How Many Bricks for a Wall?
Quick Answer
You need approximately 792 bricks
Based on: 5m long x 2.4m high wall, single skin stretcher bond, standard UK bricks (215 x 102.5 x 65mm), 10mm mortar joints, 10% wastage
How We Calculated This
Standard UK bricks measure 215mm x 102.5mm x 65mm. With a 10mm mortar joint, the “working size” of each brick becomes 225mm x 75mm (length x height).
In stretcher bond (the most common single-skin bond pattern), you need approximately 60 bricks per square metre of wall face.
- Wall area: 5m x 2.4m = 12m²
- Bricks needed (no wastage): 12 x 60 = 720 bricks
- With 10% wastage: 720 x 1.10 = 792 bricks
Why 60 Bricks per m²?
Each brick covers 225mm x 75mm = 0.016875m² of the wall face. Dividing 1m² by 0.016875 gives 59.26, which rounds up to 60 bricks per m². This figure is a well-established industry standard used by UK quantity surveyors.
Different Bond Patterns
- Stretcher bond (half-brick, single skin): 60 bricks/m²
- English bond (one-brick thick): 120 bricks/m²
- Flemish bond (one-brick thick): 120 bricks/m²
If you are building a one-brick-thick (225mm) wall in English or Flemish bond, double the quantity to 120 bricks per m². For our 12m² wall, that would be 1,584 bricks with 10% wastage.
Mortar Requirements
For a stretcher bond wall, you need approximately 0.02m³ of mortar per m² of brickwork. For our 12m² wall:
- Mortar volume: 12 x 0.02 = 0.24m³
- Using a 1:4 cement:sand mix, that is roughly 1 bag of cement (25kg) and 10 bags of building sand (25kg each)
Wastage Allowances
- 10% — standard allowance for a competent bricklayer
- 15% — recommended for DIYers or complex designs with lots of cuts
- 5% — minimum for straight runs with no features
Tips
Always order all your bricks from the same batch to avoid colour variation. Store bricks on a level surface and keep them covered. If the wall is structural or over 1.2m high in a garden, check your local Building Control requirements.