ContractorHandbook

How Many Square Feet Is a 16x16 Room?

Total area

256 sq ft

Sixteen feet by sixteen feet.

length x widthextralength, ftwidtharea x how many, plus anything odd shaped, in feet, yards and meters
Every material calculator on the site starts here, which is why this one also gives square yards and square meters. Odd shapes get broken into rectangles and added on, because a rectangle is the only shape a tape measure is honest about.

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.

  • Length16 ft
  • Width16 ft
  • How many rooms or areas this size1
  • Extra area to add0 sq ft

Total area256 sq ft

One area256 sq ft
Times 1, plus extra256 sq ft
Square yards28.44
Square meters23.78
Perimeter of one area64 ft

What else matters here

Two hundred and fifty six square feet. It is a large room indoors and it is a very common deck and patio size outdoors, which is where the number usually comes from.

Outside, the area is only half the question. A deck over 30 inches above grade needs a guard in most jurisdictions, and a deck attached to the house needs a permit and an inspected ledger connection almost everywhere. A patio at grade usually needs neither, but it does need a slope of about a quarter inch per foot away from the house, which over 16 feet is four inches of fall. Forget that and the patio drains toward the foundation.

What this calculator assumes

  • Length times width, times how many areas are that size. For an L shaped room, split it into two rectangles and run this twice.
  • Square yards are square feet divided by nine, which is how carpet is still quoted in much of the country.

Questions people ask

How many square feet is a 16x16 room?

256 square feet, which is 28.44 square yards and 23.78 square meters.

Is a 16x16 deck big enough?

It seats a table for six and a small seating group comfortably. It is one of the most common sizes built for exactly that reason.

How much should a 16 foot patio slope?

About a quarter inch per foot away from the house, which is four inches of fall across 16 feet.

Different numbers?

The square footage calculator takes any dimensions you like and hands back the same list.

Other common sizes