How to measure your lawn
For a simple rectangular lawn, measure the length and width in feet and enter them directly. The calculator multiplies them together to get the square footage, then adds your waste allowance on top.
Most lawns aren't one clean rectangle. If yours has an irregular shape — an L-shaped side yard, a driveway that cuts across a corner, a flower bed carved out of the middle — break it into two or more rectangles you can measure separately. Work out the sod needed for each piece (or add the square footage of each piece together first), then sum the results.
For a circular or curvedarea, such as a round island bed you're excluding from the lawn, use the formula for the area of a circle: Area = π × r², where r is the radius (half the diameter). A 20 ft diameter circle has a 10 ft radius, so its area is π × 10² ≈ 314 sq ft — subtract that from your total if it's a bed inside the lawn, not part of it.
Whatever method you use, measure twice. Sod is heavy, perishable, and expensive to over-order or re-deliver, so a few extra minutes with a tape measure or measuring wheel is worth it before you call your supplier.
The formula and a worked example
The math behind this calculator, in a few steps:
Square feet = Length ft × Width ft × (1 + waste %)
Square yards = Square feet ÷ 9
Rolls = Square feet ÷ 10, rounded up
Pallets = Square feet ÷ pallet coverage, rounded up
Worked example: a lawn measuring 50 ft × 30 ft, ordered with a 5% waste allowance and a 450 sq ft pallet:
50 × 30 = 1,500 sq ft
1,500 × 1.05 = 1,575 sq ft
1,575 ÷ 10 = 157.5 → 158 rolls
1,575 ÷ 450 = 3.5 → 4 pallets
Notice the order size grows to whole rolls and whole pallets in the last two steps — suppliers can't cut you a fraction of either, so this calculator always rounds up rather than down.
Rolls vs. slabs vs. pallets
Sod is cut and sold in a few different unit sizes, and the exact numbers vary by region and farm:
- Rolls:the most common unit, typically cut about 2 ft wide by 5 ft long for 10 sq ft of coverage. Some farms cut rolls slightly smaller, closer to 9 sq ft, so it's worth confirming the exact size with your supplier.
- Slabs: smaller rectangular pieces, often around 16 in × 24 in, more common for small patch jobs or hand-carried repairs than for laying an entire lawn.
- Pallets:the bulk delivery unit, stacked with rolls and typically covering 400 to 500 sq ft per pallet — though this figure varies enough by farm that it's the single biggest source of ordering mistakes.
A loaded pallet of sod typically weighs 1,500 to 3,000 lb, depending on pallet size and how wet the soil is when it's cut. Plan your delivery spot with that weight in mind — pallets are usually set down by forklift or boom truck, so you need a firm, accessible surface like a driveway rather than soft ground that could rut or sink under the load.
Ordering tips
Order everything at once. Sod cut on different days, or from different fields, can vary slightly in color and grass blend. Ordering your full square footage in a single order keeps the color consistent across your whole lawn instead of creating a visible seam where an early delivery meets a later one.
Install the day it arrives.Fresh sod is a living, perishable product — it starts to dry out, heat up, and yellow within 24 to 48 hours of being cut, especially if it's stacked on a pallet in the sun. Schedule delivery for the same day you plan to lay it, and prep your soil beforehand so you're not scrambling once the truck arrives.
Don't let pallets sit.If you can't install everything immediately, unroll and lay whatever sod you do have rather than leaving it stacked and rolled on the pallet. Rolled sod smothers itself in the heat, and a pallet left in direct sun for more than a day or two can suffer enough heat damage that sections turn brown and need to be replaced.