This free roof calculator estimates the area of a roof and the amount of materials needed to replace or build that roof. There's no way to calculate the square footage of a roof without putting in a little bit of effort. There are several formulas and ways to do this, but they should all lead to the same general number. A roofed square, contrary to what its name suggests, is not a physical square object.
In fact, it is a measurement unit used in the roofing industry. A square roof equals 100 square feet. This term simplifies communication between contractors, manufacturers and suppliers. Following the same principle, if you have a 2000 square foot roof, you will need 20 square feet of roof. This calculation is crucial not only for estimating the amount of material required for the work, but also for determining the total cost of the project.
It's not just about knowing how many squares you need. It's also important to understand how this translates to the amount of roofing materials needed. Shingles, which are commonly used for roofing, usually come in bundles. A shingle package is designed to cover a certain area, which is usually less than one square.
When it comes to roofing, there is one factor that can slightly alter these calculations: the difference between heads. The front rollover is the overlap that occurs when a row of tiles is placed on the next row. This overlap is crucial, as it improves the roof's resistance to water penetration. In view of this, it is likely that a square of roof needs more than a square of shingles to cover.
For a 1200 square foot roof, you would need 36 packages, assuming 3 packages are needed per square (100 square feet). This calculation is based on the fact that the roof has 12 squares in total, and each square covers 100 square feet, so it's essential to purchase enough packages to cover the entire area properly. A roof of 1000 square feet equals 10 squares, and each square represents 100 square feet of roof area. This measurement is a standard used by roofing professionals to simplify the process of estimating and ordering materials, ensuring that they purchase enough material to cover the roof properly.
For a 2000 square foot home, approximately 20 squares of roofing material are needed. This estimate assumes a direct correlation between the square footage of the house and the roof surface, although actual needs may vary depending on the roof design, the inclination and the presence of elements such as dormers or valleys. The roof of a 2000 square foot house is also usually around 2000 square feet, which is equivalent to about 20 squares of roof. However, this may vary depending on architectural styles and roof slopes.
For example, a house with a sloping roof or a complex design may have a larger roof area than the square footage of the house might suggest. A bundle of shingles covers approximately 33.3 square feet, since 3 bundles are usually needed to cover a square (100 square feet) of roof. This standard allows roofers and DIYers to accurately calculate the number of packages needed for a project, taking into account the total area to be covered and the specific coverage that provides each package. I agree to receive SMS and email communications from Cox Brothers Roofing after submitting this form.
To put this in context, a 1,200 square foot one-story home will have approximately 1,517 square feet of roof area, compared to a two-story home, which usually has half that amount. Only about 10% of 1,200-square-foot homes have two floors, so if your house is about this size, it's likely that everything is in a single plant. Even so, we broke down the average you can expect to spend on one- and two-story homes across 1,200 square feet in the table below. The number of tiles depends on the size of your roof and the type of roof tiles you choose.
On average, a bundle of shingles covers approximately 33 square feet of roof. For a 1200 square foot roof, you will need approximately 36 packages of shingles (assuming you use standard asphalt shingles)). However, it's always a good idea to get more to cover up waste or errors during installation. The complexity of a roof is simply based on the way in which the roof is cut, such as the multiple facets, the different inclinations, hips, valleys, pediments, attics and the number of floors with respect to the ground.
This means that the cost will depend on the type of roofing material you choose and how much you need to cover the roof. Even if you have a two-level house, the total roof area would be a combination of the two ceilings of the first and second level. The slope of the roof is a determining factor for the cost of the roof, as well as for the roof area and the type of materials used. Roofing equipment will also need more time if they first have to remove the old roof, which could mean an extra day of work.
The cost of a roof square can vary widely depending on several factors, such as the geographical location, the choice of roofing material, the amount of shingles needed, the accessibility of the roof, and the contractor's level of experience, to name a few. In cases where a roof has a complex shape, as in the image on the right, measuring the dimensions and areas of each part of the roof to calculate the total area will result in a more accurate measurement of the area. When deciding between repairing or replacing the roof, it is necessary to consider the cost of the repair versus the full replacement. For example, a simple gable roof is relatively easy to measure, while more complex designs, such as mansard or mansard roofs, may require more material due to their complex structure and the possibility that they will be wasted when shingles have to be cut to fit tight spaces.
We've converted the roof area measurement to “squares” (the standard unit of the roofing industry, where a square covers 100 square feet) to fit the way the materials are sold and the price. However, if the roof is old and already showing multiple signs of wear, replacing it may be more cost-effective in the long term. To calculate the square footage of the roof, measure the length and width of each roof section and multiply them. Multi-level ceilings are made up of different sections at different heights, so workers must carefully measure and adjust the roof materials for each part.
Depending on whether the roof area is measured horizontally (possibly from a drawing or a photograph), a correction factor is necessary to determine the actual roof area. However, replacement usually makes the most sense when the roof is nearing the end of its expected lifespan, has widespread deterioration, has undergone multiple previous repairs, or has significant underlying structural problems.
