Construction

Material Takeoff

Measure, deduct openings, add waste and round up to whole packs, with the rounding shown separately from the waste factor.

Delivery: Instant download
Purchase: One-time payment
Format: Google Sheets
Excel
Updated: August 2026

$5.90

What this spreadsheet does

Ordering the calculated quantity rather than the purchasable one is how a job runs out on a Friday. On the sample room, rounding adds more than the waste factor on one material.

What you can do with it

Order paint, boards and flooring for a room without running short
See how much buying whole packs adds to a job
Build your own waste factors by comparing takeoff to delivery notes

What's included

Sheet tabs

Instructions
Measurements
Takeoff

Features

Wall, floor and perimeter quantities derived from four measurements
Openings deducted, with their share of the wall area shown
Coverage, coats and a waste factor set per material
Units rounded up to whole packs, sheets or tins
Rounding kept in its own column so you can see which of it and waste costs more
Cost per square metre of floor as a sanity check against past jobs

How it works

1Enter room dimensions and the area of doors and windows
2Set coverage, coats and a waste factor per material
3Read the Rounding column before placing the order

Who it's for

Builders, decorators and anyone ordering materials from a measured room.

Coverage rates and pack sizes differ by product, supplier and country. Check the tin or the pack rather than the sample figures.

Frequently asked questions

What waste factor should I use?

Ten percent for paint and boards, eight for simple flooring, fifteen to twenty for patterned or diagonally laid materials. Then replace all of them with your own figures after a few jobs.

Why separate rounding from waste?

Because they are different costs and one of them is often larger. Folding rounding into the waste factor hides which is which, and only one of them is under your control.

Should I take off from drawings or site measurements?

Site measurements whenever the building exists. Drawings are frequently out by enough to matter, especially in older properties.