Sheet yield & parts-per-sheet calculator
Work out how many parts fit on a sheet, how many sheets your run needs, and the material cost per part — the number to drop straight into a quote.
- Rotate to fit more. This tool tries both part orientations and keeps the better one — but a real nest can beat a plain grid, especially for L-shapes and triangles. Treat the number as a safe minimum.
- Gap ≥ your kerf, plus a little. Parts share cut lines only if they touch; otherwise leave at least a kerf-plus-margin gap (2–3 mm) so heat from one cut doesn't scorch its neighbour.
- Shared cutting lines save time and material. Butt straight-edged parts together with a single shared line and you halve both the gap and the cut length on that edge.
- Material/part is what to quote from. Feed the €/part figure straight into the cost calculator as your material cost — it already reflects the offcut you can't use.
How many parts fit on a sheet
Yield is a simple grid: divide the usable sheet (after edge margins) by the part size plus the gap between parts, in both orientations, and keep whichever fits more:
columns = ⌊(usable width + gap) ÷ (part width + gap)⌋, same for rows — parts per sheet = columns × rows.
From there, sheets needed is your quantity divided by parts per sheet (rounded up), and the material cost per part is the sheet price divided by parts per sheet. That per-part figure already carries your offcut waste, so it's the right number to drop into a quote.
- Edge margin — most machines can't cut right to the sheet edge; 5 mm is typical, more if the bed clamps intrude.
- Gap — space between parts so cuts don't overlap and heat doesn't scorch neighbours; 2–3 mm is common.
- Orientation — turning tall parts sideways often adds a whole extra row or column.
FAQ
How many parts fit on a laser sheet?
Divide the usable sheet size (sheet minus edge margins) by the part size plus the gap between parts, for both orientations, and take whichever fits more. For example 80×50 mm parts with a 3 mm gap on a 600×400 mm sheet (5 mm margin) fit about 42 per sheet. This calculator does both orientations for you.
How do I work out material cost per part?
Divide the cost of one sheet by how many parts you get from it. If a €12 sheet yields 42 parts, each part carries about €0.29 of material — and that figure already includes the offcut you can't use, so it's the number to put into your price.
Does the calculator account for nesting odd shapes?
It assumes a simple grid of rectangles, which is a safe minimum. Irregular shapes — L-shapes, triangles, parts that interlock — can be nested tighter by hand or with nesting software, so you'll often fit a few more than the grid estimate. It never over-promises.