Wallpaper for a 20 × 20 room
Short answer
A 20 × 20 ft room with an 8-ft ceiling needs about 12 rolls of wallpaper (standard US double rolls) — that's 35 full-height strips covering roughly 589 sq ft of wall after doors and windows. Pattern-repeat rolls need a little more.
Rolls needed
12
Paper cost
$480
Strips
35
Wall run
80 ft
Wallpapering a 20 × 20 room
A 20 × 20-foot room with an 8-ft ceiling has a wall run (perimeter) of about 77 ft after doorways. Wallpaper hangs in vertical strips one roll-width wide, so that's 35 full-height strips covering roughly 589 sq ft — about 12 standard US double rolls.
That count assumes a free (random) match. A patterned paper changes it: every strip has to start at the same point in the design, so a straight or drop match wastes part of each strip and can add a roll or more. Always buy from the same batch (dye lot) and grab one extra roll — reordering a matching lot later is the real headache.
What changes how many rolls
| Factor | Effect on rolls |
|---|---|
| Wall run (perimeter) | ~589 sq ft of net wall here after doors and windows |
| Ceiling height | Taller walls mean longer strips and fewer strips per roll |
| Roll format | US double, Euro, and UK rolls hold different lengths — strips per roll vary |
| Pattern match | Free wastes least; a straight or drop match rounds each strip up to a repeat |
| Pattern repeat | A bigger repeat (inches) adds more waste per strip and can add a whole roll |
| Doorways & extras | Doors come out of the wall run; always add one spare roll from the same dye lot |
Rolls by pattern match
Rolls needed for this 20 × 20 room by pattern match — a repeat wastes part of every strip.
| Pattern match | Repeat | Rolls |
|---|---|---|
| Free / random match | no repeat | 12 |
| Straight match | 19″ repeat | 18 |
| Drop / offset match | 19″ repeat | 18 |
Wallpaper hanging tips
- Buy all your rolls from the same dye lot (batch number) — colors drift between print runs, and a mid-wall mismatch is unfixable.
- Order about one roll extra beyond the estimate; you'll want it for mistakes now and patch repairs years later.
- Note the pattern match before you buy: a big drop-match repeat can add 15–20% waste the area math never shows.
- Prime and size the wall first, especially over fresh drywall — it helps the paper grip and makes future removal far easier.
Your exact room
Open the wallpaper calculatorOther room sizes
Frequently asked questions
How many rolls of wallpaper for a 20 × 20 room?
About 12 standard US double rolls for the walls of a 20 × 20 ft room with an 8-ft ceiling — that's 35 full-height strips after one doorway. A wallpaper with a pattern repeat needs a little more.
How much does it cost to wallpaper a 20 × 20 room?
At about $40 per double roll the paper alone runs roughly $480 for a 20 × 20 room. Designer papers cost far more per roll; enter your real roll price in the calculator.
Should I add extra for a pattern repeat?
Yes. A straight or drop (offset) match forces every strip to start at the same point in the pattern, so each drop rounds up to a whole repeat and you get fewer strips per roll. The calculator adds this automatically once you enter the repeat.