Drywall Mud Calculator
Joint compound in gallons, pounds, and buckets for a drywall job, plus the joint tape and screws that go with it.
Total surface being finished: every wall and ceiling, both sides of a partition.
10% covers dried-out pan mud and a third coat that runs heavy.
Joint compound needed
5.0 gallons
about 72 lb of ready-mixed compound
4.5 gal buckets
2
Joint tape
175 ft
1 roll of 250 ft
Drywall screws
625
Coverage rates come from the drywall manufacturers' own estimating tables: 100 square feet of board takes about 0.9 gallons (12-14 lb) of ready-mixed compound, 35 feet of tape, and 125 screws for a standard three-coat finish.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much joint compound do I need per sheet of drywall?
A 4x8 sheet is 32 square feet, so at the standard rate of about 0.9 gallons per 100 square feet, each sheet takes roughly 0.3 gallons (about 4 lb) of ready-mixed compound for a full three-coat tape-and-finish. Ten sheets is about 3 gallons.
How many square feet does a 4.5 gallon bucket cover?
About 500 square feet of drywall, which is the manufacturer's own rating for a 4.5-gallon pail of all-purpose compound and matches the industry estimating tables. That assumes taping plus two finish coats -- a skim coat over the whole surface or a heavy texture uses the bucket faster.
Should I use taping, topping, or all-purpose compound?
The quantities here are the same either way. All-purpose does the whole job from one bucket; taping compound bonds the tape better and topping compound sands easier, so some finishers use both. Lightweight all-purpose is lighter per gallon (a 4.5-gallon pail is around 40 lb instead of 60) but covers the same area.
Does the level of finish change the amount?
Yes. These figures are for a standard Level 4 finish (tape, two coats over joints and fasteners). A Level 5 skim coat over the entire surface roughly doubles the compound; a Level 3 (one fill coat, for heavy texture) uses a little less.