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How much artificial grass do I need?

It feels like it should be simple — length times width. But artificial grass comes on fixed-width rolls, so the amount you actually buy is usually a fair bit more. Here's how to get it right first time.

Step 1: measure your lawn

Measure the longest length and the widest width of the area in metres (or feet — the calculator converts either way). For an L-shaped or irregular garden, split it into rectangles, work each out separately, and add them together. Always round measurements up, never down.

Step 2: understand why length × width isn't enough

Artificial grass is manufactured on rolls of a fixed width — in the UK almost always 1m, 2m or 4m wide (some suppliers also do 1.5m and 3m). It's then cut to whatever length you ask for. Crucially, you pay for the full roll width even if your lawn is narrower.

So a lawn that's 4.2m wide won't fit a single 4m roll — you'd need a second strip, and suddenly you're buying far more than the 4.2m² × length your tape measure suggested. A simple length × width sum almost always leaves you short.

Step 3: think in "strips" and joins

Lay the grass so every piece runs the same direction (the pile should all lean the same way, or joins become obvious). Each strip is one roll-width wide and runs the length of your lawn. The number of strips you need across the lawn decides how many joins (seams) you'll have:

• A wider roll (4m) usually means fewer joins — neater, but more potential waste if your lawn is narrow.
• A narrower roll (1m or 2m) often wastes less on small or narrow areas, but means more joins to tape and glue.

A worked example

Say your lawn is 6m long and 5m wide:

• 1m wide: 5 strips of 1m × 6m = 30 m² (a perfect fit, but 4 joins).
• 3m wide: 2 strips of 3m × 6m = 36 m² (6 m² spare, just 1 join).
• 4m wide: 2 strips of 4m × 6m = 48 m² (18 m² spare, 1 join).

Same lawn, very different amounts — which is exactly why it pays to compare widths rather than guess.

Don't forget a little extra

Lengths are usually sold by the whole metre, which naturally gives you a small trimming margin. Even so, measure carefully and allow a little spare for cutting clean edges and lining up the pile direction.