How many board feet are in a 2×4×8?
A 2×4×8 is 5.33 board feet: 2 × 4 × 8 ÷ 12, using the nominal size that softwood lumber is tallied by.
How to work it out
- 2 in × 4 in × 8 ft ÷ 12 = 5.33 bd ft per board
- 5.33 × 1 board = 5.33 board feet
The 2×4×8 is the stud of North American framing, and most stores sell it by the piece rather than by the board foot. The board-foot figure matters when a yard quotes a framing package per thousand board feet (MBF), or when you want to compare a per-piece price with a board-foot price.
Its actual size is 1½ × 3½ in, so the wood you carry home is only 3.5 board feet — worth knowing if you are estimating weight or comparing it with metric timber sold at its true size. See what is the actual size of a 2x4 for the full breakdown.
Adjust for your project
More options: Waste allowance · The yard quotes a price… · Price (optional) …
- Board feet per board
- 5.33 board feet
- Volume (at the size entered)
- 0.444 cu ft (0.013 m³)
- Total length of boards (before waste)
- 8 ft
- Softwood construction lumber is tallied on nominal size (2×4 = 2 × 4 in), even though it measures 1½ × 3½ in. Hardwood is tallied on rough thickness (4/4 = 1 in) even after surfacing.
Board feet in a stack of 2×4×8s
| Number of 2×4×8s | Total board feet | Total length of boards (before waste) | Volume (at the size entered) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5.33 board feet | 8 ft | 0.444 cu ft |
| 10 | 53.33 board feet | 80 ft | 4.444 cu ft |
| 25 | 133.33 board feet | 200 ft | 11.111 cu ft |
| 50 | 266.67 board feet | 400 ft | 22.222 cu ft |
| 100 | 533.33 board feet | 800 ft | 44.444 cu ft |
| 188 | 1,002.67 board feet | 1,504 ft | 83.556 cu ft |
What to know about a 2×4×8
- Turning an MBF quote into a stud price. One thousand board feet is 187.5 eight-foot 2×4s, so a yard’s price per MBF × 5.33 ÷ 1,000 is what one stud costs. Run it the other way to see whether the home-center piece price is a bargain or a convenience charge.
- Precut studs are shorter than 8 ft. Studs for an 8 ft wall are usually cut to 92-5/8 in so the plates bring the wall to height. At that length a 2×4 is about 5.15 board feet; ask whether a quote tallies precut studs at their real length or rounds them up to 8 ft.
- The usual mistake is multiplying 1½ × 3½ by the length and getting 3.5 — right for weight, wrong for the invoice. The weight of a spruce-pine-fir stud is on how much does a 2x4x8 weigh.
A 2×4 carries two-thirds of a board foot per linear foot, which is why a 2×4×12 comes out at exactly 8 board feet — the same as how many board feet in a 2x6x8.
Different size? Use the full Board Foot Calculator.
What you’ll need
- 25 ft tape measureBudget price
A 25 ft tape with a stiff blade and a readable 1/16 in scale covers everything from cut lists to deck layout.
See options on Amazon (opens in a new tab) - Speed square (7 in)Budget price
Marks square and angled crosscuts and doubles as a saw guide for a circular saw. The degree scale is handy for rafters and stair angles.
See options on Amazon (opens in a new tab) - Circular saw (7¼ in)Mid-range price
The most versatile first power saw: crosscuts framing lumber, rips boards and, with a straightedge, breaks down plywood sheets.
See options on Amazon (opens in a new tab)
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Links to products are affiliate links — they cost you nothing extra and help keep these calculators free.
Frequently asked questions
How many board feet are in ten 2×4×8 studs?
Ten 2×4×8s are 53.33 board feet — roughly the studs for a short partition wall.
How many board feet are in a 2×4×10?
A 2×4×10 is 6.67 board feet (2 × 4 × 10 ÷ 12).
How many board feet are in a 2×4×12?
A 2×4×12 is 8 board feet on nominal size, the same as a 2×6×8.
Other common sizes
- How many board feet in a 2x6x8 — 8 board feet
- How many board feet in a 4x4x8 — 10.67 board feet
- Board feet in a 4/4 hardwood board, 8 in × 8 ft — 5.33 bd ft (yard tally: 5)
- Board feet in an 8/4 slab, 24 in × 8 ft — 32 board feet
Sources
- NIST, Voluntary Product Standard PS 20-20, American Softwood Lumber Standard (Rev. 1, 2021) (opens in a new tab) — Nominal and dressed sizes of softwood lumber; board measure on nominal size.
- American Hardwood Export Council, The Illustrated Guide to American Hardwood Lumber Grades (opens in a new tab) — Board foot, surface measure and quarter (4/4, 8/4) thicknesses under the NHLA rules.
- National Hardwood Lumber Association, Rules for the Measurement & Inspection of Hardwood & Cypress (2019) (opens in a new tab) — Paragraphs 16 and 18: board feet = surface measure × standard thickness, with standard thicknesses under 1 in measured as 1 in.