Shingle Bundle Calculator

• Field shingles — the main surface. Almost all asphalt is sold at 3 bundles per 100 sqft (one square). Heavy designer / luxury profiles can run 4–5.
• Ridge cap — runs the top of every hip and ridge. Cheaper to buy purpose-made cap shingles than to cut from field; one cap bundle covers about 35 LF.
• Starter strip — runs along the eave and rakes (sometimes). One starter bundle covers ~120 LF. Don't skip this — adhesive-strip starter beats cutting from field every time.

"Waste" is misleading. Most "waste" is actually cuts at hips, valleys, rake edges, and around penetrations — the bundle has to cover the cut piece and the offcut. The number to use:

• 10% — clean rectangle, simple gable, no penetrations.
• 12–15% — typical hip roof with 4–6 penetrations.
• 18–22% — cut-up roof with multiple dormers or many valleys.

Ridge cap is the most likely line item to come up short. A leftover bundle costs $40 and goes in the attic for a future repair; a same-day yard run costs an hour of crew time and risks a different lot number. Order an extra bundle of cap, and a half-bundle of field for the same reason.

Asphalt shingles are dye-lot batched. Two bundles of the same color from different production runs don't always match. If you're buying in stages — initial order plus a make-up order later — you may end up with visible color banding. Order the entire job from one delivery if you can; if you have to add later, buy a bundle from the same shipment now and stage it.

Reviewed by Eurocraft, a Texas-licensed general contractor. Coverage assumptions follow standard asphalt-shingle install practice; designer profiles and synthetic slate / cedar shake have different bundle counts and aren't covered here.