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Column and Footing Concrete Calculator

Concrete, steel and excavation for a set of isolated footings and the columns above them. Steel is estimated as a share of concrete volume, which is how quantities are checked on site.

Also called: footing concrete calculator, column concrete.

%
Total concrete (m³)
4.73

4.73 m³ across 8 footings and columns: 3.46 m³ in the footings and 1.27 m³ in the columns. Reinforcement comes to about 556.4 kg.

Footings (m³)
3.46
Columns (m³)
1.27
Reinforcement (kg)
556.4
Excavation (m³)
5.4
Cement bags at M20
38.11
How this is calculated
Method and background

How this is calculated

Footing volume plus column volume, multiplied by the count. Steel is taken as a percentage of concrete volume and converted at 7850 kg per cubic metre, which is the rule of thumb quantity surveyors use for a first check: around one percent for footings, one and a half to two for columns, and more for heavily loaded members. Excavation adds a working allowance around the footing.

volume = count * (footing volume + column volume)
n
Number of footings (count)
s
Column side (metres)
h
Column height (metres)

Worked examples

Each of these is asserted on every build. If a change to the engine ever moved one of these answers, the build would fail before the page could print it.

eight footings with columns

How many footings
8
Footing length (m)
1.2
Footing width (m)
1.2
Footing depth (m)
0.3
Column side (m)
0.23
Column height (m)
3
Steel as a share of concrete volume
1.5%

Total concrete (m³)4.73

1.2 * 1.2 * 0.3 * 8 and 0.23² * 3 * 8, worked by hand

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no steel allowance leaves concrete alone

How many footings
1
Footing length (m)
1
Footing width (m)
1
Footing depth (m)
0.3
Column side (m)
0.23
Column height (m)
3
Steel as a share of concrete volume
0%

Total concrete (m³)0.46

boundary

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a single small footing

How many footings
1
Footing length (m)
0.6
Footing width (m)
0.6
Footing depth (m)
0.15
Column side (m)
0.15
Column height (m)
1
Steel as a share of concrete volume
1%

Total concrete (m³)0.08

degenerate case

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Method and limits

What it assumes

  • Isolated square or rectangular footings with square columns.
  • Excavation allows 150mm of working space each side.

What it deliberately does not model

  • The steel percentage is a checking figure, not a design. Actual reinforcement comes from the structural drawings.
  • Sloped or stepped footings need to be computed section by section.

Sources

Formula version 1.0.0 · definition 1.0.0 · India · Report a problem with this calculator

Frequently asked questions

Is the steel percentage reliable?
As a sanity check, yes. As a purchase quantity, no. It is the figure used to see whether a bar bending schedule is roughly right, and the schedule governs.