How much firewood is in my stack?
Measure your woodpile and type the length, the height and the length of one piece. The firewood calculator shows how many full cords and face cords it holds, and what it costs at a price per cord.
- Full cords
- 0.333
Your stack is 0.333 cords (1 face cords, 42.67 ft³).
- Face cords (ricks)
- 1
- Cubic feet
- 42.67
- Cubic metres (steres)
- 1.208
Full cords: 0.333. Your stack is 0.333 cords (1 face cords, 42.67 ft³).
How to calculate
Firewood calculator: turns the length, height and piece length of a stacked pile into cords, face cords (ricks), cubic feet and cubic metres, with the cost at a price per cord.
Example with the default inputs (Stack length 8 ft, Stack height 4 ft, Piece length 16 in, Stacks 1): Your stack is 0.333 cords (1 face cords, 42.67 ft³).
Method: Cubic feet = length × height × piece length × stacks; cords = cubic feet ÷ 128; face cords = length × height × stacks ÷ 32 ft²; steres = the volume in m³.
- The wood is stacked tightly in straight rows, as a cord is defined; loose, thrown wood takes more room.
- A face cord (rick) is any 4 × 8 ft face, whatever the piece length, so its share of a cord depends on the piece length.
Worked examples
Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.
- Stack length 8 ft, Stack height 4 ft, Piece length 48 in, Stacks 1 gives Full cords 1, Cubic feet 128, Face cords (ricks) 1, Cubic metres (steres) 3.624556.Source: Wikipedia, Cord (unit) (a cord is 128 ft³, 4 ft high × 8 ft wide × 4 ft deep; a face cord or rick is 4 × 8 ft of 16 in wood, one third of a cord; 1 stere = 1 m³), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cord_(unit) (retrieved 2026-10-03)
- Stack length 8 ft, Stack height 4 ft, Piece length 16 in, Stacks 1, Price per cord $300.00 gives Full cords 0.333333, Face cords (ricks) 1, Cubic feet 42.666667, Cost $100.00.Source: Wikipedia, Cord (unit) (a cord is 128 ft³, 4 ft high × 8 ft wide × 4 ft deep; a face cord or rick is 4 × 8 ft of 16 in wood, one third of a cord; 1 stere = 1 m³), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cord_(unit) (retrieved 2026-10-03)
- Stack length 20 ft, Stack height 5 ft, Piece length 18 in, Stacks 2 gives Cubic feet 300, Full cords 2.34375, Face cords (ricks) 6.25.Source: Wikipedia, Cord (unit) (a cord is 128 ft³, 4 ft high × 8 ft wide × 4 ft deep; a face cord or rick is 4 × 8 ft of 16 in wood, one third of a cord; 1 stere = 1 m³), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cord_(unit) (retrieved 2026-10-03)
How it works
Measure a tightly stacked pile, then:
- Cubic feet = length × height × piece length × stacks, with every length in feet.
- Full cords = cubic feet ÷ 128, because a cord is 4 ft × 4 ft × 8 ft = 128 ft³.
- Face cords (ricks) = length × height × stacks ÷ 32 ft². A face cord is a 4 × 8 ft face of wood of any piece length, so the piece length does not change this count.
- Cubic metres (steres) = the same volume in m³ (1 ft = 0.3048 m, so 1 ft³ = 0.028316846592 m³).
- Cost = full cords × the price per cord, when you type a price.
Lengths may be typed in feet, inches, metres, centimetres, or feet and inches. Each must be more than 0 and at most 1,000 m; stacks are 1 to 10,000. A stack so small that its cords round to 0 in floating point has no answer.
Output format
Cords show to 3 decimals, face cords and cubic feet to 2, steres to 3, and the cost in dollars and cents. The typed lengths are read back as the exact decimals you typed, every product is exact, and each value is rounded half up once, for display.
Worked examples by hand
A full cord. 8 ft × 4 ft × 4 ft = 128 ft³; 128 ÷ 128 = 1 cord. Face: 8 × 4 = 32 ft² = 1 face cord. In metric: 128 × 0.028316846592 = 3.624556363776 m³.
A face cord of 16 in wood at $300 a cord. 8 × 4 × (16 ÷ 12) = 42.667 ft³; ÷ 128 = 0.333 cords. Face 32 ft² = 1 face cord. Cost: 1/3 × $300 = $100.
Two stacks, 20 ft long, 5 ft high, 18 in pieces. 20 × 5 × 1.5 × 2 = 300 ft³; ÷ 128 = 2.34375 cords (shown 2.344). Face: 20 × 5 × 2 = 200 ft² ÷ 32 = 6.25 face cords.
Other questions people ask
How big is a cord of firewood?
A full cord is 128 cubic feet of tightly stacked wood: a pile 4 ft high, 8 ft long and 4 ft deep.
What is a face cord or a rick?
A face cord, also called a rick, is a stack 4 ft high and 8 ft long, one piece deep. With the usual 16 in pieces it is 42.67 ft³, one third of a full cord. With 24 in pieces it is half a cord.
How do I measure a woodpile in cords?
Multiply the length by the height by the piece length, all in feet, and divide by 128. A pile 20 ft long, 5 ft high and 18 in deep is 20 × 5 × 1.5 = 150 ft³, or 1.17 cords.
How many face cords are in a cord?
128 ÷ (32 × piece length in feet). With 16 in pieces that is 3 face cords; with 12 in pieces, 4; with 24 in pieces, 2.
What is a stere?
A stere is 1 cubic metre of stacked wood, the unit used in metric countries. One cord is 3.62 steres, and one stere is about 0.276 cords.
Does loosely thrown wood count as a cord?
No. A cord is measured stacked. Thrown wood has more air between pieces, so the same wood takes more room; Maine, for example, defines a loose thrown cord of 12 to 16 in wood as 180 ft³.