Fabric yardage calculator
Enter the size you are cutting and how many pieces you need, and get the yardage to buy. Every figure on this page assumes 40″ of usable fabric width and rounds up to the nearest eighth of a yard.
Any cut size
- Pieces per strip
- 11
- Strips to cut
- 4
- Fabric length needed
- 14″
- Buy
- ½ yd
Based on 40″ of usable fabric width, rounded up to the nearest ⅛ yard.
That piece won't fit across the fabric: it is longer than the 40″ of usable width this calculator assumes. If its other measurement is 40″ or less, swap the two and cut it turned the other way.
Scroll sideways to inspect every label.
Orient each 3½″ by 3½″ piece across the 40″ usable width: 11 per strip, 4 strips, ½ yard.
Worked at 40 pieces
Scroll sideways to see every column.
| Cut size | Pieces per strip | Strips | Fabric length | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2½″ | 16 | 3 | 7½″ | ¼ yd |
| 3½″ | 11 | 4 | 14″ | ½ yd |
| 4½″ | 8 | 5 | 22½″ | ⅝ yd |
| 5″ | 8 | 5 | 25″ | ¾ yd |
| 6½″ | 6 | 7 | 45½″ | 1⅜ yd |
Cut sizes are what you cut, seam allowance already included — they are not finished sizes. A strip runs the full width of the fabric, so the number of pieces per strip is how many times the cut size divides into 40″. Yardage is rounded UP to the nearest eighth of a yard, because fabric is sold that way and cutting short is not recoverable.
Yardage for every block, at a glance
Scroll sideways to see every block.
| Block | Grid | Finished size used | Fabric to buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bear's Paw | 7×7 | 10½″ | ⅝ yd |
| Broken Dishes | 2×2 | 12″ | ½ yd |
| Card Trick | 3×3 | 12″ | 1½ yd |
| Churn Dash | 3×3 | 12″ | ⅞ yd |
| Flying Geese | 4×1 | 12 × 24″ | ⅝ yd |
| Friendship Star | 3×3 | 12″ | ¾ yd |
| Heart | 4×4 | 12″ | ½ yd |
| Jacob's Ladder | 4×4 | 12″ | ½ yd |
| Log Cabin | strip | 12″ | 1¾ yd |
| Maple Leaf | 3×3 | 12″ | ¾ yd |
| Nine Patch | 3×3 | 12″ | ¼ yd |
| Ohio Star | 3×3 | 12″ | ¾ yd |
| Pinwheel | 2×2 | 12″ | ½ yd |
| Rail Fence | 4×4 | 12″ | 1½ yd |
| Sawtooth Star | 4×4 | 12″ | ¾ yd |
| Shoofly | 3×3 | 12″ | ¾ yd |
| Sister's Choice | 5×5 | 12½″ | ½ yd |
| Square in a Square | 1×1 | 12″ | ½ yd |
Each fabric in a block is rounded up to the nearest eighth of a yard separately, and the figure shown is their sum: you buy fabrics separately, and rounding the total instead would under-order. The size used is each block's own nearest cleanly-divisible size to 12″. Not every block cuts evenly at 12″ itself, so a few rows use a neighbouring size instead.
Every block here already carries its own yardage
Each block page gives the fabric needed for one block at its own size, computed the same way.
- Bear's Paw
- Broken Dishes
- Card Trick
- Churn Dash
- Flying Geese
- Friendship Star
- Heart
- Jacob's Ladder
- Log Cabin
- Maple Leaf
- Nine Patch
- Ohio Star
- Pinwheel
- Rail Fence
- Sawtooth Star
- Shoofly
- Sister's Choice
- Square in a Square
Related pages
- The quarter inch seam allowance See what the seam removes and test it.
- Quilt top size calculator Lay out blocks, sashing, and borders.
Common questions
How much fabric do I need for 40 squares?
It depends entirely on the cut size, which is why the table above works 40 pieces at several sizes side by side. Find your cut size in the first column and read across — or type your exact size and count into the calculator and let it do the strip arithmetic.
How wide is a strip of fabric?
As wide as the piece you are cutting, and as long as the fabric's usable width: you cut a strip at your cut size, then subcut the pieces from it. That is why the results count strips — pieces per strip is how many times your cut size fits across 40″.
Does this include seam allowance?
The size you enter should already be a CUT size — seam allowance included. If you are working from any chart on this site, it is: enter the chart's numbers exactly as printed, and add nothing.
Should I buy extra?
The eighth-yard rounding already builds in a little slack. Whether to add more is judgement — prewash shrinkage, squaring the cut ends, the odd miscut — and it depends on the fabric and on you, so this calculator will not invent a percentage. If the fabric is hard to replace, err on the side of more.