How Many Pavers Do I Need? Area, Waste, Borders and Pallets

You’ve marked out the patio with a garden hose, picked a paver at the yard, and now the person at the counter wants a number. Order short and you wait on a second delivery that may not match the first. Order long and you’ve paid for a pallet that sits behind the garage for years.

How many pavers do I need?

To work out how many pavers you need, measure the area in square feet, add 7 to 12 percent for cuts depending on the pattern, then multiply by the maker’s pieces per square foot and round up to full pallets. Count borders separately by the linear foot, and keep a few spares for repairs.

Measure the Area in Square Feet

Measure to the outside edge of the finished paving, border included, and turn inches into decimal feet as you go, so 12 feet 6 inches is 12.5. For a rectangle, multiply the two sides. A 12×16 patio is 192 square feet.

For an L shape, split it into two rectangles and add them, as Nicolock’s sizing guide suggests. A 12×16 patio with a 6×8 grill area off one side is 192 + 48 = 240 square feet. Our free paver calculator takes rectangles and circles, so run each rectangle through it on its own.

For a circle, measure straight across the middle, halve that for the radius, and multiply 3.14 by the radius squared. A 16-foot fire pit circle is 3.14 × 8 × 8 = 200.96, or about 201 square feet, the area our 16 ft fire pit patio page works from.

Curved edges take a little more work. The quick way, from Nicolock’s guide, is to measure a curved edge at its widest, which errs on the high side. For a closer number, Western Interlock, a Pacific Northwest paver maker, says to break an irregular shape into rectangles, triangles and circles and add up the parts. On a freeform shape, stretch a string down its length, measure straight across at 1 foot from the end and every 2 feet after that, and multiply the average of those widths by the length of the string.

You can also draw the shape on the graph sheet in our free Patio Planning Kit, where one square is one foot, and count the squares. If the layout has enough curves and corners that you’d rather have it drawn to scale, Single Space plans start at $349, and you can take the area off the scaled plan.

Pieces per Square Foot by Paver Size

Makers list coverage by the square foot and the pallet, but if you’re buying loose pieces or checking a delivery, you need a count. Divide your square feet by what one paver covers, or multiply them by pieces per square foot. Nicolock’s guide charts coverage for common sizes, and they work out like this.

• 4×8 brick size, 0.22 square foot each, or 4.5 per square foot. Nicolock lists the same 4.5 for its Holland Stone.
• 6×6, 0.25 square foot each, or 4 per square foot.
• 6×9, 0.38 square foot each, or about 2.67 per square foot.
• 12×12, 1 square foot each, or 1 per square foot.
• 16×16, 1.78 square feet each, or about 0.56 per square foot.
• 24×24, 4 square feet each, or 0.25 per square foot.

Those counts are nominal math, 144 divided by the paver’s length times width in inches, and Nicolock’s chart is the same math rounded to two places. Real pavers can run a little small, since the nominal size allows for the joint. Unilock’s spec sheet gives the actual size of its Hollandstone, sold as a 4×8, as 3 7/8 by 7 7/8 inches, and packs 54 of them into an 11.80-square-foot layer, about 4.6 per square foot.

The gap is small, and it’s the reason to take pieces per square foot from the sheet for the exact paver you buy. For a pattern that mixes sizes, Nicolock splits the area by each size’s share and adds waste to each size separately. If the sizes come mixed on one pallet as a kit, you order by the square foot.

Add Waste for the Pattern

Every pattern needs extra for cuts and broken pieces. Our paver calculator adds 7 percent for running bond and stack, and 12 percent for herringbone, angled layouts and circles, which leave more cut pieces along the edge. For the 16-foot circle, that’s 201 × 1.12 = 225.12, so 226 square feet, which our fire pit page lists as about 603 pieces of 6×9.

The makers we checked figure more for straight patterns. Nicolock’s general allowance for cuts, offcuts and breakage is roughly 10 percent, and Western Interlock suggests 10 percent for straight patterns and 15 to 20 percent for diagonal, herringbone or curved layouts.

Where you land depends on how much edge there is, because that’s where the cuts happen. A small patio, a narrow walk or a shape full of corners and curves has more edge for its size, so lean toward the high numbers. On a walk in a straight pattern, fitting the width to whole pavers keeps the long edges from needing a cut strip, which we cover in how wide a walkway should be.

Count Borders and Soldier Courses Separately

Count a border by the linear foot along the edge it follows, and take its width off the field inside it. Western Interlock says to figure borders and inlays separately, by their own paver size and pattern.

In a soldier course the pavers sit side by side with their short ends facing out, so a 4×8 takes 3 pavers per linear foot. Unilock’s sheet counts 0.33 linear feet per Hollandstone laid that way. A sailor course runs the long side along the edge and takes half as many. The same sheet has a 60 mm bundle covering 159.45 linear feet as a soldier course and 318.90 as a sailor.

Say a 12×16 patio has its 12-foot side against the house and a 4×8 soldier course on the three open sides. That’s 16 + 12 + 16 = 44 linear feet, or 132 pavers, and 142 with 7 percent added. Measuring along the outside edge counts the two far corners twice, so the number runs a few pavers high, which is the safe side to miss on. The soldier course is 8 inches wide, so the field inside it shrinks to 10 feet 8 inches by 15 feet 4 inches, or 163.6 square feet.

How Many Square Feet Are in a Pallet of Pavers?

A pallet of 2 3/8-inch (60 mm) 4×8 pavers covers 93 to 120 square feet, or 432 to 540 pieces, among the makers we checked. There’s no standard pallet. Coverage changes with the paver’s exact size and its thickness, so the only number to order from is the one on the sheet for the paver you picked.

Thickness alone moves the number a lot. Unilock’s Hollandstone sheet stacks 9 layers to a bundle at 60 mm and 7 layers at 80 mm, so the same face size covers 106.20 square feet a bundle in the thinner paver and 82.60 in the thicker one. Both bundles weigh just under 3,000 pounds. Size and the maker’s own packing do the rest, which is why one brand’s pallet count doesn’t carry over to another’s.

Product	Paver size	Sq ft per pallet	Pieces per pallet	Source
Nicolock Holland Stone	4 x 8 in, 2 3/8 in thick	120	540	Nicolock
Belgard Dimensions 6×9	6 x 9 in, 60 mm	112.5	Not listed	Oldcastle APG (Belgard)
Unilock Hollandstone, 60 mm	4 x 8 in nominal, 60 mm	106.20	486	Unilock sheet
Lee Building Products Holland Paver	3.85 x 7.79 in, 60 mm	100	480	Lee Building Products
Rochester Concrete Products Holland	4.25 x 8.5 in, 2 3/8 in thick	98	400	Rochester cut sheet
Western Interlock Holland	3.94 x 7.87 in, 60 mm	93	432	Western Interlock
Unilock Hollandstone, 80 mm	3 7/8 x 7 7/8 in, 80 mm	82.60	378	Unilock sheet

How Many Holland Pavers per Square Foot

A nominal 4×8 covers 32 square inches, and 144 divided by 32 is 4.5, the figure Nicolock lists for Holland Stone. Metric hollands made a hair smaller come out a little higher. Western Interlock lists 4.65 per square foot for its 3.94 x 7.87-inch Holland, Unilock’s sheet works out to about 4.6, and Lee Building Products packs 480 into 100 square feet, or 4.8. Rochester’s larger 4.25 x 8.5-inch Holland goes the other way, at 0.25 square foot a piece, or 4 per square foot.

Turning Square Feet Into Pallets

Add waste to the area first, then divide by the pallet’s coverage and round up. Western Interlock suggests 10 percent for straight patterns and 15 to 20 percent for diagonal, herringbone or curved layouts. Our own practice, built into our calculator, is 7 and 12 percent, and we compare the patterns in paver patterns.

Here’s why the pallet size matters. A 300-square-foot patio in running bond, at our 7 percent, is 321 square feet. In Nicolock’s Holland Stone at 120 square feet a pallet, 321 ÷ 120 = 2.68, so 3 pallets. In Western Interlock’s Holland at 93 square feet, 321 ÷ 93 = 3.45, so 4 pallets. Same patio, same nominal 4×8, one more pallet.

Round up rather than down. Nicolock’s guide notes that partial pallets often carry a surcharge, and Western Interlock suggests rounding up to a whole bundle or a complete layer. A border is often less than a pallet, so ask whether the yard sells by the layer. Unilock packs its Hollandstone 54 to a layer, so the 142 border pavers above come to 3 layers.

Keep Extras for Repairs

Color shifts a little from one production run to the next. Unilock notes variation between product runs and tells installers to “draw pavers randomly from several bundles when installing.” Nicolock’s guide says to order everything at once so the whole job comes from one batch, since a later order can come from a different one.

So keep some. Western Interlock calls it smart to have a few extra on hand for repairs, and rounding up to full pallets usually leaves them. If a section ever settles, the fix is to lift the pavers, repair the base and relay them, as we explain in how to fix sinking pavers, and your spares replace any that crack on the way out.

How Many Pavers a 12×16 Patio Takes

Here’s the full count for a 12×16 patio in 6×9 pavers laid in running bond, with no border. For the pallet size, we’ll use the 112.5 square feet Belgard lists for its Dimensions 6×9, so swap in your own paver’s numbers.

• Area is 12 × 16 = 192 square feet.
• Running bond takes 7 percent, so 192 × 1.07 = 205.44, rounded up to 206 square feet.
• Each 6×9 covers 0.375 square foot by nominal math, so 206 ÷ 0.375 = 549.3, or 550 pieces. Our 12×16 sizes page lists the same 550.
• At 112.5 square feet a pallet, 206 ÷ 112.5 = 1.83, so you buy 2 pallets, or 225 square feet.
• 225 minus 206 leaves 19 square feet beyond the waste allowance, about 50 pavers to keep as spares.

Lay a 4×8 in herringbone instead, and the waste goes to 12 percent. That makes 192 × 1.12 = 215.04, so order 216 square feet, which at the 4.5 per square foot Nicolock lists for Holland Stone is 972 pavers. At its 120 square feet a pallet, that’s 2 pallets with 24 square feet to spare.

Go back to the 6×9 and add the 4×8 soldier border from above, and the field drops to 163.6 square feet. With 7 percent, that’s 176 square feet, or about 470 pieces of 6×9, plus the 142 border pavers. The field still rounds up to 2 pallets, which leaves 49 square feet of 6×9 as spares.

This counts pavers only. Base stone, bedding sand and edge restraint for the same 12×16 are worked out in how to estimate a paver patio, and how deep that base should go for your soil is in paver base depth.

Before You Order

Get three numbers off the maker’s sheet for the exact paver and thickness you picked. You need pieces per square foot, square feet per pallet and, for a border, linear feet per paver in a soldier or sailor course. Order the field, border and spares together so they come from one run, then blend from several pallets as you lay.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many pavers are on a pallet?

It depends on the paver and its thickness, so check the maker’s sheet. Nicolock’s Holland Stone, a 4×8, comes 540 pieces and 120 square feet to a pallet. Belgard lists 112.5 square feet a pallet for its 60 mm Dimensions 6×9, which is 300 pieces by nominal math, since 112.5 divided by 0.375 is 300.

How many square feet are in a pallet of pavers?

Among the 60 mm (2 3/8-inch) 4×8 pavers we checked, a pallet covers 93 to 120 square feet. Western Interlock lists 93 for its Holland, Unilock 106.20 for its Hollandstone and Nicolock 120 for its Holland Stone. Thicker pavers cover less: Unilock’s 80 mm Hollandstone bundle covers 82.60 square feet.

How many 4×8 pavers are in a pallet?

Between 432 and 540 for the 60 mm 4x8s we checked. Western Interlock packs 432, Lee Building Products 480, Unilock 486 and Nicolock 540. Unilock’s 80 mm Hollandstone bundle holds 378, because it carries 7 layers instead of 9.

How many holland pavers per square foot?

A nominal 4×8 works out to 4.5 per square foot, since 144 divided by 32 square inches is 4.5, and that’s the figure Nicolock lists for Holland Stone. Slightly smaller metric hollands run a bit higher: Western Interlock lists 4.65, and Unilock’s sheet works out to about 4.6.

How many pavers do I need for a 10×10 patio?

A 10×10 patio is 100 square feet. In running bond, add 7 percent for 107 square feet, which is about 286 pieces of 6×9, since 107 divided by 0.375 is 285.3. In 4×8 herringbone, add 12 percent for 112 square feet, or 504 pavers at 4.5 per square foot.

How many pavers do I need for a 12×12 patio?

A 12×12 patio is 144 square feet. In running bond, 144 times 1.07 is 154.08, so order 155 square feet, or about 414 pieces of 6×9 at 0.375 square foot each. In 4×8 herringbone, 144 times 1.12 is 161.28, so order 162 square feet, or 729 pavers at 4.5 per square foot.

How many extra pavers should I order?

Our paver calculator adds 7 percent for running bond and stack and 12 percent for herringbone, angled layouts and circles. Nicolock’s general allowance is roughly 10 percent, and Western Interlock suggests 10 percent for straight patterns and 15 to 20 percent for diagonal, herringbone or curved layouts. Round up to full pallets and keep the leftovers for repairs.

Sources: Nicolock, Getting Paver Sizes Right: A Hardscape Design Guide; Nicolock, Holland Stone specifications; Belgard, Dimensions 6×9 60mm Paver; Unilock, Hollandstone technical sheet; Western Interlock, Holland Stone specifications; Lee Building Products, Holland Paver specifications; Rochester Concrete Products, Holland Paver cut sheet; Western Interlock, How to Calculate Paver Stones Needed for Your Project; Unilock, Why paver color is not guaranteed

Related: All our pavers and patios guides in one place

Written and reviewed by Thayne Muthler, owner of Muthler Landscaping & Construction. How we check facts: editorial policy.