Sheet Cutting Calculator

You enter the parts (width × height × quantity), the stock sheets available, and the rules — kerf, edge trim, part rotation. The engine then solves the two-dimensional cutting problem by testing layouts and keeping the one that wastes least, with rotation free or locked when grain direction or finish matters.

The result is a cut plan per sheet, with sequence and labels, ready to take to the saw. Unlike a hand sketch, the plan is reproducible: the same list always returns the same layout — which lets you compare sheet suppliers and part mixes with numbers instead of guesses. The difference between guillotine cutting and free nesting is covered in Guillotine vs Free Nesting: How Sheet Cutting Really Works.

No saw cuts without eating material: a circular blade's kerf runs 3–5 mm, and every sheet needs an edge trim cut of 10–20 mm per side to square up from the mill. A standard 2440 × 1220 mm sheet effectively yields about 2420 × 1200 mm — roughly 2 % lost before the first real cut.

Anyone who plans against the raw sheet size discovers the difference at the saw: a part that "fit" no longer fits after the trim. The calculator discounts kerf and trim in its settings; What Is Kerf? Why Every Cut List Needs It explains how those millimetres accumulate across a large list.

An honest reference by cutting method — actual waste depends on the part mix, but these ranges repeat across cabinet shops:

Few large parts push waste up; many small parts fill corners and pull it down. Compare your plan's figure with the table before buying the last sheet — the difference between 25 % and 10 % on a 20-sheet order is three full sheets.

A 2400 × 2200 × 600 mm wardrobe in 18 mm MDF generates about 14.5 m² of parts (sides, back, shelves, doors). A 2440 × 1220 sheet holds 2.98 m² gross; after trim and kerf this calculator's plan yields ~82 % — 2.44 m² usable per sheet.

14.5 ÷ 2.44 = 5.9 → 6 sheets. A hand sketch on the same list typically demands 7–8: the difference is a full sheet per cabinet, which in batch production is the month's profit. Plan optimized? Cut now: print the per-sheet cut plan and bundle the parts with labels before leaving the saw.

Every cut sheet leaves usable rectangles — the decision is which size still earns its storage. Practical cabinet-shop rule: offcuts above 300 × 300 mm pay for the shelf space they take; below that, handling and bowing risk cost more than the new material they save.

The calculator's offcut inventory records those rectangles and offers them as stock on the next project: drawer bottoms, dividers and small parts come out of offcuts instead of new sheets. Label each offcut with its size and face (laminates have a defined face) and keep the inventory current — the accumulated saving typically pays for one sheet in every ten consumed.

Recommended flow: (1) list parts at final size plus machining allowance; (2) run the optimizer with your saw's real kerf; (3) check the sheet count against the budget; (4) print the per-sheet plan and cut in the suggested sequence — it groups identical cuts and reduces saw setups; (5) label the bundles.

For bars and profiles the sibling tool does the same job in one dimension: the Linear cutting calculator. The glass variant follows the same rules with its own kerf and chip allowances: see the Glass cutting calculator. Guides 7 Ways to Reduce Cutting Waste in Your Workshop and Guillotine vs Free Nesting: How Sheet Cutting Really Works go deeper on waste reduction and choosing a method.