Wardrobe cut list calculator
A freestanding wardrobe is a tall box: two sides, a top, a bottom on a plinth, dividers for sections, shelves and hinged doors. Four measurements decide every part — and the sheet count comes from the layout, because 2 m sides do not share a board the way small parts do.
How the parts are sized
Sides
Full height and full depth; everything else fits between them.
Top, bottom and plinth
Width − 2 × board thickness. The bottom sits on a plinth at the front.
Dividers and shelves
Dividers run between top and bottom; shelves are 2 mm short of the section and 20 mm shallower.
Doors
Full overlay: 2 mm gap round the edge, 3 mm between doors, covering everything above the plinth.
A worked example
The divider is 1884 mm — the height less the plinth, the top and the bottom. Each door gets five hinges by the same rule as the optimiser, so a 1.9 m door does not twist between too few cups; see the hinge calculator.
Choosing the board
| Part | Usual choice |
|---|---|
| Carcass | 18 mm MFC, white or a decor — Egger boards are 2800 × 2070 mm |
| Doors | 18 mm MFC or painted MDF; lock the grain on a woodgrain decor so doors run vertically |
| Back | 3 mm hardboard or MDF, or 6–8 mm for a wardrobe fixed to the wall through the back |
| Shelves over 800 mm | Thicker board or a support in the middle — check with the shelf sag calculator |
Fix it to the wallA tall wardrobe can tip forward when a door or drawer is loaded. Fit an anti-tip fixing to the wall, whatever the list says.
Then plan the sheets
Open the list in the optimiser to see every sheet: sides and doors are long parts, so an 8x4 board fits fewer of them than its area suggests, and a 2800 × 2070 Egger board often wastes less. The same list gives edging in metres, a PDF plan for the saw, and hinge holes placed on each door for a CNC. See how many sheets.
Questions
Does it include the hanging rail?
It gives the rail length for each section. Rails are metal tube and are cut from length, not from the board — the linear cut calculator plans several of them.
Can I make sliding doors?
This calculator sizes hinged overlay doors. For sliding doors, follow the track maker’s sizes and enter the doors in the optimiser by hand.
Does it add drawers?
Not here. Size the drawer boxes with the drawer box calculator and add them to the same list in the optimiser.
Why do my sides not fit on the sheet?
A 2440 mm sheet takes sides up to about 2430 mm after trim. For a taller wardrobe choose a 2800 mm Egger board or a 3050 mm sheet.
Plan your cut list now
Free, in the browser, with no account. Layouts, edging totals and machine files from one list.