How many bricks do I need per square foot?

It depends on the format: about 6.9 per sq ft for modular brick at 3/8 in joints, 6.3 for standard, 5.9 for queen and 5.0 for king-size. The joint is part of the coverage — wider joints mean fewer bricks and more mortar.

How many bricks are in a cube or pallet?

A standard cube holds about 500 modular bricks (roughly 72 sq ft of wall). Suppliers price and deliver by the cube, so it helps to know your count in cubes: the 302 bricks in the worked example are about 0.6 of a cube.

How much mortar does brick laying take?

Roughly one 80 lb bag per 110 modular bricks. Bigger formats have less joint per wall area, so the calculator converts your wall to modular equivalents first — a king-brick wall needs noticeably less mortar per square foot than a modular one.

Does the bond pattern change the brick count?

Coverage per square foot is the same for running, stack and most decorative bonds — the brick plus joint occupies the same area. What changes is cutting waste at edges and openings, which is why complex patterns deserve the full 10% allowance.

Can I use this for a brick patio?

Not directly — patio pavers lie on their large face, so coverage uses length × width, not length × height. Use the Tile Calculator with the paver face size (for example 4 × 8 in) and a sand joint of about 1/8 in for an accurate patio count.

Brick Calculator — Free, With Formula & Worked Example

About this calculator

Brick counts vary more than any other masonry material because formats differ — a modular brick runs about 7 per sq ft, a king-size closer to 5. This calculator works from the brick dimensions plus joint width, so it stays correct across formats and bonds.

What this number means

Brick is the masonry material where format changes everything. A wall in modular brick needs about 6.9 bricks per square foot; the same wall in king-size needs about 5 — a 25% difference in the order, the mortar and the labour, from a choice most people make on looks alone. This calculator works from the brick's actual dimensions plus your joint width, so it stays correct across formats, bonds and suppliers.

The mortar figure is expressed in modular equivalents — the industry's yardstick — because mortar consumption tracks joint length, and joint length tracks how many bricks (of the standard size) the wall effectively contains.

The formula

Bricks per sq ft = 144 ÷ ((Brick length + joint) × (Brick height + joint))
Bricks = Wall area × bricks per sq ft × (1 + waste %), rounded up
Mortar: modular-equivalent bricks = Wall area × 6.86; bags (80 lb) = equivalents ÷ 110, rounded up

One wythe (single thickness) is assumed. A double-wythe structural wall doubles the brick count.

Worked example

A 10 × 4 ft garden wall in modular brick, 3/8 in joints.

Bricks per sq ft = 144 ÷ (8 × 2.625) = 6.86
Wall area = 40 sq ft → 40 × 6.86 = 274 bricks before waste
With 10% for cuts and chips: 302 bricks
Mortar: 274 modular equivalents ÷ 110 → 3 × 80 lb bags

Assumptions and limitations

Single-wythe construction (veneer, garden walls, patio edging laid as a wall) is assumed. Structural double-wythe walls need twice the bricks and roughly 60% more mortar.
The count assumes a running bond. Stacked bonds and soldier courses change cuts and waste, not the per-sq-ft coverage.
Brick dimensions vary by manufacturer within a format name — a "modular" from one plant can be 1/16 in off another's. Measure a sample brick if the wall must land on an exact dimension.
Pavers laid flat are a different calculation (they use the brick's face, not its edge) — use the Tile Calculator with the paver's face dimensions instead.