Shingle Calculator: How Many Bundles of Shingles Do I Need?
Enter your roof area to get the number of shingle bundles with waste, plus starter strip, hip and ridge cap and coil nails, so one order covers the job.
Shingles are sold in bundles, and the bundle count depends on the roof area, the shingle type and how much you lose to cuts. The field shingles aren’t the whole order, either. You also need starter strip along the edges, cap shingles for the hips and ridge, and the nails to hold it all down. This calculator figures all four from numbers you can get without climbing on the roof.
How it works
Start with the sloped roof area, not the footprint or the house’s floor area. If you only know the outside dimensions and pitch, the roof square footage calculator gives you the area and sends it here with the edge lengths filled in.
order area = roof area × (1 + waste %)
bundles = order area ÷ 100 × bundles per square (round up)
starter = (eaves + rakes) ÷ 100 ft per bundle (round up)
hip & ridge = (ridges + hips) ÷ 20 ft per bundle (round up)
nails = squares × shingles per square × nails per shingleBundles per square. A roofing square is 100 sq ft. Architectural (laminate) and 3-tab shingles are almost always packed three bundles per square. For heavier designer shingles, choose “Other” and enter the number from the wrapper.
Starter and cap. Starter strip runs along every eave and rake under the first course, and hip and ridge cap covers the peaks. Coverage varies by product: starter bundles commonly cover around 100 to 120 linear feet, and hip and ridge bundles 20 to 33 feet. We use 100 and 20 ft, the low end, so the count errs toward having enough.
Nails. We estimate field-shingle nails from the shingle size. A metric-size architectural shingle (13¼ × 39⅜ in, 5⅝ in exposure) works out to about 65 shingles per square, and a standard 12 × 36 in 3-tab at a 5-inch exposure is 80. Multiply by four nails each for standard nailing, or six for high-wind patterns. Starter and cap nails come on top of that, so round up to whole boxes of coils.
Assumptions: the area already reflects the pitch, and the waste factor covers cutting at valleys, hips, rakes and penetrations. The calculator does not cover underlayment, ice barrier, flashing or drip edge.
Worked example
Take the ranch from our roof area example: a hip roof at 5/12 with 1,966 sq ft of roof, 176 ft of eaves, no rakes, a 22 ft ridge and 97.3 ft of hips. The plan is architectural shingles with standard four-nail fastening and 15% waste for the hips.
- Order area: 1,966 × 1.15 = 2,261 sq ft, or 22.61 squares
- Field bundles: 22.61 × 3 = 67.8, rounded up to 68 bundles
- Starter: 176 ft ÷ 100 = 1.76, so 2 bundles
- Hip and ridge: (22 + 97.3) ÷ 20 = 5.97, so 6 bundles
- Nails: 68 bundles is 22⅔ squares × 65 × 4 = 5,894 nails, about 50 coils of 120
At roughly 60 to 80 lb per bundle, that’s well over two tons of shingles. Ask for rooftop delivery, which saves you carrying every bundle up a ladder.
Shingle bundles reference table
Bundles for shingles sold three per square. Add starter and cap separately.
| Roof area (sq ft) | Bundles +10% | Bundles +15% |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | 33 | 35 |
| 1,250 | 42 | 44 |
| 1,500 | 50 | 52 |
| 1,750 | 58 | 61 |
| 2,000 | 66 | 69 |
| 2,250 | 75 | 78 |
| 2,500 | 83 | 87 |
| 3,000 | 99 | 104 |
| 3,500 | 116 | 121 |
| 4,000 | 132 | 138 |
Tips and common mistakes
Use roof area, not floor area. A 2,000 sq ft house can have a 1,300 sq ft roof if it has two stories, or a 2,600 sq ft roof if it’s a ranch with deep overhangs. Ordering from the listing size is the fastest way to come up short or long.
Pick the waste factor by roof shape. About 10% is usually enough for a plain gable. Hips, valleys, dormers and skylights all add cuts, so 15% is a safer number for those roofs, and a very cut-up roof can need more.
Match starter and cap to the shingle line. Manufacturers sell starter and hip and ridge products made for each shingle line, and their wind and system warranties often require them. Buying the matching products also keeps the color consistent at the ridge.
Check the wrapper for bundles per square. Never assume three. Some designer and impact-rated shingles are four or five bundles per square, which changes the order by a third or more.
Steeper roofs need more nails. Some manufacturers require six nails per shingle in high-wind zones and special fastening above 21/12. Follow the installation instructions on the wrapper; they’re what the code and the warranty rely on.
Keep a few bundles. Store one or two leftover bundles flat in a dry place for repairs. Shingle color changes slightly from one production run to the next.
Leave the tear-off and install to a trained crew if you can. Roof work is one of the riskier jobs in construction, and falls cause many of the deaths. If you do any part yourself, use fall protection.
Frequently asked questions
How many bundles of shingles are in a square?
Most architectural and 3-tab shingles come three bundles to the square, so each bundle covers about 33.3 sq ft. Heavier designer and luxury shingles often take four or five bundles per square. The coverage is printed on every wrapper, and it's the number to trust.
How many bundles of shingles do I need for a 2,000 sq ft roof?
At three bundles per square, 2,000 sq ft is 20 squares or 60 bundles before waste. With 10% waste you need 66 bundles, and with 15% for a hip roof you need 69. Make sure the 2,000 is the sloped roof area and not the floor area of the house.
Can I use regular shingles as starter strip?
With 3-tab shingles, roofers traditionally cut the tabs off and use the top part as starter. Most architectural shingles don't work that way, and manufacturers sell a matching starter product that's often required for the wind warranty. Check the installation instructions on the wrapper.
How many nails per shingle?
The International Residential Code requires at least four fasteners per strip shingle, or more if the manufacturer calls for it. Many manufacturers require six nails for high-wind areas or to get their top wind rating, and special methods on very steep roofs.
Should I buy extra bundles?
Buy what the calculator gives you, then keep one or two leftover bundles from the same production run for future repairs. Shingle colors drift between runs, so a bundle bought years later rarely matches. Ask the supplier whether unopened bundles can be returned.