Nine Patch Quilt Block — Cutting Chart for Any Size
2 fabrics · Difficulty 1 of 5
Nine Patch is a 3×3 block of 9 pieces. Cut sizes for 6″, 9″, 12″, 15″, 18″ are below; for any other size it divides into cleanly, type the size and the chart recomputes.
Set the finished sizeAt a glance
- Grid
- 3×3
- Pieces you cut
- 9
- Difficulty
- 1 of 5 — first block How this is scored
Set the size
Nearest sizes that cut cleanly:
- Squares — Fabric A
- 4½″
- Squares — Background
- 4½″
Reading focusConstruction lines expose the simple latticesquare
- Construction lattice
- 3 modules wide × 3 modules high
- Unit mix
- square
- Piece count
- 9 to cut · 9 in the diagram
Cut these pieces
Column headings are the FINISHED block size — the size it will be once it is sewn. Every number in the table is the size to CUT, which includes ¼″ of seam allowance on each edge. Rows that are subcut on a diagonal are cut larger still, so the allowance survives the extra cuts.
Scroll sideways to see every size.
| Patch | 6″ | 9″ | 12″ | 15″ | 18″ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squares — Fabric ACut 5 | 2½″ | 3½″ | 4½″ | 5½″ | 6½″ |
| Squares — BackgroundCut 4 | 2½″ | 3½″ | 4½″ | 5½″ | 6½″ |
Read the block
Match each fabric letter in the diagram to the same fabric name in the cutting table. The caption describes the generated geometry in text.
Fabrics in this block
- A — gold
- BG — background
Which sizes divide cleanly
Scroll sideways to see every column.
| Grid | Divides cleanly at | The first few sizes |
|---|---|---|
| 2×2 | every 1″ | 1″, 2″, 3″, 4″, 5″, 6″ … |
| 3×3this block | every 1½″ | 1½″, 3″, 4½″, 6″, 7½″, 9″ … |
| 4×4 | every 2″ | 2″, 4″, 6″, 8″, 10″, 12″ … |
| 5×5 | every 2½″ | 2½″, 5″, 7½″, 10″, 12½″, 15″ … |
| 7×7 | every 3½″ | 3½″, 7″, 10½″, 14″, 17½″, 21″ |
- A 5-patch block at 12″ would need 2.4″ units, which is not a mark on any ruler. Try 10″ or 12½″ instead — Sister's Choice is the 5-patch block on this site.
- A 7-patch block at 12″ would need 1.714…″ units, which is not a mark on any ruler. Try 10½″ or 14″ instead — Bear's Paw is the 7-patch block on this site.
More about the sizes that do not divide cleanly
The sizes in between
A 10″ Nine Patch cannot be cut accurately on its 3×3 grid. Use 9″ or 10½″ instead; both cutting charts are on this page, computed by Quilt Block Atlas.
Both columns are FINISHED block sizes — the size a block will be once it is sewn, never a size to cut. Look the clean size up in the charts on this page for its cutting numbers.
Scroll sideways if the table is wider than your screen.
| Size you want | Nearest sizes that cut cleanly |
|---|---|
| 4″ | 3″ or 4½″ |
| 5″ | 4½″ or 6″ |
| 7″ | 6″ or 7½″ |
| 8″ | 7½″ or 9″ |
| 10″ | 9″ or 10½″ |
| 11″ | 10½″ or 12″ |
| 13″ | 12″ or 13½″ |
| 14″ | 13½″ or 15″ |
| 16″ | 15″ or 16½″ |
| 17″ | 16½″ or 18″ |
| 19″ | 18″ or 19½″ |
| 20″ | 19½″ or 21″ |
These sizes divide cleanly but sit between the main chart's columns — the same computed cuts, published here so they exist on paper too. Any other clean size still computes in the size input above.
Column headings are the FINISHED block size — the size it will be once it is sewn. Every number in the table is the size to CUT, which includes ¼″ of seam allowance on each edge. Rows that are subcut on a diagonal are cut larger still, so the allowance survives the extra cuts.
Scroll sideways to see every size.
| Patch | 4½″ | 7½″ | 10½″ | 13½″ | 16½″ | 19½″ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squares — Fabric ACut 5 | 2″ | 3″ | 4″ | 5″ | 6″ | 7″ |
| Squares — BackgroundCut 4 | 2″ | 3″ | 4″ | 5″ | 6″ | 7″ |
About this block
- Pieces in the finished block
- 9
- Unit types
- square
- Divides cleanly at
- 1½″, 3″, 4½″, 6″, 7½″, 9″, 10½″, 12″, 13½″, 15″, 16½″, 18″, 19½″ and 21″ finished.
- Fabric for one 12″ block
- ¼ yd total, rounded up to the nearest ⅛ yard, assuming 40″ of usable width.
Straight grain everywhere and not a diagonal in sight — the entire job is the crossings. Press each row's seams the opposite way to its neighbour and the intersections lock together with barely a pin. Every patch is the same cut size, so the rows can be strip-pieced from long runs.
Piecing order
Lay out row 1 of 3 and sew its pieces together, left to right.
Lay out row 2 of 3 and sew its pieces together, left to right.
Lay out row 3 of 3 and sew its pieces together, left to right.
Join the 3 rows, matching the seams.
Cutting oversize
Nothing in this block needs cutting oversize: every piece is cut straight to its exact size, so sew an accurate quarter inch and it comes out true. If you like trimming room anyway, the reasoning is on how to square up a quilt block.
History
The earliest dated example Barbara Brackman records is from 1786 — a quilt signed on the reverse by Elizabeth Bowman Nace of Hanover, Pennsylvania — with further dated examples from 1802, 1806 and 1808. Set block by block, the nine patch is distinctly American: in a British survey of 69 pre-1840 quilts, not one used it that way. It predates the pattern-publishing industry, so no first-publisher attribution exists.
Sources: Barbara Brackman — The Classic Early American Quilt.
Common questions
What size can I make Nine Patch?
Any size it divides cleanly: 1½″, 3″, 4½″, 6″, 7½″, 9″, 10½″, 12″, 13½″, 15″, 16½″, 18″, 19½″ and 21″ finished. The chart above carries 6″, 9″, 12″, 15″, 18″ ready-worked, and the size input computes any other clean size without you doing arithmetic — every value computed by Quilt Block Atlas, none transcribed.
How many pieces are in a Nine Patch block?
9 — and you cut exactly that many, because every piece in this block is used whole. The chart's quantities add up to the diagram.
What sizes does a 3×3 block divide into cleanly?
1½″, 3″, 4½″, 6″, 7½″, 9″, 10½″, 12″, 13½″, 15″, 16½″, 18″, 19½″ and 21″ finished. The step is half the grid this block's cutting sizes are computed on, and the clean-size table above marks this block's row with the other families beside it.
Is Nine Patch good for a beginner?
Yes — it scores 1 of 5, first block, on this site's computed scale: 9 pieces, with the square as its hardest unit. The scoring rule, and every block ranked by it, is on the difficulty page linked above.
How do finished size, sewn unfinished/trim size, and starting cut size differ?
Finished size is 12″ after the block is sewn into surrounding seams. Its sewn unfinished/trim size is 12½″ before those outer seams, derived with the plain-square allowance. Starting cut size is the method-specific input listed in the chart. Starting cut size equals the unfinished outer target only for a plain square or rectangle workflow; it is not generally the same for pieced triangle units.
Keep going
Related blocks
Where this block appears
Calculators for this block
Reference
Before you print
Measure this square before you cut. It must be exactly 1 inch. If it isn't, your printer scaled the page — reprint at 100% or "Actual size", not "Fit to page".