How Much Flooring for a 14x20 Room?
Boxes to order
14 boxes
280 square feet of floor, ten percent waste, boxes of 22.5 square feet.
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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.
- Floor area280 sq ft
- Coverage per box or carton22.5 sq ft
- Waste allowance10 %
Boxes to order14 boxes
| Floor area | 280 sq ft |
|---|---|
| With 10% waste | 308 sq ft |
| Boxes at 22.5 sq ft | 14 |
| Coverage bought | 315 sq ft |
| Left over | 35 sq ftkeep it for repairs |
The material list this produces
| Flooring, boxes | 14 |
|---|---|
| Underlayment, sq ft | 280 |
| Transition strips, each | 2 |
Waste allowance compared
Waste is set by how you lay it, not by how careful you are. Straight lay to herringbone, same room.
| Waste allowance | Boxes to order | With 10% waste | Left over |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5% | 14 boxes | 294 sq ft | 35 sq ft |
| 10% | 14 boxes | 308 sq ft | 35 sq ft |
| 15% | 15 boxes | 322 sq ft | 57.5 sq ft |
| 20% | 15 boxes | 336 sq ft | 57.5 sq ft |
What else matters here
Two hundred and eighty square feet plus ten percent is 308, fourteen cartons, 315 bought.
The expansion gap around this floor is a quarter inch of open space at every wall, and something has to cover it. If the baseboard is coming off and going back on, it can sit directly on the finished floor and cover the gap by itself. If the baseboard is staying put, you need quarter round or a shoe molding in front of it.
Either way, the fastener goes into the baseboard or the wall, never down into the floor. A floating floor has to be able to move under the trim, and one nail through the shoe into a plank pins the whole field and shows up later as a gap somewhere else in the room. Paint or finish the trim before it goes on and touch up the nail holes after.
What this calculator assumes
- 10 percent waste covers a straight lay in a simple rectangle. Go to 15 for a diagonal or herringbone lay, and 20 if the room is cut up with closets and angles.
- Buy the whole job in one delivery. Dye lot and batch shade move between production runs, and a single replacement box six months later will not match.
Questions people ask
How many boxes of flooring for a 14x20 room?
About 14 boxes at 22.5 square feet each, covering 280 square feet with ten percent waste.
Do I need quarter round after installing flooring?
Only if the baseboard is staying in place. If the baseboard comes off and goes back on over the new floor, it covers the expansion gap on its own.
Should shoe molding be nailed to the floor?
Never. Nail it into the baseboard or the wall. A fastener through the trim into a floating floor stops it moving and causes gaps elsewhere.
The flooring calculator takes any dimensions you like and hands back the same list.