Advanced options
Based on standard UK bricks (215x102.5x65mm) with 10mm mortar joints. Always round up to whole packs, and keep spares from the same batch for future repairs, since brick colours vary between batches.
What The Brick Calculator Works Out
- Order quantity: wall length x height, minus openings, x bricks per square metre, plus wastage, rounded up. A UK brick is 215 x 102.5 x 65mm and with a 10mm joint occupies 225 x 75mm of wall face, which gives 60 per m2 for a half-brick (single skin) wall and 120 for a solid one-brick wall; 440 x 215mm concrete blocks cover 10 per m2.
- Wall area: the net face area after subtracting doors and windows. Allow about 2 m2 per door and 1.5 m2 per average window if you have not measured them.
- Mortar estimate: roughly 1.5 x 25kg bags of ready-mix mortar per m2 of half-brick wall, 3 for a one-brick wall and 0.75 for blockwork. Above about a thousand bricks, buying cement and sand separately is markedly cheaper than bagged ready-mix.
- Wastage: cuts, breakages and rejects claim 5% to 10% on a simple wall and more where there are lots of piers, corners or curves. Order everything in one go from one batch, because colour varies noticeably between firings.
- Custom wastage (advanced): type any percentage to override the dropdown, for example 7.5% for a plain garden wall or 20% for a curved feature.
- Packs to buy (advanced): bricks are delivered in shrink-wrapped packs, most commonly 400 (some facing bricks come in 500 or 520; blocks in 72 or 88). The calculator rounds your order up to whole packs and shows how many units actually arrive.
- Bricks and mortar cost (advanced): the order quantity x your price per 1,000 (typical UK facing bricks are GBP 500 to GBP 900 per 1,000; commons less, handmade far more) plus ready-mix mortar bags at your bag price.
- Labour estimate (advanced): bricklayers commonly quote GBP 400 to GBP 700 per 1,000 bricks laid for straightforward work, excluding scaffolding and footings. The sub-line adds bricks, mortar and labour for an all-in figure.
- Mixing your own mortar (advanced): converts the ready-mix bag count into 25kg bags of cement and tonnes of building sand at your chosen ratio. 1:5 suits general work above ground, 1:4 is stronger for below-ground or exposed work, 1:6 is softer for sheltered walls in soft bricks.
- Estimates only: for structural work, retaining walls or anything over about 1.2m high, consult a builder or structural engineer.