About this tool
Fabric Yardage Calculator estimates how many yards to buy for a sewing project by laying rectangular pattern pieces across the bolt. Enter the usable fabric width, the size of one piece, how many you need, a seam or handling allowance and a shrinkage percentage — it returns the yards (and meters) to buy plus how the pieces pack onto the fabric.
Pieces per row = floor(fabric width ÷ piece width) — how many fit side by side across the bolt. Rows = ceil(quantity ÷ pieces per row), and the fabric length = rows × piece length. The tool adds your seam allowance, multiplies by (1 + shrinkage ÷ 100) to pre-shrink washable fabric, then rounds up to whole yards, since fabric is cut by the length off the bolt.
This models simple rectangular pieces laid the same direction; nap, one-way prints, plaids and pattern matching all need extra, so round up generously. If a piece is wider than the fabric, rotate it or split it — the tool flags an impossible layout when a piece cannot fit across the bolt.
Frequently asked questions
How does the tool decide how much to buy?
It fits your pieces across the fabric width, stacks the resulting rows down the bolt, adds a seam or handling allowance and a shrinkage margin, then rounds up to whole yards because fabric is sold by length cut from the bolt.
Why include a shrinkage allowance?
Natural fibres like cotton and linen shrink when first washed, so buying 3–7% extra means the pre-washed fabric still yields all your pieces. Set it to zero for pre-shrunk or synthetic fabric that will not change size.
What if my piece is wider than the fabric?
Then it cannot lie flat across the bolt and the tool shows an invalid layout. Rotate the piece so its shorter side runs across the width, split it into seamed sections, or choose a wider fabric.
Does it account for pattern matching or nap?
No — it assumes plain fabric with pieces laid the same way. Directional prints, napped fabric like velvet, plaids and stripes all need extra yardage to match, so add a margin on top of the estimate.
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