measuring square footage, measure the perimeter of the room or area to which you are applying a border allowing a little extra for matching or to compensate for walls that are not straight. Borders are typically 5 yards long. Divide the length in feet of the area you are bordering by 15 to determine how many rolls are needed.

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