A framing takeoff turns a floor plan into a timber list. The quick rule, "one stud per foot of wall", gets you roughly there on simple jobs. But on anything with openings, corners and changes of wall height, a proper takeoff that counts each part is faster to order from, cheaper, and far less likely to leave you short on day two.
Start with a wall schedule
Before counting anything, list every wall: its length, height, stud size and spacing, and how many openings, corners and junctions it has. Number the walls on the plan so you can check the list against the drawing. Do the same for floors (joist span, size, spacing, area) and roofs (span, pitch, length, overhang). The schedule is the backbone of the takeoff and makes it easy to price changes later.
Walls
- Layout studs: wall length ÷ spacing, plus one. At 450 mm centres, that's about 2.2 studs per metre, plus one per wall.
- Corners and junctions: about two extra studs each. Corners need a stud for the board on the inside face; T-junctions need backing where the wall joins.
- Openings: king and jack studs on each side, plus cripples above and below. Allow about three extra studs per opening; cripples often come from offcuts.
- Plates: a bottom plate and a top plate, so twice the wall length; load-bearing walls often take a thicker or double top plate.
- Headers or lintels over each opening, sized for the span and load.
- Blocking or noggings at mid-height and wherever fixtures, cabinets, handrails and board edges need support.
In Australia, wall frames are usually 90 × 45 or 90 × 35 MGP10 pine at 450 or 600 mm centres, and many builders order prefabricated frames and trusses. Member sizes come from the AS 1684 span tables or the frame designer, and bracing and tie-downs follow your wind classification.
Floors
Joists = floor length ÷ spacing + 1. Then add:
- Rim or header joists around the edge
- Doubled joists under parallel partitions and around stair and chimney openings
- Trimmers and headers for openings
- Blocking or strutting at mid-span (often required on longer spans)
- Hangers at every joist end that sits against a beam or ledger
- Particleboard flooring sheets at floor area plus about 10%, with adhesive and screws
Joist size and span always come from the AS 1684 span tables, the LVL maker's tables or the engineer, never from the calculator.
Roofs
Rafters come from the span and pitch: rafter length = run ÷ cos(pitch), plus the overhang. Count them for both slopes, then add:
- The ridge board or beam
- Collar ties, ceiling joists and strutting beams
- Hip, valley and jack rafters on hipped and cut-up roofs
- Fascia, eaves lining trimmers and barge framing
- Bracing, straps and connectors specified by the design
If the roof uses engineered trusses, the takeoff is mostly the truss order itself plus bracing, connectors and gable framing. The truss supplier does the design.
Choose stock lengths wisely
Buying the right lengths saves more money than any discount. A 3.5 m joist run cut from 3.6 m stock wastes little. Cut from 4.8 m stock, it wastes a lot. Plates are best bought in the longest lengths you can handle, so there are fewer joins. The framing calculators pick the shortest stock that covers each run.
Hardware and sheathing
Don't forget nails or screws, hangers, ties and straps, and bracing ply, wall wrap and tape, and the tie-downs your wind classification needs. These lines often add up to 15–25% of the framing budget, and they're the ones most often left off a rushed quote.
Waste
Add about 10% to studs and plates, and more for complex walls, lots of openings or short wall runs. Joists and rafters cut to length waste less, but allow a few spares for crowned, split or twisted pieces.
A worked example
A 4.8 m stud wall, 2.4 m tall, 90 × 45 MGP10 at 450 mm centres, two corners and one door: 12 layout studs + 4 for corners + 3 for the door = 19, plus 10% = 21 studs. Plates: 2 × 4.8 m = 9.6 m, so two 4.8 m lengths plus a spare. Add noggings, bracing and nails.
The wall framing, floor joist and rafter calculators produce these counts for each part of the frame. Add each one to the same job and the quote builds itself.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting the extra studs at corners, junctions and openings
- Counting plates once instead of two or three times the wall length
- Missing blocking for kitchens, bathrooms and handrails
- Leaving off hardware and fixings
- Pricing stock lengths that don't suit the runs
Common questions
How many studs per foot of wall?
At 450 mm centres, plan on about three studs per metre of wall once corners and openings are counted.
How many plates does a wall need?
Usually two: a bottom plate and a top plate. Load-bearing walls under trusses or rafters may need a thicker or double top plate, as AS 1684 sets out. Take the wall length, multiply by the number of plates, and convert to stock lengths.
What do corners and openings add?
Each corner and junction adds two or three studs. Each opening adds a full-height stud and a cripple stud on each side, a lintel or head, a sill trimmer for windows, and short studs above and below. Count them from the plan, not from a per-foot rule.
How much waste should I allow for framing?
About 10% for typical walls, and more for complex layouts with lots of openings, angles or short runs. The waste factors guide has a full table by trade.
This guide is general information for estimating. It is not engineering, legal or tax advice. Check the NCC, Australian Standards and your building surveyor or certifier for your project.