How Much Drywall for 800 Square Feet?
Drywall sheets
28 sheets
800 square feet of board, 4 by 8 sheets, ten percent waste.
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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 cover800 sq ft
- Sheet size4 x 8 ft, 32 sq ft
- Waste allowance10 %
Drywall sheets28 sheets
| Area with 10% waste | 880 sq ft |
|---|---|
| Sheets at 32 sq ft | 28 |
| Joint compound, 4.5 gal buckets | 2 |
| Joint tape | 335 lf |
| Screws | 896 (about 3 lb) |
| Corner bead, rough guess | 53 lf |
The material list this produces
| Drywall sheets | 28 |
|---|---|
| Joint compound, 4.5 gal buckets | 2 |
| Joint tape, linear ft | 335 |
| Drywall screws, lb | 3 |
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 | 28 sheets |
| 4 x 10 ft | 22 sheets |
| 4 x 12 ft | 19 sheets |
What else matters here
Twenty eight sheets and 335 feet of tape, figured at 380 linear feet per thousand square feet of board. Tape is cheap and running out halfway through a coat is not, so buy the next roll up.
Paper tape and mesh tape are not interchangeable. Paper has no strength of its own and gets it from being bedded in compound, which is why it has to be embedded properly with no dry spots underneath. Done right it is stronger than mesh and it is what the inside corners want, because paper is creased down the middle and mesh is not.
Mesh is self adhesive and forgiving, and it is genuinely better for patches and for holes. Its weakness is that it needs a setting compound over it rather than a bucket compound to reach full strength, and used with ordinary all purpose on a long flat joint it is the one that cracks two years later.
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 800 square feet?
Twenty eight sheets of 4 by 8 with a ten percent waste allowance, covering 880 square feet of board.
How much drywall tape do I need?
About 380 linear feet per 1,000 square feet of board, so roughly 335 feet for 800 square feet.
Is paper tape or mesh tape better?
Paper for inside corners and long flat joints, because it is stronger once bedded. Mesh for patches, and it wants setting compound over it rather than a bucket mud.
The drywall calculator takes any dimensions you like and hands back the same list.