Brick Wall Calculator
Count bricks, mortar and wall ties for brick veneer over wood framing or a solid two-wythe brick wall. Choose your brick size and bond pattern.
How it's calculated
The face count comes from the brick size plus the mortar joint: 144 ÷ [(length + joint) × (height + joint)]. A modular brick with a 3/8" joint lays about 6.9 bricks per square foot of wall.
Bond patterns change the count. In veneer, the headers in Flemish, English and common bond are snapped half bricks, so the total stays close to running bond; the calculator adds 5% for cutting. In a solid wall the headers are full bricks tying the two wythes together, and the wall takes about twice the face count.
Mortar uses the field rule of about 7 bags of masonry cement and a ton of sand per 1,000 modular brick, scaled for your brick size. Veneer ties are figured at one per 2.67 sq ft, the IRC maximum spacing.
Worked example
A 40 × 9 ft wall with 60 sq ft of windows has 300 sq ft of brick. In running-bond modular veneer that is 300 × 6.86 + 5% = 2,160 bricks, about 15 bags of masonry cement, 2.2 tons of sand and 113 ties.
Field notes
- Leave a 1" air space behind veneer, with flashing and weep holes at the base and over every opening.
- Run a story pole before you start so courses land at window sills and heads without slivers.
- Snapping headers for Flemish bond veneer is slow. Price the labor, not just the brick.
- Order all brick for a wall at once and blend from several cubes so color shifts are spread out.
Common questions
- How many bricks are in a square foot?
- About 6.9 modular bricks with a 3/8" joint (the industry often rounds to 6.75). Queen size is about 5.8 and king size about 4.6 per sq ft.
- What is the difference between brick veneer and solid brick?
- Veneer is a single wythe tied to a wood or steel frame with metal ties; the frame carries the load. Solid brick is two or more wythes bonded together that carry load themselves.
- Which brick bond uses the most brick?
- In a solid wall, every bond uses about the same total because a header replaces two stretchers. In veneer, decorative bonds use about the same brick but more labor and cutting.
- How many bricks does a bag of mortar lay?
- Roughly 140 bricks per bag of masonry cement (mixed with sand), or about 33 bricks per 80 lb bag of pre-mixed mortar.