Card Making Calculator — Plan Cuts, Score Lines, Envelopes & Waste

How to use this planner

Enter the sheet size, margin, and folded card dimensions to compute how many panels will fit. Adjust bleed, kerf, fold mode, and rotation preferences to match your cutting strategy.

Use the presets as a starting point for common stock (A4, Letter, 12×12) or switch to custom to match your own sheets. Units toggle between millimeters and inches without losing the layout ratio.

Methodology

The model simulates a grid of rectangles that include bleed and kerf, then counts how many trimmed panels fit inside the usable sheet after removing the unprintable margins. Rotation is permitted when it yields a denser packing.

• Waste is estimated from the remaining sheet area after the rows and columns are placed.
• Rotation is only applied if you allow it and it produces higher counts.
• The table summarizes each row so you can confirm orientation and spacing before cutting.

Full original guide (expanded)

Let sheet size be \(S_w \times S_h\), unprintable margin per edge \(m\), bleed per edge \(b\), kerf (gap) between pieces \(k\). Let unfolded card piece be \(C_w \times C_h\). For a single fold with side fold: \(C_w = 2\,W\), \(C_h = H\). For top fold: \(C_w = W\), \(C_h = 2\,H\). For flat panels: \(C_w = W\), \(C_h = H\). Effective sheet area: \(S'_w = S_w - 2m\), \(S'_h = S_h - 2m\). Place rectangles with gutters \(g = k + 2b\) in a grid. Rows (no rotation): \(r = \left\lfloor \dfrac{S'_h + k}{C_h + g} \right\rfloor\), columns: \(c = \left\lfloor \dfrac{S'_w + k}{C_w + g} \right\rfloor\). If rotation allowed, compute \(r^*, c^*\) swapping \(C_w, C_h\); choose the max \(N = \max(rc, r^*c^*)\). Waste: \(\text{waste} = 1 - \dfrac{N\,(C_w\,C_h + g\,C_w + g\,C_h + b^2)}{S'_w S'_h}\) (approx. area-based with gutters & bleed).