Perimeter × Height = total wall area. Deduct doors and windows. Divide by usable area per roll (accounting for pattern waste). Always round up to whole rolls — and buy one extra roll from the same batch number for future touch-ups, since dye lots change between print runs.
A 10×12 foot room (3 × 3.65 m) with standard 8-foot (2.4 m) ceilings has a perimeter of 44 feet (13.4 m) and roughly 352 square feet (32.7 m²) of wall area. After subtracting one door and two windows, you're left with about 27 m². With a standard Euro roll (0.53 m × 10 m) and a 25 cm pattern repeat, you'd need around 8–9 rolls. Plug your exact room size into the calculator above for a precise figure.
In most of the world, a standard wallpaper roll is 0.53 metres wide and 10 metres long, giving a total area of 5.3 m² per roll. In practice, usable coverage is less because you lose material to pattern matching and trimming at the top and bottom of each strip. Some European brands sell 0.52 m or 0.60 m wide rolls, while "double rolls" are 1.06 m wide — popular for feature walls and large rooms because they produce less waste.
Measure the length and width of the room at floor level with a tape measure. Measure the wall height from floor to ceiling (or to the picture rail if you're not papering above it). Count the number of doors and windows — standard doors are roughly 2 m × 0.9 m (1.9 m²) and standard windows about 1.2 m × 1.2 m (1.4 m²). Enter these numbers into the calculator and it handles the rest, including pattern repeat adjustments.
Vinyl wallpaper is the most durable and moisture-resistant — ideal for kitchens and bathrooms. Non-woven (fleece-backed) wallpaper is the easiest to hang because you paste the wall instead of the paper, making it popular with DIYers. Traditional paper wallpaper is cheaper but harder to work with and less durable. Textured wallpaper like anaglypta is great for hiding imperfect walls. For your first project, non-woven wallpaper is the most forgiving choice.
The biggest mistake is not buying enough rolls from the same batch — dye lots vary between print runs and the colour difference is noticeable once the paper is on the wall. Other common errors include not properly preparing the wall surface (fill holes, sand, and size the wall first), cutting strips too short (always leave 5 cm extra top and bottom), and not using a plumb line to keep the first strip perfectly vertical. Once the first strip is crooked, every strip after it will be off.
Measure the perimeter of the room and the ceiling height to get the total wall area. Subtract window and door areas. Divide by the coverage of one roll (a standard roll covers about 5 square metres). Add 10-15% for pattern matching and waste. This wallpaper calculator does all of this for you.
Pattern repeat is the vertical distance between repeating design elements on wallpaper. A large pattern repeat means more waste per strip because you must align the pattern across adjacent strips. A 64cm repeat can waste up to half a roll on cuts. This calculator accounts for pattern repeat to give accurate roll estimates.
Standard wallpaper rolls are typically 52cm (about 20 inches) wide, though some European wallpapers are 53cm. Some premium wallpapers are wider. The roll length is usually 10 metres (about 33 feet). A standard roll (52cm x 10m) covers approximately 5 square metres, less waste.
It is strongly recommended to remove old wallpaper before hanging new wallpaper. New wallpaper over old can cause the adhesive to fail, bubbles to form, and patterns to show through. If the old wallpaper is in perfect condition and firmly adhered, a professional may advise hanging over it, but this is the exception.
Yes, as long as the paint is not peeling, glossy, or damp. Lightly sand glossy surfaces to improve adhesion. Clean walls of dust and grease. Many wallpapers require the wall to be sized (primed with diluted wallpaper paste) before hanging. Follow the specific instructions from your wallpaper manufacturer.
A 10x12 foot room with 8-foot ceilings typically needs 8 to 9 standard rolls (0.53m x 10m) after subtracting one door and two windows. If your wallpaper has a large pattern repeat (50cm or more), you may need an extra 1-2 rolls to account for waste from pattern matching.
A single roll is typically 0.53m wide and 10m long. A double roll is 1.06m wide and 10m long, covering roughly twice the area per roll. Double rolls are more efficient for large walls because you get longer continuous strips and less waste. They are especially popular for feature walls and commercial projects.
Measure the room length and width at floor level, then measure the wall height from floor to ceiling. Count doors and windows to subtract their area. A standard door is about 1.9 square metres and a standard window about 1.4 square metres. Enter these measurements into a wallpaper calculator to get the number of rolls needed.