Construction · firewood
Firewood cord calculator.
Measure a stack, or enter your pickup or dump truck bed and how high it is filled. Get cords, face cords and cubic feet, and see what you actually paid per cord. Runs in your browser; nothing is sent or stored.
Wood to measure
Cords and price
Worked example
A stack 96 in long, 48 in high and 16 in deep is 96 x 48 x 16 / 1,728 = 42.67 cubic feet. Divided by 128, that is 1/3 cord, which is also one face cord of 16 in logs (4 ft x 8 ft x 16 in). A pickup bed 96 in x 60 in filled 24 in deep is 80 cubic feet: 0.625 cord if neatly stacked, or 0.44 cord if the load is loose and holds 70% as much wood.
Formula and sources
Method: plain geometry. Volume in cubic feet = length x width x height in inches / 1,728. Cords = cubic feet / 128. A face cord of log length L inches is 4 ft x 8 ft x L, so it equals L / 48 of a cord. For a truck, cords = bed length x bed width x fill height / 1,728 / 128 x packing factor. Price per cord = price / cords.
Cord definition: NIST Handbook 130, Uniform Regulation for the Method of Sale of Commodities, section 2.4.1.2: a cord is the amount of wood contained in a space of 128 ft3 when the wood is ranked and well stowed (pieces in a row, touching and parallel, stacked compactly). Section 2.4.4 says the terms "face cord," "rack," "pile," "truckload" or similar should not be used when selling fuel wood. Source: NIST Handbook 130, 2025 edition (doi 10.6028/NIST.HB.130-2025), text read 2026-10-02. NIST has since issued a newer edition, so check the current one. Handbook 130 is a model regulation: your state's own weights and measures law decides what applies where you buy.
Loose loads: the 128 ft3 definition applies to ranked wood. A loose pile contains air, so a truck bed of thrown wood holds fewer cords than the bed volume suggests. The loose percentage on this page is an adjustable assumption of ours, not a figure from NIST or an extension service; stack a measured section of your load to find the real number.
Boundary: this is a measuring aid, not a legal or consumer-protection ruling. It does not know wood species, moisture or weight, and the price comparison only uses the figures you enter.
Frequently asked questions
How many cords of wood fit in a pickup truck?
It depends on the bed and how the wood is packed. A bed 96 in long, 60 in wide and filled 24 in deep holds 80 cubic feet of space, which is 0.625 cord only if the wood is neatly ranked. Thrown in loose, the same space holds less wood because of air gaps, so the cord count is lower. Enter your own bed size and fill height.
How much is a cord of wood?
A cord is the amount of wood in 128 cubic feet when it is ranked and well stowed, for example a stack 4 ft high, 4 ft wide and 8 ft long (NIST Handbook 130, Method of Sale of Commodities, section 2.4.1.2).
What is a face cord?
A face cord is a regional term for a stack 4 ft high and 8 ft long that is one log length deep, so its size depends on log length: 16 in logs make 1/3 of a cord, 12 in logs 1/4, 24 in logs 1/2. The Handbook 130 model rule says the terms face cord, rack, pile and truckload should not be used when selling fuel wood (section 2.4.4), so ask for cords and fractions of a cord, which your state may require.
Is a rick the same as a face cord?
Usage varies by region, and a rick has no defined size in the model rule. Ask the seller for the length, height and depth of the stack in feet, then enter them here.
Is $X a fair price for this load?
Enter what you paid and the calculator shows the price per cord for the amount actually delivered. Compare it with local quotes for a full cord. It does not know your local market, so the comparison price is yours to supply.
Why does a loose truck load hold fewer cords than the bed volume?
A cord is defined for wood ranked and well stowed, with pieces touching and parallel. Wood dumped loose leaves air spaces, so a bed full of loose wood contains less wood than the same space neatly stacked. The packing percentage on this page is an editable assumption, not a published standard: stack a measured section of your load to find your own figure.