To work out how to measure a wall for wallpaper, you need just two numbers for each wall: its width and its height, both to the nearest centimetre. This guide shows UK and European decorators where to measure from, how to deal with chimney breasts, sloping ceilings and doors, and how to turn those measurements into drops and rolls without running short.
Quick answer: Measure the width of each wall and add them together, then measure the height from skirting to ceiling at three points and use the largest. Divide the total width by the roll width to get the drops. Add 10 cm trim plus the pattern repeat to the height, then see how many drops each roll gives.
What Do You Need to Measure a Wall for Wallpaper?
You need a 5 m tape measure, a pencil and paper, and a stable stepladder for the top of the wall. A laser measure is quicker for high ceilings and stairwells but is not essential. Before you start, write down the roll width, roll length and pattern repeat from the label or product page of the paper you want, because they change the maths.
- Roll size: a standard UK and European roll is about 53 cm wide and 10.05 m long. The Wikipedia wallpaper article describes the European roll as about 52 cm by 10 m, and American rolls as wider and shorter, so always read the label.
- Pattern repeat: the vertical distance before the design starts again, in centimetres. Plain and free match papers have no repeat.
- Match type: straight match, offset (half drop) match or free match. Offset designs usually waste more paper.
How Do You Measure the Width of a Wall for Wallpaper?
Measure each wall from corner to corner at about waist height, to the nearest centimetre, and write each figure down separately. Graham & Brown’s guide to measuring your room recommends this nearest centimetre approach and measuring one wall at a time, then adding up the total at the end.
- Run the tape along the wall, tight into both corners. Keep it level, not sagging.
- On older walls, measure again near the ceiling and near the skirting, and use the largest figure.
- Repeat for every wall you plan to paper and add them up. For a plain rectangular room, this equals the perimeter: 2 x (length + width).
Then divide the total width by the roll width and round up. That gives the number of drops, the full height strips you will hang. A 3.5 m wall with 53 cm paper needs 3.5 / 0.53 = 6.6, so 7 drops.
How Do You Measure the Height of a Wall for Wallpaper?
Measure from the top of the skirting board to the ceiling at three points along each wall (both ends and the middle) and use the largest figure for every drop. Ceilings and floors are rarely perfectly level, and a drop cut to the lowest reading will leave a gap.
- If you will stop at coving, a picture rail or a dado rail, measure to that line instead of the ceiling.
- If the skirting will come off, measure to the floor, then refit the skirting over the paper.
- Write the height to the nearest centimetre. As the table below shows, 5 cm can change how many drops you get from each roll.
Each drop is cut longer than the wall: allow about 10 cm for trimming (5 cm at the top and 5 cm at the bottom) plus one full pattern repeat so every strip can start at the same point in the design.
How Many Drops Do You Get From a Roll of Wallpaper?
A standard 10.05 m roll of plain paper gives 4 drops on walls up to 2.40 m high, but only 3 drops once the wall reaches 2.45 m. Divide the roll length by the drop length and round down, because the offcut at the end of a roll is too short to hang.
| Wall height | Drop length (plain, plus 10 cm trim) | Drops per 10.05 m roll (plain) | Drops per roll (53 cm repeat) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.20 m | 2.30 m | 4 | 3 |
| 2.30 m | 2.40 m | 4 | 3 |
| 2.40 m | 2.50 m | 4 | 3 |
| 2.45 m | 2.55 m | 3 | 3 |
| 2.70 m | 2.80 m | 3 | 3 |
| 3.00 m | 3.10 m | 3 | 2 |
| 3.30 m | 3.40 m | 2 | 2 |
This is why the drop method beats dividing the wall area by the area of a roll. An area sum ignores the unusable offcuts and can leave you a roll or more short. Our wallpaper calculator uses the drop method and adds a spare roll.
Should You Subtract Doors and Windows When Measuring for Wallpaper?
As a rule, do not subtract doors and windows from your measurements. Graham & Brown advises that leaving them in gives just the right amount of excess for trimming, matching and mistakes. Paper is still needed above and below every opening, and those short pieces rarely come from offcuts on patterned paper.
The exception is a very large opening, such as patio doors or a wide bay of windows running nearly floor to ceiling. In that case you can deduct its width from the total, and the calculator has a field for it.
How Do You Measure Awkward Walls for Wallpaper?
Break any awkward wall into simple flat faces, measure each face’s width separately and use the tallest point of each face as its height.
Chimney breasts and alcoves
Measure the front of the chimney breast, both side returns, and the back wall and sides of each alcove. Add every face to your total width. Returns are easy to forget and can add a metre or more in an older house.
Sloping ceilings
Measure the width under the slope as normal, and take the height at the tallest point of that section. The shorter drops under the slope will use paper less efficiently than the numbers suggest once you match the pattern, so treating them as full height gives a safe order.
Stairwells
Measure the longest drop, usually from the bottom stair to the landing ceiling, which can be far taller than a room wall. Work out each section’s drops separately, because a long drop may only get 2 strips from a roll. Use a stable platform or hire proper access equipment rather than a stepladder on the stairs.
Worked Example: Measuring a Bedroom
Example: a 3.8 m by 3.2 m bedroom is being papered with plain 53 cm by 10.05 m paper. The height measures 2.43 m, 2.44 m and 2.45 m at three points, so use 2.45 m. Leave the door and window in.
- Total width: 2 x (3.8 m + 3.2 m) = 14.0 m
- Drops needed: 14.0 / 0.53 = 26.4, so 27 drops
- Drop length: 2.45 m + 0.10 m trim = 2.55 m
- Drops per roll: 10.05 / 2.55 = 3.9, so 3 drops
- Rolls: 27 / 3 = 9 rolls, so buy 10 with one spare
Taking one quick reading and rounding it down to 2.40 m would make each drop 2.50 m, a roll would give 4 drops and the order would be only 7 rolls. That runs 2 rolls short, and a later order might come from a different batch. You can reproduce both results by entering 3.8, 3.2 and 2.45 (then 2.40) into the HousyTools wallpaper calculator with a repeat of 0.
Before you hang anything, check that every roll carries the same batch number. Graham & Brown explains that wallpaper is printed in batches, and rolls from different batches can show differences in colour and pattern once hung. If you are painting the ceiling and woodwork first, the paint calculator works out those litres from the same measurements.
How to Measure a Wall for Wallpaper FAQs
Do you measure wallpaper from the skirting board or the floor?
Measure from the top of the skirting board if it is staying in place, because you trim the paper to the skirting. Measure from the floor only if you are removing the skirting and refitting it over the paper.
How much extra should I allow when cutting wallpaper drops?
Allow about 10 cm per drop for trimming, 5 cm at the top and 5 cm at the bottom, plus one full pattern repeat on patterned paper. Then buy one spare roll from the same batch for mistakes and future repairs.
How do I measure one feature wall for wallpaper?
Measure its width and divide by the roll width, rounding up, to get the drops. Measure the height at three points and use the largest. A 3.5 m wide, 2.4 m high wall needs 7 drops, which is 2 rolls of plain paper.
Should I measure in metres or feet for wallpaper?
Use metres and centimetres, because UK and European rolls are sold in metric sizes such as 53 cm by 10.05 m. If your tape only shows feet and inches, convert carefully: 1 foot is 30.48 cm.
Why measure the wall height in more than one place?
Ceilings and floors are rarely level, especially in older homes. Measuring at both ends and the middle and using the largest figure stops drops coming up short, and a few centimetres can change the drops per roll.
Can I work out wallpaper by square metres?
You can estimate that way, but it often undercounts because it ignores the offcut left at the end of each roll. Counting drops and drops per roll, as shown above, gives a more reliable number of rolls.
For more decorating tools, including ceiling paint and painting time, see our paint and decorating calculators.
Checked October 2026. Sources: Graham & Brown: How to measure for wallpaper, Graham & Brown: What is a batch number, Wikipedia: Wallpaper, How our calculators work.
