Pallets, slabs, watering & soil prep for a new sod lawn
Simple rectangular lawns waste the least sod during cutting and fitting.
Auto-set by shape above — adjust manually if your lawn is a mix of shapes.
Pallet size varies by region and grass variety — confirm with your local sod farm before ordering.
Estimates total water applied over the first 14 days of establishment. Actual needs vary with soil, sun exposure, and rainfall.
Please enter a valid lawn size first.
Total Sod to Order (Includes Waste Buffer)
–sq ft
Enter your lawn details and calculate to see results.
Enter details above to see your purchase summary.
Purchase Format Breakdown
Establishment Watering Calculator (First 14 Days)
–total gallons
Enter your lawn details and calculate to see your watering estimate.
This is a planning estimate for your water bill, not an irrigation schedule. Skip watering on days with meaningful rainfall and watch for pooling.
Soil Prep Sub-Calculator (2″ Tilled Root Zone)
Tilled into the existing soil before laying sod — not a layer placed on top. See our Topsoil Calculator for bagged vs. bulk pricing on this amount.
Project Inputs
Estimates are approximate. Pallet sizes, watering needs, and soil prep depth vary by grass variety, region, and climate. Confirm quantities with your sod supplier before ordering.
Sod math depends heavily on your lawn's shape, so that's the first thing QuickTonnage asks about.
If you searched for a sod calculator hoping to find a price, you're not alone cost is the single most common question people have about sod, more than square footage or pallet count combined.
Sod typically runs somewhere between $0.30 and $0.85 per square foot for material alone, depending on grass type and region. Installation labor usually adds another $0.50 to $1.50 per square foot on top of that, so a professionally installed lawn often lands between $1 and $2.50 per square foot all-in.
QuickTonnage's Contractor Mode toggle switches the calculator from homeowner pallet pricing to a full installed bid material cost, labor, and your margin, all based on the exact square footage your lawn actually needs after waste. If you're pricing a DIY job instead, the default mode gives you a straight per-pallet cost so you know what to expect at the sod farm.
Material alone usually runs $0.30–$0.85 per sq ft. Installed by a professional, expect $1–$2.50 per sq ft including labor.
It depends on the piece size and pallet coverage, but a standard 450 sq ft pallet typically holds around 85–100 individual pieces at 4.5–5 sq ft each. QuickTonnage's calculator gives you the exact count for your specific slab size.
Rectangular lawns need about 5% extra for cutting waste. Curved or irregular edges need closer to 10%. Slopes and terraces can need up to 15% because of the extra trimming and staking involved.
Most sod needs consistent watering for its first two weeks daily for roughly the first week, then tapering off as roots establish. QuickTonnage's watering estimate converts this into a total gallon figure so you can plan ahead.
DIY saves the labor cost, which is often the larger half of the total price. It does require correct soil prep and watering discipline, though cutting corners there can mean redoing the job.