Trade Toolkit

Tools › Finish Carpentry

Plywood cut list and sheet layout

Parts in, sheets out, with every rip.

Open the Plywood Cut List tool

Free. Runs in your browser, no account, and keeps working offline.

What it does

Enter each part's length, width and quantity, pick the sheet size and saw kerf, and the calculator lays the parts out on full sheets. It tells you how many sheets to buy and draws each one.

Every layout is cut the way a table saw cuts a sheet: rip it into strips along its length, then crosscut each strip into parts. That matters more on a job site than squeezing out the last square inch.

Lock the grain to keep every part's length running along the sheet, or let parts turn when grain doesn't matter.

Worked example

A 36″ base cabinet box: two 30″ × 23 1/4″ sides, a 34 1/2″ × 23 1/4″ bottom, two 34 1/2″ × 22″ shelves and a 36″ × 30″ back, on 4 × 8 sheets with a 1/8″ kerf and the grain kept running the long way.

Pieces
6
Sheets
2
Yield (parts ÷ sheet area)
52%
Sheet 1: rip widths
30″
Sheet 2: rip widths
23 1/4″, 22″

Every layout is rip-then-crosscut, so it can be cut on a table saw in that order.

Try it with your numbers

Questions

How many sheets of plywood do I need?

Enter your parts and the calculator lays them out on sheets with your kerf. The sheet count it gives can be cut in that layout, not just a square-foot estimate.

Does it account for the saw blade?

Yes. Enter your kerf (1/8″ is a common full-kerf blade) and every rip and crosscut leaves room for it.

Can it keep the grain running one way?

Yes. With grain locked, each part's length stays along the sheet's length, the way most plywood grain runs.

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