Board-foot vs linear-foot prices: compare the whole quote

Ask for a total on the actual boards before approving a cut or paying. A board-foot price measures volume; a linear-foot price measures length of a specified product. The smaller printed number is not necessarily the cheaper board.

A widely discussed Reddit buying mistake involved exactly this misunderstanding at a lumberyard. You do not need to master every grading term to avoid it. Write down the unit, tally dimensions and included services, then calculate the total.

Convert only on a stated basis

For thickness T and width W in inches, one linear foot contains T × W ÷ 12 board feet. Multiply that by the price per board foot to get a comparable price per linear foot. Ask which dimensions the supplier uses for billing; nominal rough thickness and the surfaced dimensions you measure may not be the same tally basis.

The example below assumes the seller explicitly tallies 1-inch thickness and 8-inch width. All prices are invented for comparison, not current market quotations.

On material alone, C is cheapest. But suppose A includes the required surfacing, B includes neither surfacing nor a straight edge, and C has a large defect in the middle of the required long rail. The totals are not yet comparable as project inputs.

Put services beside the wood price

Add the quoted milling, straight-line ripping, delivery, minimum order and taxes where applicable. Ask whether a width-selection surcharge applies and whether an offcut remains yours when the yard cuts a board for transport. Never rely on a verbal “about eight feet” if the actual tally uses a different length.

Keep the comparison on one page. Record the species, grade or visual selection, thickness basis, delivered size and drying condition. Comparing dried surfaced stock with green rough stock as if they were the same offer hides work you will have to fund later.

Compare the parts you can recover

For a simple batch example, Quote A totals $96 and yields eight accepted blanks, so its material-and-service cost is $12 per blank. Quote B totals $84 but yields six blanks of the required dimensions and appearance, so it costs $14 per accepted blank. This is a planning estimate until you inspect and mill the boards; it is not a claim that you can predict yield perfectly from a photograph.

Long clear pieces deserve particular attention. Several short offcuts cannot replace a continuous rail. Use full-size paper strips or a dimensioned sketch to see whether the parts lie between checks and knots, including your machining allowances. Keep matched pieces together in the estimate.

Use a clear purchase sentence

A useful confirmation sounds like this: “These three selected boards, tallied at the stated rough thickness, surfaced to the agreed dimension, with one straight edge, total this amount before delivery.” Replace every vague adjective with a number or a named selection.

Do not use a lower grade merely because a spreadsheet favors it. A lower grade can be economical for short parts if the layout works; a premium board can be economical when one long matched component matters. The sawmill buying archive and the defect-layout guide help turn the quote into a realistic purchase.

Keep the receipt and your tally. If you change the design afterward, rerun the part layout rather than assuming the original quantity remains sufficient. Unit conversion prevents one mistake; a checked cut list prevents the next.

Sources and specifications

• Woodworkers Source: Linear foot, square foot and board foot
• AHEC and NHLA: Illustrated guide to hardwood lumber grades

Prepared for Unfinished Wood under an editorial pen name, with AI-assisted drafting and source review. Examples and diagrams are explanatory; they are not reports of hands-on product testing.