Stucco Calculator
Traditional stucco is a three-coat cement system that lasts 50-80 years when installed properly. This stucco calculator adds up scratch, brown, and finish coat bags from your wall square footage, lines up the quantities with standard 80-lb QUIKRETE stucco mix and QUIKRETE stucco finish coat bags, and produces a stucco estimate you can hand to a supplier.
Stucco Calculator Square Feet to Bags
This stucco calculator square feet method works for any 3-coat or 1-coat job:
- Scratch coat (3/8"): 1 bag covers ~27 sq ft
- Brown coat (3/8"): 1 bag covers ~27 sq ft
- Finish coat (1/8"): 1 bag covers ~70 sq ft
For a 1,000 sq ft wall with 3-coat: 37 scratch + 37 brown + 14 finish = 88 bags plus waste.
QUIKRETE Stucco Calculator
This works as a QUIKRETE stucco calculator because QUIKRETE Base Coat Stucco (product 1139-80) and QUIKRETE Finish Coat Stucco (product 1201) use the same 27 sq ft/bag and 70 sq ft/bag coverage. The QUIKRETE stucco finish coat comes in standard colors (white, pewter, sand) and matches the yield used here.
Bag prices at QUIKRETE stucco Home Depot (2025): base coat $10-12/bag, finish coat $13-16/bag.
QUIKRETE Stucco Coverage per Bag
QUIKRETE stucco coverage per bag (80-lb bag):
- 3/8 inch scratch or brown coat: 27 sq ft per bag
- 1/8 inch finish coat: 70 sq ft per bag
- 3/16 inch heavy texture finish: 47 sq ft per bag
La Habra Stucco Calculator
The La Habra stucco calculator uses the same method with slightly higher bag prices (La Habra Base 200 averages $13-15/bag). Coverage is within 5% of QUIKRETE because both products are portland cement-based. Select "La Habra" in the brand dropdown to get matching pricing.
How to Calculate Stucco Yards
To know how to calculate stucco yards for a truck-mix job (over 3,000 sq ft), multiply bags x 0.6 cu ft/bag and divide by 27 cu ft/yd. A 2,000 sq ft, 3-coat job = 176 bags = 105.6 cu ft = 3.9 cu yd. For any job over 4 cu yd, ready-mix from a plaster plant is usually cheaper than bagged.
Stucco Estimate Example
Stucco estimate example for a 1,200 sq ft exterior wall (1-story ranch, 3-coat system, no openings):
| Item | Bags | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Scratch coat (QUIKRETE 1139-80) | 45 | $540 |
| Brown coat (QUIKRETE 1139-80) | 45 | $540 |
| Finish coat (QUIKRETE 1201) | 19 | $285 |
| Lath + accessories | - | $350 |
| Materials subtotal | 109 | $1,715 |
| Labor (pro, 3-coat application) | - | $4,800 |
| Total stucco estimate | $6,515 |
Stucco Estimate Calculator vs Pro Bid
A stucco estimate calculator is a starting point. Pro bids for 3-coat stucco on a 1,200 sq ft wall typically land between $6,000 and $9,000 in 2025. Big variables:
- Lath and scratch coat specialist vs full crew: affects labor by 20-30%
- Texture complexity: smooth finishes require extra finish coat and skilled hand
- Height and scaffold: 2-story + full scaffold adds $1,000-2,500
- Color integral vs color coat: integral color adds $150-300/cu yd
- Repairs to existing substrate: $3-8/sq ft if failing areas
Coats Explained
- Scratch coat: first coat over lath, scored with a trowel to give the next coat tooth
- Brown coat: second coat, applied thick and trued to a flat plane
- Finish coat: thin top coat that supplies texture and final color
In 1-coat (modern synthetic) systems, there is one thicker cement-fiber coat + finish. These systems are 30-40% faster to install but cost the same in material because the proprietary single bags are more expensive than base-coat bags.