Stud wall builder

Plan a stud partition in timber or metal, wall by wall with its doors and windows: studs, plates, noggins, boards and fixings, with a cut list and the wall drawn in plan, elevation and 3D.

For non-load-bearing partitions only. A wall that holds up a floor, a roof or another wall, and any lintel in one, is a job for a structural engineer. Beams, lintels and structural sizes

Sets the stud sizes and lengths sold, the board sizes, and the usual door and window.

The wall

Wall 1: 3.6 m

Seen from above. Each wall starts at its dot.

Walls

Wall 1

Door 1

The opening in the frame, which is a little bigger than the door or window: check its lining or frame.

Frame
Stud size

As sold, planed: width × depth. The depth is the wall's thickness before boarding.

The most from one stud's centre to the next: 600 mm suits 1,200 mm boards, 400 mm for tiles or a heavy finish.

Plasterboard

Mineral wool slabs, for sound between rooms.

Extra for offcuts, spills, breakages and mistakes.

More options
Lengths to cut from

The cut list uses the lengths that are switched on, longest first, and the shorter ones where they waste less.

Rows of noggins (bridging) go in so no gap is bigger than this.

Taken off the length at each cut.

Wall lengths measured

Where you measured each wall at a corner.

Room side

Which side of the wall faces the room, walking from the first wall's start.

You'll need

Timber

14 lengths

Buy 1 length of 4.8 m + 1 length of 4.2 m + 12 lengths of 2.4 m (37.8 m)

Includes 10% for waste.

  • Studs, with kings, jacks and cripples11 studs
  • Head and sole plates6.36 m
  • Noggins5 pieces
  • Heads and sills at openings1 piece
  • Plasterboard, 12.5 mm6 boards
  • Plasterboard screws179 screws
  • Insulation slabs, 75 mm11 slabs
  • Nails or screws for the frame75 fixings
  • Fixings into the floor and ceiling16 fixings
  • Joint tape10.56 mBuy 1 roll of 150 m (150 m)
  • Jointing compound6.1 kgBuy 1 bag of 12.5 kg (12.5 kg)

Frame pieces

  • 1 × 3,600 mm: head plate
  • 5 × 2,324 mm: studs
  • 2 × 2,324 mm: king studs
  • 1 × 2,160 mm: sole plate
  • 2 × 2,002 mm: jack studs
  • 1 × 916 mm: heads
  • 1 × 600 mm: sole plate
  • 2 × 562 mm: noggins
  • 1 × 543 mm: noggins
  • 1 × 505 mm: noggins
  • 2 × 284 mm: cripple studs
  • 1 × 284 mm: noggins

Cut list

  • 1 × 4.2 m: cut 3,600 mm + 562 mm, offcut 32 mm
  • 5 × 2.4 m: cut 2,324 mm, offcut 73 mm
  • 2 × 2.4 m: cut 2,324 mm, offcut 73 mm
  • 1 × 2.4 m: cut 2,160 mm, offcut 237 mm
  • 1 × 2.4 m: cut 2,002 mm + 284 mm, offcut 108 mm
  • 1 × 2.4 m: cut 2,002 mm + 284 mm, offcut 108 mm
  • 1 × 2.4 m: cut 916 mm + 600 mm + 562 mm + 284 mm, offcut 26 mm
  • 1 × 2.4 m: cut 543 mm + 505 mm, offcut 1,346 mm
  • 1 × 4.8 m: spare

Boards

  • 6 × 1.2 m × 2.4 m: fixed whole
How it's worked out
  1. Timber 38 mm × 89 mm at up to 600 mm centres, rows of noggins no more than 1,200 mm apart
  2. Wall 1: 3.6 m × 2.4 m, plates 3.6 m, 1 row of noggins
  3. Each opening: a king and a jack stud each side, a head across the top and a sill under a window, with cripple studs above and below. The head is a trimmer in the studs' own size, not a lintel.
  4. A non-load-bearing partition: nothing here is sized to hold up a floor, a roof or a wall above.
  5. Timber: 30.57 m of pieces, cut from 2.4 m, 3 m, 3.6 m, 4.2 m and 4.8 m, 3 mm a cut for the saw
  6. 1 spare length of 4.8 m to make up 33.63 m with waste
  7. Timber: buy 1 length of 4.8 m + 1 length of 4.2 m + 12 lengths of 2.4 m = 37.8 m
  8. 2 faces, 13.85 m² of board: 6 boards fixed upright, a board's width at a time
  9. Board screws every 300 mm down each stud: about 27 for a 1.2 m × 2.4 m board, 179 with waste
  10. 6.93 m² of wall ÷ 0.72 m² a slab = 11 slabs of 75 mm, the thickest that fits a 89 mm stud
  11. 17 pieces fixed at both ends, 4 fixings each: 75 with waste; plates fixed every 600 mm and at each end: 16
  12. 9.6 m of joints and corners to tape: 10.56 m with waste, and about 6.1 kg of jointing compound for 13.85 m² of board

Estimates only — verify before purchase. Check the quantities against your own measurements and the product's label.

Cutting list PDF

The materials, the frame's pieces and each length's cuts, to print or take to the merchant.

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What it works out

This plans a stud partition: a non-load-bearing internal wall framed in timber or metal and lined with plasterboard. Draw the wall, one run at a time with its corners, doors and windows, and it lists every stud, plate and noggin, the lengths to buy with a cut list, the boards, insulation, screws, fixings, tape and jointing compound.

It draws the frame in plan, in elevation and in 3D, so you can check it before you cut anything. It's only for partitions that hold nothing up. A wall that carries a floor, a roof or another wall is a structural job.

How it works

Studs are spaced along each wall no further apart than the centres you choose, with one at each end and extra studs at each corner. Plates run along the floor and ceiling, as timber plates or metal tracks. Rows of noggins (bridging) go across the studs so no gap is taller than you set.

Each door or window gets studs either side, a head across the top made from the same section as the studs, a sill under a window, and short studs above and below. The heads are trimmers, not lintels: nothing is sized to carry a load.

Then every piece is cut from the lengths you can buy: the longest pieces first, each fitted into the length that leaves the least offcut, with the saw's cut allowed for. Boards are planned upright, a board's width at a time, with cut pieces packed into as few boards as possible. Spare lengths and boards are added to cover the waste allowance.

A worked example

One straight wall 3.6 m long and 2.4 m high with a door 0.84 m by 2.04 m, framed in timber at 600 mm centres, boarded on both faces and insulated.

  1. Timber 38 mm × 89 mm at up to 600 mm centres, rows of noggins no more than 1,200 mm apart
  2. Wall 1: 3.6 m × 2.4 m, plates 3.6 m, 1 row of noggins
  3. Each opening: a king and a jack stud each side, a head across the top and a sill under a window, with cripple studs above and below. The head is a trimmer in the studs' own size, not a lintel.
  4. A non-load-bearing partition: nothing here is sized to hold up a floor, a roof or a wall above.
  5. Timber: 30.57 m of pieces, cut from 2.4 m, 3 m, 3.6 m, 4.2 m and 4.8 m, 3 mm a cut for the saw
  6. 1 spare length of 4.8 m to make up 33.63 m with waste
  7. Timber: buy 1 length of 4.8 m + 1 length of 4.2 m + 12 lengths of 2.4 m = 37.8 m
  8. 2 faces, 13.85 m² of board: 6 boards fixed upright, a board's width at a time
  9. Board screws every 300 mm down each stud: about 27 for a 1.2 m × 2.4 m board, 179 with waste
  10. 6.93 m² of wall ÷ 0.72 m² a slab = 11 slabs of 75 mm, the thickest that fits a 89 mm stud
  11. 17 pieces fixed at both ends, 4 fixings each: 75 with waste; plates fixed every 600 mm and at each end: 16
  12. 9.6 m of joints and corners to tape: 10.56 m with waste, and about 6.1 kg of jointing compound for 13.85 m² of board

The result

  • Timber14 lengthsBuy 1 length of 4.8 m + 1 length of 4.2 m + 12 lengths of 2.4 m (37.8 m)
  • Studs, with kings, jacks and cripples11 studs
  • Head and sole plates6.36 m
  • Noggins5 pieces
  • Heads and sills at openings1 piece
  • Plasterboard, 12.5 mm6 boards
  • Plasterboard screws179 screws
  • Insulation slabs, 75 mm11 slabs
  • Nails or screws for the frame75 fixings
  • Fixings into the floor and ceiling16 fixings
  • Joint tape10.56 mBuy 1 roll of 150 m (150 m)
  • Jointing compound6.1 kgBuy 1 bag of 12.5 kg (12.5 kg)

These are the calculator's own figures for these measurements, with 10% for waste. Change any of them above and it works it out again.

Common mistakes

  • Building a partition where a wall must carry load. If the wall supports anything above, or you're replacing one that did, it's structural work for an engineer, not a stud partition.
  • Getting the stud centres wrong for the board. Board edges must land on a stud. Centres that divide evenly into the board's width avoid extra studs and cuts.
  • Forgetting noggins where you'll hang things. Radiators, basins, cupboards and TVs need something solid behind the board. Plan extra noggins where they'll go.
  • Measuring the height in one place. Floors and ceilings are rarely level. Measure at both ends and in the middle, and cut each stud to fit.

Questions people ask

How many studs do I need for a wall?

The length divided by the stud spacing, plus one, plus the extra studs at corners and openings. The builder counts each one and gives a cut list from the lengths you can buy.

Timber or metal studs?

Both work for a partition. Metal studs are light, straight and quick to fix; timber is easier to fix things to and to cut with ordinary tools. The builder works out either, in the sections sold in your region.

How many plasterboards will I need?

The builder plans every board, upright and a board's width at a time, with cut pieces packed together, so the count matches how you'll actually fix them.

Can I use this for a load-bearing wall?

No. A wall that holds up a floor, a roof or another wall, and any lintel or beam in it, must be designed by a structural engineer. See our structural guidance.

What does the PDF include?

The cutting list and diagrams for each length, the boards, and the full working, in your language and units. It's part of the Premium plan.