Planning a brick wall and need to know what to order? The answer starts with one number per square foot, then gets scaled up for your wall and padded for waste. Get that base figure right and the rest is simple arithmetic.
For a modular brick wall with a 3/8 inch mortar joint, plan on about 6.75 bricks per square foot, the figure in BIA Technical Note 10 (675 per 100 square feet). You also need roughly 5.5 cubic feet of mortar per 100 square feet, before waste. Add at least 5 percent brick waste and 15 to 25 percent mortar waste.
How Many Bricks Do You Need per Square Foot?
A modular brick wall uses about 6.75 bricks per square foot at a standard 3/8 inch mortar joint. That is the figure in the Brick Industry Association’s Technical Note 10, which lists 675 modular bricks per 100 square feet of wall.
Modular brick is the common US face brick, with a nominal face of 8 inches long by 2-2/3 inches high. The “nominal” size already folds in the brick’s share of the mortar joints, so the per-square-foot count works out cleanly. You can confirm your own wall numbers with the brick and mortar calculator, which uses these same BIA figures.
Other brick sizes give different counts. BIA Table 4 lists 6.55 per square foot for standard non-modular brick, 5.5 for queen, and 4.55 for king size. Always confirm which brick you are ordering before you multiply.
Where the 6.75 Figure Comes From
The 6.75 count comes from the brick’s nominal face and BIA’s coursing rule. BIA sets three courses of modular brick plus their bed joints equal to 8 inches of wall height, and one brick plus one head joint equal to 8 inches of length.
Work it as a face area. The exposed face is the nominal length times the nominal height, or 8 inches by 2-2/3 inches, which is 21.33 square inches. Divide the 144 square inches in a square foot by 21.33 and you get 6.75 bricks per square foot. That matches BIA Table 4 exactly.
You may see 6.86 bricks per square foot quoted elsewhere. That number is valid arithmetic from the specified brick size (2-1/4 inch height plus a 3/8 inch joint, times 7-5/8 inch length plus a 3/8 inch joint), which gives a 21.0 square inch module. BIA’s own coursing table sets three courses to 8 inches instead, so its published figure is 6.75. This article follows the BIA figure.
How Much Mortar per Square Foot and per 1,000 Bricks
A modular wall needs about 5.5 cubic feet of mortar per 100 square feet, or 8.1 cubic feet per 1,000 bricks, at a 3/8 inch joint. Both figures are from BIA Table 4, and both exclude waste.
Those are theoretical volumes of mortar in the finished wall. BIA treats waste as a separate step, so you add it after you read the table. The association advises adding 15 to 25 percent to the net mortar quantity for waste.
Joint width changes mortar, not brick count. A 1/2 inch joint raises modular mortar from 5.5 to 6.9 cubic feet per 100 square feet, while the brick count stays at 675. BIA lists the same brick count for both the 3/8 inch and 1/2 inch joints.
How Many Bags of Mortar Mix Will You Use?
Plan on about 35 to 40 standard bricks per 80 pound bag of pre-blended Type N mortar mix. SAKRETE’s Type N sheet lists 40 bricks per 80 pound bag at a 3/8 inch joint, and QUIKRETE’s Mortar Mix No. 1102 lists 37 per 80 pound bag.
The two charts differ a little because their reference brick differs. QUIKRETE’s chart is based on an 8 by 2 by 4 inch standard brick and states no joint, while SAKRETE states a 3/8 inch joint. Treat the range as roughly one 80 pound bag per 5 to 6 square feet of single-wythe modular veneer, before waste.
Do not confuse this with BIA’s old rule of thumb. BIA notes that masons sometimes figure eight bags of masonry cement will lay 1,000 modular bricks, and calls it a very rough estimate. That rule uses masonry cement, which is cement only, with the mason adding sand on site. Pre-blended bagged mortar mix already contains sand, so by the bag charts it works out to about 25 to 27 of the 80 pound bags per 1,000 bricks (1,000 / 40 and 1,000 / 37 as arithmetic).
How Brick Size and Joint Width Change the Count
Brick size moves the count the most, from 6.75 per square foot for modular down to 4.55 for king size. The table below gives BIA Table 4 values at a 3/8 inch joint, so match the row to the brick you are actually buying.
| Brick size | Bricks per sq ft | Bricks per 100 sq ft | Mortar cu ft per 100 sq ft | Mortar cu ft per 1,000 brick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modular (nominal 4 x 2-2/3 x 8 in) | 6.75 | 675 | 5.5 | 8.1 |
| Standard (non-modular) | 6.55 | 655 | 9.5 | 14.5 |
| Queen (non-modular) | 5.5 | 550 | 6.7 | 12.2 |
| King (non-modular) | 4.55 | 455 | 6.5 | 14.2 |
Larger-face bricks cover more wall, so fewer fit in each square foot. Note that mortar does not fall in step with the brick count, because a bigger brick has different joint geometry. Confirm the brick type before you order, the same way you would check concrete block sizes for a block wall.
A Worked Example for a 100 Square Foot Wall
Take a 10 foot by 10 foot modular wall, which is 100 square feet, at a 3/8 inch joint. The wall-area method turns that into bricks, mortar and bags in a few steps. Every sum below is hand-checked.
- Bricks before waste. 100 sq ft x 6.75 bricks/sq ft = 675 bricks, which matches BIA’s 675 per 100 square feet.
- Add brick waste. 675 x 1.05 = 708.75, so order about 709 bricks after the 5 percent minimum breakage allowance.
- Mortar before waste. 5.5 cubic feet per 100 square feet, straight from BIA Table 4 for modular at a 3/8 inch joint.
- Add mortar waste. 5.5 x 1.20 = 6.6 cubic feet, using a mid-range 20 percent mortar waste allowance.
- Bags of Type N mortar mix. 675 / 40 = 16.9, so about 17 of the 80 pound bags by SAKRETE’s chart, or 675 / 37 = 18.2, about 18 bags by QUIKRETE’s chart.
The wall-area method is BIA’s own approach. It multiplies the net wall area (gross area minus openings) by a known quantity of brick and mortar per square foot. BIA calls it the most widely used estimating procedure because it is simple and accurate.
Key Points Before You Order
- Lead with 6.75 per square foot. That is the BIA Table 4 figure for modular brick at a 3/8 inch joint; 6.86 is only straight spec-size arithmetic.
- Mortar is separate. About 5.5 cubic feet per 100 square feet and 8.1 cubic feet per 1,000 bricks, both before waste.
- Match the brick. Standard is 6.55, queen is 5.5, and king is 4.55 per square foot, all from BIA Table 4.
- Mortar cement is not mortar mix. BIA’s “eight bags per 1,000 brick” is masonry cement; pre-blended Type N mix is about 25 to 27 of the 80 pound bags per 1,000 bricks.
- Check the footing too. A brick wall still needs a sound base, so see how deep footings should be and the foundations and footings calculators for that part of the job.
Enter your wall dimensions, brick size and joint to get bricks and mortar with waste built in: run the numbers in the brick and mortar calculator.
FAQs About Brick and Mortar Quantities
How many bricks are in one square foot?
About 6.75 modular bricks per square foot at a 3/8 inch joint, per BIA Technical Note 10 (675 per 100 square feet). Other sizes differ: standard is 6.55, queen is 5.5, and king is 4.55 per square foot.
How many bricks are in 100 square feet?
A modular brick wall needs 675 bricks per 100 square feet at a 3/8 inch joint, per BIA Table 4. Add at least 5 percent for breakage, so order about 709 before rounding up.
How much mortar do you need per 1,000 bricks?
BIA Table 4 lists 8.1 cubic feet of mortar per 1,000 modular bricks at a 3/8 inch joint, before waste. Add 15 to 25 percent for mortar waste on top of that figure.
How many bricks does an 80 pound bag of mortar mix lay?
About 35 to 40 standard bricks per 80 pound bag of Type N mortar mix. SAKRETE lists 40 and QUIKRETE lists 37, so plan for roughly one bag per 5 to 6 square feet of modular veneer.
Does joint size change how many bricks you need?
No. BIA lists the same brick count for 3/8 inch and 1/2 inch joints. A wider joint raises the mortar volume, from 5.5 to 6.9 cubic feet per 100 square feet of modular wall, not the brick count.
What is the wall-area method?
The wall-area method multiplies the net wall area, meaning gross area minus openings, by a known quantity of material per square foot. BIA calls it the most widely used estimating procedure because it is simple and accurate.
How much waste should you add to a brick order?
BIA advises adding at least 5 percent to the net brick quantity for breakage, and 15 to 25 percent to the net mortar quantity. These allowances are separate, so apply each to its own material.
Sources and Further Reading
References Used in This Article
- Brick Industry Association, Technical Notes on Brick Construction 10, “Dimensioning and Estimating Brick Masonry”, accessed 2026-10-21.
- QUIKRETE, Mortar Mix No. 1102 (Type N) data sheet, accessed 2026-10-21.
- SAKRETE, Type N Mortar Mix data sheet, accessed 2026-10-21.
These figures come from BIA Technical Note 10 and the Type N mortar bag data sheets. Use about 6.75 modular bricks per square foot and the BIA mortar figures, then add waste before you order. Reviewed for accuracy by Prof. Dr. Khalil Mudassar, PhD. Last updated 2026-10-21.
Shakeel Muzaffar is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief, with over 15 years of experience in digital publishing and online tool development. He oversees editorial quality and formula verification to ensure accurate, practical, and easy-to-use calculators.