Free sewing & quilting calculators
Fabric Yardage Calculator
How many yards to buy — from your piece size, piece count, and the width of the bolt. It counts whole cutting rows, the way you'll actually cut.
How yardage is calculated
Fabric is sold by length off a bolt of fixed width, so the math is about cutting rows. The calculator works out how many pieces fit side by side across the width — 44 in fabric fits four 10½ in pieces per row — then how many rows your piece count needs, then multiplies rows by piece length. That length, divided by 36, is your yardage.
yards = rows × piece length ÷ 36, where rows = pieces ÷ pieces-per-row, rounded up — and the final figure is rounded up to the next ⅛ yard, the way fabric is actually cut at the counter.
Common fabric widths
| 36 in | Vintage fabrics, reproduction prints, and some craft cottons. |
|---|---|
| 44/45 in | Standard quilting cotton — the default on most bolts. |
| 54 in | Home-décor and upholstery fabric. |
| 58–60 in | Apparel fabric — most knits and fashion wovens. |
| 108 in | Extra-wide quilt backing, bought to avoid piecing seams. |
Width changes yardage more than most people expect: the same 25 squares that take 2⅛ yards of quilting cotton need 2⅝ yards of 36 in vintage cloth, but only 1½ yards of 60 in apparel fabric. Check the end of the bolt before you buy. The calculator uses the conservative end of each range — if your bolt is a true 45 or 60 inches, you have a little bonus width.
Buy a little extra
The row-count result is a mathematical minimum. Add for prewash shrinkage (cotton loses 3–5%), squaring up the cut ends, directional prints that force every piece the same way, and matching plaids or large repeats — pattern matching can add a full repeat per piece. A safe habit is rounding up to the next ¼–½ yard, which is exactly what the suggested-buy figure above does for you.