Brick calculator
Enter your wall size and get the brick count, cement bags and sand — with the standard 10 mm joint and 5% wastage built in.
| Breakdown | Value |
|---|
Estimate. The method and sources are on this page — check them against your own case before you act.
How it is calculated
Brickwork is measured by wall volume, then converted to bricks and mortar. The calculator follows the same order a site engineer does.
Bricks = wall volume ÷ 0.002 × (1 + wastage) · Cement = dry mortar ÷ (1 + mix ratio) ÷ 0.0347
Measure the wall
Length × height × thickness gives wall volume. A 4.5-inch wall is 0.115 m thick; a 9-inch wall is 0.23 m.
Convert volume to bricks
A 190 × 90 × 90 mm brick with 10 mm joints occupies 0.002 m³, so about 500 bricks fill one cubic metre.
Add wastage, then mortar
Breakage is applied to the brick count. Mortar is the remaining volume, multiplied by 1.33 for dry mix, then split into cement and sand.
Brick and mortar reference
| Item | Standard value | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Modular brick | 190 × 90 × 90 mm | The size behind the 500-bricks-per-m³ rule. |
| Brick with 10 mm joint | 200 × 100 × 100 mm | Joint thickness is part of the volume. |
| Bricks per m³ | 500 | Thumb rule for a single-brick wall. |
| Dry mortar factor | 1.33 | Wet mortar shrinks; buy dry materials. |
| One cement bag | 50 kg = 0.0347 m³ | How bags are counted. |
| Common mortar mixes | 1:4, 1:5, 1:6 | Cement : sand by volume. 1:6 is usual for brickwork. |
What most pages get wrong
Bricks are counted with mortar, not without it
The 500-per-m³ figure includes a 10 mm joint. Counting only the brick gives you a lower number and a short order.
Thickness doubles the count
A 9-inch wall uses roughly twice the bricks of a 4.5-inch wall for the same face area — the height and length are unchanged.
Buy for breakage
5% is normal for a clean site; 10% is realistic when bricks are moved by hand or cut.
Cement bags move with the mix ratio, bricks do not
A 1:4 mortar uses more cement than 1:6 for the same wall. The brick count stays the same.
Frequently asked questions
How many bricks are needed for a 10 × 10 ft wall?+
How much cement is needed for 1,000 bricks?+
Should I add wastage?+
Does the calculator work for a 9-inch wall?+
What is the standard brick size in India?+
Why does the sand figure look small?+
Sources, dates and a changelog.
Every number this calculator uses is either an input you control or a value from the sources below. The formula is compiled and tested at build time, so the page cannot ship with a broken calculation.
Sources
- IS 1077:1992 — Common burnt clay building bricks (BIS)
- Checked by hand, not scraped
This page
- Last verified: 29 October 2026
- Next review: 29 April 2027
- Vertical: Construction & Real Estate
- Build tests: 3 passed
- Changelog: 1 entry
How we handle errors
- Spotted a mistake? Report it — we correct and log it.
- Corrections appear in the changelog below.
- Read the methodology and the disclaimer.