How much sod do I need?
Enter your lawn's square footage in the sod calculator above. Sod is sold by the piece, roll, or pallet — not by the cubic yard like topsoil. There is no depth setting. A common piece covers about 2.67 sq ft (16 × 24 in; CT Sod publishes ≈ 2.66)18, a roll covers 10 sq ft (often 2 × 5 ft)18, and a pallet covers about 450 sq ft17, 19. Farms vary: USA Sod notes Florida often 400 and some cool-season cuts 500–60017. Confirm the farm's coverage before you pay.
Worked example from those same defaults, no waste: a 1,000 sq ft lawn is 1,000 ÷ 450 = 2.2 pallets, 1,000 ÷ 10 = 100 rolls, and 1,000 ÷ 2.67 → 375 pieces after rounding up17, 18. HomeGuide and USA Sod both tell crews to add 5–10% for cutting and shaping24, 17. With this tool's 10% switch on, the order becomes 1,100 sq ft — 2.4 pallets, 110 rolls, and 412 pieces. Farms sell whole pallets, so you will usually order three.
Sod calculation formula
pieces = (lawn area × waste) ÷ 2.67, then round up18
rolls = (lawn area × waste) ÷ 10, then round up18
pallets = (lawn area × waste) ÷ 450, shown to one decimal17, 19
Waste is 1.00 with the switch off, or 1.10 with it on — the high end of the 5–10% extra HomeGuide and USA Sod publish for cuts around beds and curves24, 17. This sod calculator never uses the topsoil formula (area × depth ÷ 324)1. That identity is for soil volume on the topsoil calculator.
Count grass, not the lot line. Subtract a patio you are keeping. Split odd yards into rectangles, a triangle, or an L of two non-overlapping rectangles. The measuring guide walks a 40 × 30 backyard with a 12 × 12 patio (1,056 sq ft) — that arithmetic is this site's, then converted with the same 10 / 450 defaults18, 17.
Two ways to enter a price
The sod calculator accepts your number in two modes. Leave the box blank and the estimate uses HomeGuide's 2026 material band of $0.30–$0.80 per square foot24.
- Unit price: type the farm's dollars per square foot or dollars per pallet. A $/ft² locks the total against the order area (including waste if the switch is on). A $/pallet locks the total against the pallet figure on screen, then shows the implied $/ft² so you can compare it with HomeGuide's $0.30–$0.80 band24.
- Total ticket: type the delivered quote you already have. The tool does not change yards or pallets; it only reverse-calculates implied $/ft² and $/pallet so a $450 ticket on 1,000 sq ft is $0.45/ft². Delivery is often extra — HomeGuide cites about $50–$200 per sod trip24.
Sod cost per square foot
HomeGuide's 2026 material table is $0.30–$0.80 per square foot — the same band this sod calculator uses when the price box is empty24. Grass type and region move the number. Delivery and installation are extra: their install guide is about $1–$2/ft² installed; Angi cites $1–$6/ft² including prep10, 11.
Sod cost per pallet
HomeGuide lists a wholesale pallet at about $130–$360 for roughly 450 sq ft24. Their species rows (same table): Kentucky bluegrass $130–$275, tall fescue $160–$350, zoysia $315–$585 per pallet24. Those are national planning bands, not a ticket for your zip code. From that same table, a roll at $3–$8 covering 8–10 sq ft is $0.30–$1.00/ft²24 — rolls versus pallets explains why the cheaper-looking unit can cost more per foot.
A new lawn still wants about 4 inches of screened topsoil4, 6. Run the topsoil calculator on the same square footage. NIST: 1 yd³ = 27 ft³, so 5,000 sq ft at 4 inches is 5,000 × 4 ÷ 324 ≈ 61.7 yards1. At 450 sq ft per pallet that sod job is 11.1 pallets here17. Read the 5,000 sq ft guide or sod versus seed if you are still choosing a method.