How much does a 2×4×8 weigh?

Most studs in the northern US and Canada are SPF; in the South they are often southern yellow pine, which is denser — switch the species above to compare. Studs straight off a store rack are often wetter than 12% and weigh more than this.

What to know about the weight of a 2×4×8

The number depends on the actual size, not the name. A 2×4 is planed to 1½ × 3½ in, so an 8 ft piece holds 0.292 cubic feet of wood. Type the nominal 2 × 4 into the size boxes instead and you get 11.9 lb — about half again too much. How big is a 2x4 actually explains where the missing half inch goes. The lumberyard still counts it as 5.33 board feet on the nominal size (How many board feet in a 2x4x8); the weight here uses the 3.5 board feet of wood that is really there.

• Species by region. Douglas-fir, common in the West, comes out near 9.65 lb for the same stud, and southern yellow pine about 10.4 lb. SPF is the lightest of the three.
• The grade stamp tells you the moisture. KD-19 or S-DRY means the stud was dried to 19% moisture or less, not the 12% used here. At the top of that range, expect about 4% more weight — more again if the pile has been rained on. Enter a meter reading above to check a particular stud.
• Precut studs. A 92-5/8 in precut stud, the length that makes an 8 ft wall once the plates are added, weighs about 7.55 lb in SPF.
• Carrying a load home. A dozen SPF 2×4×8s come to about 94 lb and a stack of 50 about 391 lb. Pine or wet pressure-treated studs push those figures well up, so check the roof-rack or trailer rating first.

For comparison, hardwood is far heavier per board foot: How much does a board foot of oak weigh puts red oak at 3.64 lb against 2.24 lb for SPF. Framing in metric? The closest equivalent is Weight of 45 × 95 mm × 2.4 m timber.