Grass seed calculator
Pick your grass type and whether you’re starting a new lawn or thickening an existing one. Seeding rates vary a lot by grass.
Seed needed
35 pounds
- Bags to buy
- 5 7 lb bags
- Rate used
- 7 lb per 1,000 sq ft
- Lawn area
- 5,000 sq ft
How it works
Seed is spread at a rate per 1,000 square feet. The calculator divides your lawn area by 1,000 and multiplies by a typical new-lawn rate for the grass you chose. Overseeding a thin lawn uses about half the new-lawn rate.
These are middle-of-the-range figures. Seed blends and coated seed vary, so if the bag gives a rate, use the bag’s number.
Example
With lawn length 100 ft, lawn width 50 ft, grass type: tall fescue (about 7 lb per 1,000 sq ft), new lawn or overseeding: new lawn on bare soil, bag size 7 lb, the answer is 35 pounds.
Tips before you buy
- Cool-season grasses like fescue, bluegrass and ryegrass do best seeded in early fall. Warm-season grasses like Bermuda prefer late spring.
- Spread half the seed in one direction and the other half crosswise for even coverage.
- Keep the top inch of soil consistently moist until the seedlings are established, usually a few weeks.
- More seed isn’t better. Overcrowded seedlings compete and thin out.
Common questions
How much grass seed do I need for 5,000 square feet?
About 35 pounds of tall fescue for a new lawn, or roughly 17 pounds to overseed.
How much grass seed per 1,000 square feet?
It depends on the grass: roughly 6–8 lb for tall fescue, 2–3 lb for Kentucky bluegrass, and 1–2 lb for hulled Bermuda on a new lawn.
How much seed do I need to overseed?
About half the new-lawn rate for the same grass.