Brick Calculator Widget
Add a brick and block calculator to a masonry supplier's or builder's site. Visitors enter the wall length and height, subtract doors and windows, choose a US modular, UK, Indian modular, concrete block or custom unit, and get the units per square metre or foot, the total to order and an approximate mortar volume.
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Under the widget on your page: Powered by A2Z Tools
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<iframe src="https://a2z.tools/embed/w/brick-calculator" title="Brick Calculator by A2Z Tools" width="100%" height="760" style="border:0;width:100%" loading="lazy" allow="clipboard-write"></iframe>
A plain iframe. Works everywhere, including site builders that strip scripts. Adjust height if your content needs more room.
<div data-a2z-widget="brick-calculator" data-height="760"></div> <script async src="https://a2z.tools/embed.js"></script>
Adds a small script (what it does) that sizes the widget to fit its content, loads it lazily and keeps it isolated from your page's CSS.
Works with
How it works
A unit laid in a wall occupies its own face plus one mortar joint along its length and one along its height. The widget divides the net wall area - length x height minus the openings - by that coordinating face. A US modular brick, 7-5/8 x 2-1/4 in with a 3/8 in joint, takes up 8 x 2-5/8 in, which is 6.86 bricks per square foot; a UK brick of 215 x 65 mm with 10 mm joints takes 225 x 75 mm, 59.3 per square metre; the Indian modular brick of 190 x 90 mm takes 200 x 100 mm, exactly 50 per square metre; and an 8 in concrete block covers 16 x 8 in, 1.125 per square foot. The breakage allowance is added and the count rounded up. Mortar is estimated as the wall volume at one unit's depth minus the volume of the units, which assumes solid units with full bed and head joints; hollow block, bedded on its face shells, gets no mortar figure.
Calculation method
- Net area = wall length x wall height - openings
- Units per area = 1 / ((unit length + joint) x (unit height + joint))
- Units to order = ceil(net area x units per area x (1 + waste / 100))
- Mortar (solid units) = net area x unit depth - units (before waste) x unit length x height x depth
- Presets: US modular 7-5/8 x 2-1/4 x 3-5/8 in, 3/8 in joint; UK 215 x 65 x 102.5 mm, 10 mm joint; India 190 x 90 x 90 mm, 10 mm joint; CMU 15-5/8 x 7-5/8 x 7-5/8 in, 3/8 in joint
Worked examples
UK garden wall
Inputs: 10 m long, 2.5 m high, no openings, UK brick, 0% waste
Result: 1,482 bricks; 59.26 per m²; about 0.44 m³ mortar
25 m² / (0.225 x 0.075 m) = 1,481.5, rounded up to 1,482.
Indian room wall with a door
Inputs: 5 m x 2 m wall, 2 m² opening, Indian modular brick, 5% waste
Result: 420 bricks
Net area 8 m² x 50 per m² = 400; x 1.05 = 420.
US brick veneer
Inputs: 10 x 10 ft, no openings, US modular brick, 0% waste
Result: 686 bricks
100 sq ft x 6.857 per sq ft = 685.7, rounded up.
Limitations
- Counts one leaf (wythe) laid in stretcher bond; headers in English or Flemish bond and double-thickness walls need adjustment.
- Mortar is a wet-volume estimate for solid units; frogs, cores, joint profile and mixing losses change the real amount.
- Lintels, wall ties, reinforcement and grout for block walls are not included.
- Actual sizes vary between makers and countries; use the custom size for a specific product.
Where publishers use it
- Brickworks and builders' merchants quoting by the thousand or by the pallet
- Garden-wall, barbecue and planter build guides
- Extension and self-build blogs budgeting the shell of a house
- Indian construction sites comparing modular and traditional brick counts
- Bricklayers' websites letting clients size a job before asking for a price
Questions
How many bricks are in a square metre?
With 10 mm joints, a UK 215 x 65 mm brick gives 59.3 per m² (usually rounded to 60) in a half-brick wall, and an Indian 190 x 90 mm modular brick gives exactly 50. A one-brick-thick wall needs twice as many.
How many bricks per square foot?
US modular brick with 3/8 in joints lays at 6.86 per square foot, so a 10 x 10 ft wall with no openings takes 686 bricks before breakage.
How many concrete blocks per square foot?
A standard 16 x 8 in face (15-5/8 x 7-5/8 in block plus a 3/8 in joint) covers 0.889 sq ft, so 1.125 blocks per square foot - 113 for 100 square feet.
What waste allowance is normal for bricks?
About 5% covers breakage, cuts at openings and ends; use 10% for walls with many corners and piers, or for reclaimed bricks with more rejects.
How much mortar does a brick wall need?
For a half-brick UK wall with full 10 mm joints, about 0.0176 m³ of wet mortar per m², so 25 m² needs about 0.44 m³. Frogged bricks laid frog-up and wider joints use more.
Does it work for cavity or double walls?
Count each leaf separately. For a cavity wall with a brick outer leaf and block inner leaf, run the widget once with the brick preset and once with the block preset.
Why does India have two brick sizes?
IS 1077 lists the modular 190 x 90 x 90 mm brick and a non-modular 230 x 110 x 70 mm one that many kilns still make. For the non-modular brick choose Custom: with 10 mm joints it lays at about 52 per m² of face.
What is the difference between stretcher, English and Flemish bond?
Stretcher bond shows only the long faces and suits single-leaf and cavity walls. English bond alternates courses of stretchers and headers, and Flemish bond alternates them within each course; both tie a solid one-brick wall together and need about twice the bricks per square metre of face.
Sources
- Technical Note 10: Dimensioning and Estimating Brick Masonry - Brick Industry Association . Modular brick specified as 3-5/8 x 2-1/4 x 7-5/8 in; specified dimension plus the intended mortar joint equals the modular dimension.
- Designing to Brickwork Dimensions, Technical Guide 2023 - Brick Development Association (UK) . Work size 215 x 102.5 x 65 mm with a nominal 10 mm joint gives the co-ordinating size 225 x 112.5 x 75 mm.
- IS 1077:1992 Common Burnt Clay Building Bricks - Specification, clause 6.1 - Bureau of Indian Standards (copy at law.resource.org) . Standard modular size 190 x 90 x 90 mm; non-modular 230 x 110 x 70 mm.
- TEK 05-12 Modular Layout of Concrete Masonry - Concrete Masonry & Hardscapes Association . Actual unit dimensions are typically 3/8 in less than nominal so the 8 x 16 in module is kept with 3/8 in joints.
Cite or recommend this tool
If you reference this tool in an article, course or documentation, these formats are ready to copy. They are optional - nothing is added to your site unless you paste it.
A2Z Tools Brick Calculator https://a2z.tools/embed/brick-calculator
<a href="https://a2z.tools/embed/brick-calculator">A2Z Tools Brick Calculator</a>
[A2Z Tools Brick Calculator](https://a2z.tools/embed/brick-calculator)
Brick Calculator by A2Z Tools - https://a2z.tools/embed/brick-calculator
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