How Many Stairs for a 10 Foot Ceiling?
Risers
17 at 7.59 in each
129 inches floor to floor.
Two risers plus one tread is 25.68 in. Comfortable stairs land between 24 and 25.
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 rise, finished floor to finished floor129 in
- Tread depth you want10.5 in
- Stair width36 in
Risers17 at 7.59 in each
Two risers plus one tread is 25.68 in. Comfortable stairs land between 24 and 25.
| Total rise | 129 in |
|---|---|
| Number of risers | 17 |
| Riser height | 7.59 in |
| Number of treads | 16 |
| Total run | 168 in (14 ft) |
| Stringer length, minimum | 17.65 ft |
| Headroom needed above nosing | 80 in minimum |
The material list this produces
| Stringers, 18 ft | 4 |
|---|---|
| Treads, 36 in | 16 |
| Risers, 36 in | 17 |
Tread depth compared
Deeper treads eat more floor. Same rise, four tread depths.
| Tread depth | Risers | Total run |
|---|---|---|
| 10 in | 17 at 7.59 in each | 160 in (13.33 ft) |
| 10.5 in | 17 at 7.59 in each | 168 in (14 ft) |
| 11 in | 17 at 7.59 in each | 176 in (14.67 ft) |
| 11.5 in | 17 at 7.59 in each | 184 in (15.33 ft) |
What else matters here
Seventeen risers at 7.59 inches is close to the 7.75 inch limit, and less than three more inches of rise would push the same seventeen risers past it.
Fourteen feet of run is a serious amount of floor.
What this calculator assumes
- Riser count is the total rise divided by a 7.5 inch target, rounded to a whole number, and then increased by one if that would have put a riser over the code maximum. The rise is then divided evenly among them. Every riser in a flight must be within 3/8 inch of every other one.
- Treads are always one fewer than risers when the top riser lands on the finished floor above.
- The IRC limits are a 7.75 inch maximum riser and a 10 inch minimum tread. Your local code may be stricter, and commercial work certainly is.
Questions people ask
How many stairs for a 10 foot ceiling?
About 17 risers at 7.59 inches, based on a 129 inch floor to floor rise.
Can I use a steeper riser to save space?
Not past 7.75 inches for residential stairs under the IRC, and local code may be stricter.
The stair calculator takes any dimensions you like and hands back the same list.