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Sod Calculator

Converts a lawn area into rolls of sod (turf) from the roll coverage, a waste allowance and the rolls per pallet, and optionally the topsoil volume for a levelling layer of given depth. Planning estimate only.

Lawn area (m² or ft²)Area to turf in m² or ft² (see area_unit). Area unit (optional)Unit of the area input; areas are reported in both m² and ft². Roll coverage (m² or ft²) (optional)Area covered by one roll (see roll_area_unit): 1 m² for a 0.5 × 2 m roll, 10 ft² for a 2 × 5 ft roll; big rolls cover 40–70 m². Roll area unit (optional)Unit of roll_area. Waste allowance (%) (optional)Extra material for cuts, breakage and offcuts, applied as a multiplier (1 + waste_percent/100). 5 % for rectangular lawns; 10 % for curved edges and narrow strips. Rolls per pallet (optional)Rolls per pallet as delivered (50 rolls of 1 m² is common; US pallets carry 50–75 rolls of 10 ft² = 500–750 ft²). Topsoil depth (mm) (optional)Optional depth of new topsoil to spread before laying (50–100 mm is typical); 0 for none.

When to use

You need to order rolled turf (sod) and pallets for a lawn of known area, or the topsoil to spread under it.

Do not use when: You are seeding rather than laying turf (multiply the area by the sowing rate on the seed bag) or you only need the soil volume and weight (use gravel with material = topsoil).

Formula

area_with_waste = area × (1 + waste_percent/100); rolls = ceil(area_with_waste / roll_area); pallets = rolls / rolls_per_pallet; topsoil_m3 = area_m² × topsoil_depth_mm / 1000; yd³ = m³ / 0.764555.

Sod is sold by the roll or slab and delivered on pallets; roll sizes vary by grower (0.5 × 2 m = 1 m² in Europe and Australia, 2 × 5 ft = 10 ft² or 16 × 24 in slabs in North America), so enter the supplier's coverage. Planning estimate only; check quantities against the supplier's coverage figures and local code before ordering.

Inputs

Parameter	Type	Unit	Required	Description
`area`	number	m² or ft²	yes	Area to turf in m² or ft² (see area_unit). Range: > 0, ≤ 1000000
`area_unit`	enum: m2 \| ft2		default m2	Unit of the area input; areas are reported in both m² and ft².
`roll_area`	number	m² or ft²	default 1	Area covered by one roll (see roll_area_unit): 1 m² for a 0.5 × 2 m roll, 10 ft² for a 2 × 5 ft roll; big rolls cover 40–70 m². Range: > 0, ≤ 100
`roll_area_unit`	enum: m2 \| ft2		default m2	Unit of roll_area.
`waste_percent`	number	%	default 5	Extra material for cuts, breakage and offcuts, applied as a multiplier (1 + waste_percent/100). 5 % for rectangular lawns; 10 % for curved edges and narrow strips. Range: ≥ 0, ≤ 50
`rolls_per_pallet`	integer		default 50	Rolls per pallet as delivered (50 rolls of 1 m² is common; US pallets carry 50–75 rolls of 10 ft² = 500–750 ft²). Range: ≥ 1, ≤ 1000
`topsoil_depth_mm`	number	mm	default 0	Optional depth of new topsoil to spread before laying (50–100 mm is typical); 0 for none. Range: ≥ 0, ≤ 300

Outputs

Output	Type	Unit	Description
`area_m2`	number	m²	Lawn area.
`area_ft2`	number	ft²	Lawn area in square feet.
`area_with_waste_m2`	number	m²	area × (1 + waste_percent/100).
`area_with_waste_ft2`	number	ft²	Area to order in square feet.
`rolls`	integer		ceil(area_with_waste / roll_area).
`pallets`	number		rolls / rolls_per_pallet.
`pallets_to_order`	integer		ceil(rolls / rolls_per_pallet).
`topsoil_m3`	number	m³	area × topsoil_depth (0 when no depth is given).
`topsoil_yd3`	number	yd³	Topsoil volume in cubic yards.

Example

100 m², 1 m² rolls, 5 % waste, 50 per pallet, 50 mm topsoil: {"area":100,"area_unit":"m2","roll_area":1,"roll_area_unit":"m2","waste_percent":5,"rolls_per_pallet":50,"topsoil_depth_mm":50} → {"area_m2":100,"area_with_waste_m2":105,"area_with_waste_ft2":1130.21,"rolls":105,"pallets":2.1,"pallets_to_order":3,"topsoil_m3":5,"topsoil_yd3":6.54}

2,000 ft², 10 ft² rolls, 5 % waste, 50 per pallet: {"area":2000,"area_unit":"ft2","roll_area":10,"roll_area_unit":"ft2","waste_percent":5,"rolls_per_pallet":50} → {"area_with_waste_ft2":2100,"area_with_waste_m2":195.1,"rolls":210,"pallets":4.2,"pallets_to_order":5,"topsoil_m3":0}

GET https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/sod-turf?area=100&area_unit=m2&roll_area=1&roll_area_unit=m2&waste_percent=5&rolls_per_pallet=50&topsoil_depth_mm=50

Machine access

API: GET https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/sod-turf (query parameters) or POST with a JSON body {"inputs": {...}}
Schema: https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculators/sod-turf · Markdown: https://tttkmbb.com/construction/sod-turf.md · JSON definition: https://tttkmbb.com/construction/sod-turf.json
MCP: server https://tttkmbb.com/mcp, tool run_calculator with calculator_id="sod-turf"
OpenAPI operationId: estimate_sod
Freshness: static. Authentication: none. Rate limit: fair use (see rate limits).

Sources

Wikipedia – Sod (reference)
Wikipedia – Lawn (reference)

FAQ

How much waste should I allow?

5 % for a simple rectangle; 10 % where there are curves, trees or narrow strips, because every cut strip loses a piece and rolls dry out if left over more than a day.

How heavy is a pallet of sod?

Roughly 1–1.5 t: a 1 m² roll weighs 15–25 kg depending on soil moisture, so a 50-roll pallet is around a tonne; check access for the delivery truck.

Related calculators

Gravel Calculator — Topsoil weight from the volume (material = topsoil).
Rectangle Calculator — Area of each rectangular lawn section.
Paver Calculator — Paved areas next to the lawn.