How to Calculate Sod Cost — Step by Step

The short answer

To work out what sod costs, measure the area, add 10% extra for cuts and waste, and multiply by the price per square foot. For a 5,000 square foot lawn that gives a billable area of 5,500.00 square feet, and the sod costs $5,500.00 at $1.00 a square foot, plus $75.00 delivery, which is $5,575.00 in total.

The three numbers that matter

The first number is the area, in square feet, measured across the lawn. For this lawn that is 5,000 square feet. The second number is the price per square foot, which is about $1.00 for sod. The third number is the extra for cuts and waste, which is 10% for a normal lawn. The billable area is 5,000 times 1.10, which is 5,500.00 square feet to order.

The sod cost is the billable area times the price per square foot, which is 5,500.00 times $1.00, which is $5,500.00. The total is the sod cost plus the delivery, which is $5,500.00 plus $75.00, which is $5,575.00. The check is the cost per square foot: $5,575.00 divided by 5,000 is $1.12, the number to compare between lawns and between quotes. If a quote is far from $1.12 a square foot for the same lawn, ask what is different.

The method

The method is three steps and an addition. One: multiply the area by one plus the extra, to get the billable area in square feet. Two: multiply the billable area by the price per square foot, to get the sod cost. Three: add the delivery, to get the total. The extra is the part people forget, and it is the part that leaves the last corner of the lawn bare.

Step by step

Step 1: find the area. Measure the lawn in feet, with a tape measure, and multiply the length by the width. For this lawn that is 5,000 square feet. A lawn that follows a curve is measured in pieces, and the pieces are added up, because the straight-line distance is not the lawn.

Step 2: find the billable area. Multiply the area by one plus the extra. For this lawn that is 5,000 times 1.10, which is 5,500.00 square feet to order. The extra is 10% for a normal lawn, and 15% for a curved lawn, because the edges and the curves eat sod, and the offcuts are waste.

Step 3: price the sod. Multiply the billable area by the price per square foot. For this lawn that is 5,500.00 times $1.00, which is $5,500.00. The price is worked out from the unrounded billable area, not the rounded 5,500.00 square feet, so the arithmetic is exact.

Step 4: add the delivery. Add the delivery to the sod cost, to get the total. For this lawn that is $5,500.00 plus $75.00, which is $5,575.00 in total. The check is the cost per square foot: $5,575.00 divided by 5,000 is $1.12, the number to compare between lawns and between quotes.

Step 5: count the pallets and the rolls. Divide the billable area by 500 to get the pallets, then divide by 10 to get the rolls. For this lawn that is 5,500.00 divided by 500, which is 11 pallets, and 5,500.00 divided by 10, which is 550 rolls. The last pallet is full, and the last roll is full, so nothing is wasted.

The worked example

A homeowner is sodding a 5,000 square foot front lawn, and the sod farm charges $1.00 a square foot for sod, and $75.00 for delivery. The billable area is 5,000 times 1.10, which is 5,500.00 square feet to order. The sod costs 5,500.00 times $1.00, which is $5,500.00, and the total is $5,575.00, or $1.12 a square foot. The sod comes on 11 pallets, and it unrolls as 550 rolls. Each roll weighs about 15 pounds, so the whole lawn is about 8,250 pounds, and it comes on a truck, not in a car boot.

A smaller lawn, and other round numbers

Some sod jobs are worth knowing by heart. A 2,500 square foot lawn is 2,500 times 1.10, which is 2,750.00 square feet to order, so the sod costs $2,750.00 and the total is $2,825.00, or $1.13 a square foot. It comes on 6 pallets, because 2,750 divided by 500 is 5.5 and a half pallet is still a pallet. Sod at $0.60 a square foot costs $3,300.00, and the total is $3,375.00. Sod with 5% extra is 5,250.00 square feet to order, and the total is $5,325.00. Sod with no delivery is $5,500.00, or $1.10 a square foot.

Working backwards from a budget

To find how much lawn a budget covers, subtract the delivery from the budget, then divide what is left by the price per square foot, then divide by the extra, then work out the area. A $3,000 budget minus the $75 delivery leaves $2,925. Divide that by $1.00 a square foot, and it buys 2,925.00 square feet of sod. Divide by 1.10, and it is 2,659.09 square feet of lawn. A $6,000 budget buys 5,386.36 square feet.

Common mistakes

The most common mistake is ordering the lawn area, not the billable area. A 5,000 square foot lawn is 5,500.00 square feet to order, so ordering the lawn area leaves the last corner bare by 500 square feet. The second mistake is forgetting the delivery, which is $75.00. The third is measuring the straight-line distance instead of the lawn. The fourth is laying the sod a week after it arrives, which kills it: sod left on the pallet dries out and dies, and the extra you ordered does not cover sod that died on the pallet. The fifth is guessing the extra: 5% looks the same as 10% on the day, but the last corner comes up short.

The verdict

A 5,000 square foot lawn costs $5,575.00 in sod: 5,500.00 square feet to order, at $1.00 a square foot, plus $75.00 delivery. Measure the area, add 10% extra, and price the square feet. Check the numbers yourself on the sod cost calculator, compare sod with seed on the sod vs grass seed comparison, or price the mulch with the mulch cost calculator.