Skirting, Coving & Architrave Calculator
Work out how many lengths of skirting board, coving or architrave to buy for a room, with a cutting plan that makes each wall from as few pieces as possible.
About this tool
Each wall is treated as a separate piece, because a joined length of skirting or coving looks best kept to a minimum. Walls shorter than the length you buy are cut from as few lengths as possible, reusing offcuts from other walls; walls longer than one length need a join (a 45° scarf joint hides it best). The fitted length allows a few millimetres for each saw cut, and the spare covers a mitre cut the wrong way, which happens to everyone.
Skirting stops at doorways; coving runs right round the room. Every corner needs either a mitre or, for skirting’s internal corners, a scribed joint, which stays tight even if the walls aren’t square. Architrave is worked out per door: two legs and a head for each side, using the standard UK door sizes, with the head allowing for the reveal and the mitres. Skirting is commonly sold in 2.4 m to 4.2 m lengths, coving in 2 m and 3 m, and architrave in 2.1 m lengths or door sets. Your figures are remembered on this device.