Estimate brick count and mortar bags for walls, facades, fire pits, and columns. Includes a 10-type brick library, opening subtractions, bond-pattern waste, and Type N bag count.
| Mortar option | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Type N premix 80-lb bags (≈32 bricks/bag) | 19 |
| Portland cement 94-lb bags (1:3 mix) | 2 |
| Mason sand | 0.17 yd³ (0.20 tons) |
Advanced — waste %, prices, custom factor
Reverse — I have N bricks, what wall area can I cover?
Enter how many bricks you have on hand and the brick type — see the single-wythe wall area you can cover.
How the brick math works
Brick estimating is two formulas glued together. The first turns wall area into a brick count, the second turns bricks into mortar. Both rest on the brick’s nominal cell — face dimensions plus the joint on two sides.
- Net area:
net_sqft = (length × height) − openings_sqft - Cell area:
cell_in² = (face_length + joint) × (face_height + joint) - Bricks per sqft:
144 / cell_in² - Base bricks:
ceil(net_sqft × bricks_per_sqft) - With waste:
recommended = ceil(base × (1 + waste%)) - Type N premix bags:
ceil(recommended / 32)— Quikrete #1136 single-wythe yield with 3/8″ joint
The exact ratio is 1000 modular bricks ≈ 8 ft³ of mortar in a single-wythe wall (Portland Cement Association, Mason’s Mortar). At a 1:3 Portland-to-sand ratio that becomes ≈ 1.8 bags Portland 94-lb plus 0.28 yd³ mason sand per 1000 bricks.
Brick-type reference
| Brick | Face | Bricks/sqft (3/8″ joint) |
|---|---|---|
| Modular (US standard) | 7⅝ × 2¼ in | 6.75 |
| Standard / Common | 8 × 2¼ in | 6.55 |
| Queen | 7⅝ × 2¾ in | 5.76 |
| Engineer | 7⅝ × 2¾ in | 5.65 |
| King | 9⅝ × 2⅝ in | 4.70 |
| Jumbo (King-size) | 9⅝ × 2¾ in | 4.50 |
| Norman | 11⅝ × 2¼ in | 4.50 |
| Roman | 11⅝ × 1⅝ in | 6.00 |
| Utility | 11⅝ × 3⅝ in | 3.00 |
| UK Standard | 215 × 65 mm + 10 mm joint | 5.57 (60/m²) |
Source: Brick Industry Association Technical Note 10. Joint thickness shifts the factor: ½″ joints drop Modular to ≈ 6.55/sqft; ¼″ joints lift it to ≈ 7.0/sqft. The calculator updates the factor live when you change the joint.
Worked example — 30 × 20 ft single-wythe facade
A two-story Modular-brick gable with one front door and four single-hung windows:
- Wall area:
30 × 20 = 600 sqft - Openings: door 20 sqft + four windows 4 × 12 = 48 →
68 sqft - Net wall:
600 − 68 = 532 sqft - Base bricks:
ceil(532 × 6.75) = 3591 - Add 10% running-bond waste:
ceil(3591 × 1.10) = 3951 bricks - Type N premix:
ceil(3951 / 32) = 124 bags(≈ 5 pallets at 25 bags/pallet) - From scratch alternative:
3951 × 0.008 = 31.6 ft³ mortar → 7 bags Portland 94-lb + 1.09 yd³ mason sand
Switch to Flemish bond and waste jumps to 15% (4131 bricks); herringbone veneer pushes 20% (4310 bricks). The pattern selector is the largest single swing in your order.
Common questions
How much waste should I add?
10% covers running bond on rectangular walls — corner cuts, dropped bricks, half-bricks for staggered courses. Flemish or English bond with cut headers wants 15%. Herringbone and chevron veneer waste 20% — every other brick gets a 45° cut and the off-cuts rarely refit. Curved courses (fire pits, garden curves) lean 15–20% depending on radius.
Type N vs Type S vs Type M — which mortar?
Type N (750 psi) is the residential default — above-grade walls, interior, planters, garden walls, BBQ surrounds. Type S (1800 psi) is mandatory below grade, for retaining walls, exterior chimneys above the roofline, and parapet walls. Type M (2500 psi) is structural — rarely used outside engineered work. Avoid Type M on historic or soft brick: the mortar outlasts the brick and spalls the faces over freeze-thaw. For matching a repair, sample the existing joint hardness first; over-strength repointing destroys old masonry.
How do I subtract openings without double-counting headers?
The calculator’s library uses rough opening dimensions (the hole the brick frames around), not the door or window unit. A 36″ door in a 38″ × 82″ rough opening = 21.6 sqft subtracted, not 18 sqft. Header courses and jack arches above openings stay inside the wall sqft — brick under the lintel still has to be ordered. Lintels themselves (8″ concrete or steel) sit inside the rough opening and don’t get a separate subtraction.
Estimator only. Order from a mason’s takeoff for jobs over 2000 bricks. Load-bearing or retaining walls (above 6 ft free-standing) need a structural engineer to specify mortar type, reinforcement, and footings. The strip footing calculator sizes the concrete under any masonry wall; CMU and concrete block follow a different cell math — see the block / CMU calculator for hollow units.
