How Much Drywall for 5,000 Square Feet?
Drywall sheets
172 sheets
5,000 square feet of board, 4 by 8 sheets, ten percent waste.
When the figures look right, the drywall material list downloads as a real PDF with your business details on it, built inside your own browser. Nothing you type is uploaded anywhere.
How that number is worked out
These are the figures this page was built with and every line the calculator produces from them. Change anything above and all of it moves.
- Total area to cover5000 sq ft
- Sheet size4 x 8 ft, 32 sq ft
- Waste allowance10 %
Drywall sheets172 sheets
| Area with 10% waste | 5,500 sq ft |
|---|---|
| Sheets at 32 sq ft | 172 |
| Joint compound, 4.5 gal buckets | 12 |
| Joint tape | 2,090 lf |
| Screws | 5,504 (about 18 lb) |
| Corner bead, rough guess | 330 lf |
The material list this produces
| Drywall sheets | 172 |
|---|---|
| Joint compound, 4.5 gal buckets | 12 |
| Joint tape, linear ft | 2,090 |
| Drywall screws, lb | 18 |
Sheet size compared
Longer sheets mean fewer butt joints and less taping. Same area, three sheet sizes.
| Sheet size | Drywall sheets |
|---|---|
| 4 x 8 ft | 172 sheets |
| 4 x 10 ft | 138 sheets |
| 4 x 12 ft | 115 sheets |
What else matters here
A hundred and seventy two sheets. A job this size is a whole house, and on a whole house the drywall date is the hinge the rest of the schedule swings on.
Nothing goes up until the rough inspections pass. Framing, electrical, plumbing and mechanical all have to be signed off, and insulation after them, because once the board is on nobody can see any of it. A crew that hangs before the inspector has been is betting the whole job on a pass, and the cost of being wrong is cutting the wall back open.
Coordinate the delivery with the hang, too. A hundred and seventy two sheets stacked in a house for three weeks is in everybody's way, gets damaged at the corners, and picks up moisture if the house is not dried in. Boom truck in through the window openings the day before the crew starts is how it is normally sequenced.
What this calculator assumes
- Joint compound is figured at one 4.5 gallon bucket per 475 sq ft of board for a full three coat finish. A level 5 finish uses more.
- Tape is figured at 380 linear feet per 1000 sq ft of board, screws at 32 per sheet for 16 inch on center framing.
- Longer sheets mean fewer butt joints, which is less taping and a flatter wall. Use 12 footers where they will fit through the door.
Questions people ask
How many sheets of drywall for 5,000 square feet?
A hundred and seventy two sheets of 4 by 8 with a ten percent waste allowance, covering 5,500 square feet of board.
What has to happen before drywall goes up?
Every rough inspection has to pass, framing, electrical, plumbing and mechanical, then insulation. Once the board is on, none of it can be seen.
When should drywall be delivered?
Close to the hang date, into a dried in house. Board stacked for weeks gets damaged at the corners, picks up moisture and is in the way of every other trade.
The drywall calculator takes any dimensions you like and hands back the same list.