Quilt math, worked out
Free quilt calculators — backing, binding, batting & borders
Tell us your quilt's size and we'll figure the fabric — how much backing, batting, binding, and border you need, and exactly how we got each number. No sign-up, no guessing.
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Quilt backing calculator
Yardage, panels and which way the seams run.
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The rectangle to cover, and the package that fits it.
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Strips to cut and fabric to buy for the edge.
Open the calculatorQuilt border calculator
Side and top strips, and the yardage, for one border.
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Or work out all four at once.
Pick the quilt's size once and see backing, batting, binding and a border side by side — each with its working a tap away.
What size is this quilt?
Pick a common size, or set your own.
How the quilt math works
How much fabric do I need for quilt backing?
Start with your quilt top's finished width and height, then add about 4 inches of overhang on every side — that extra fabric is what a longarm quilter (or you, on a home machine) holds onto while quilting, and gets trimmed away at the end. If the result is wider than one width of fabric (most quilting cotton is about 42 inches wide), you'll need to sew two or three panels together. We compare both ways to arrange those panels and point you to whichever uses less fabric.
What size batting do I need?
The same rule as backing: your quilt's size plus about 4 inches of overhang on every side. For a lot of common quilt sizes, a standard packaged batting (Crib, Twin, Full, Queen, or King) already covers it — we'll tell you which one fits. For anything larger, plan on a wide roll or piecing two widths together.
How do I figure binding yardage?
Add up your quilt's perimeter, then add roughly 10 inches for turning the corners and closing the ends. Each strip gives you your fabric's width, less one strip width for every diagonal join — 2½ inches on the standard 2½-inch double-fold strip — so keep adding strips until the joined length covers what you need. Some quilters cut 2¼ inches for a narrower finish.
How much fabric do I need for a border?
Borders are usually cut as strips across the fabric's width and pieced together end to end. For a simple border with butted (not mitered) corners, cut two side strips the height of your quilt, and two top/bottom strips the width of your quilt plus twice the finished border width — that extra covers the corners. Cut every strip ½ inch wider than the border you want to see, for the ¼-inch seam on each side: a 5-inch border is cut 5½ inches wide.