ToolNestFree Cut List Optimizer for Woodworking
Last updated: October 20, 2026
Quick answer: Measure twice, cut once — and waste as little lumber as possible. This free cut list calculator solves the woodworker's version of the cutting-stock problem: enter every part you need (length + quantity), your stock length (8-ft boards, 10-ft 2x4s, any linear stock), and your saw's kerf, and the optimizer packs your cuts into the fewest boards with the least waste. Every stick gets a visual cutting diagram showing exactly where each part falls, the kerf gaps between cuts, and what's left over — plus a printable shop ticket, CSV export, and a shareable link. Everything runs in your browser; no signup, no uploads.
Linear (1D) optimizer for boards, trim, molding, pipe, and conduit. Packing uses first-fit/best-fit decreasing heuristics plus an improvement pass — optimal for small lists, near-optimal for large ones.
✓ Free forever · ✓ No signup · ✓ Tool inputs stay in your browser — never sent to our servers.
How to Use the Cut List Optimizer
- List your parts: type one cut per line as length × quantity — e.g. 48 x 3 for three 48-inch pieces, 36, 2, or just 18. Fractions like 24 1/2 work too.
- Set your stock: enter the board length you're buying (8-ft boards = 96 in, 10-ft 2x4s = 120 in) and pick inches or millimeters.
- Enter your saw kerf — typically 1/8 in (3.2 mm) for a table saw — plus any trim allowance if your stock has rough factory ends to square off.
- Choose a mode: Least waste packs every board tightest; Fewest sticks may use fewer boards at slightly more waste per board. Then click Optimize cuts.
- Read each stick's diagram left to right, print the cut ticket for the shop wall, download the CSV for your records, or copy the share link to send the plan to a helper.
Why Use Our Cut List Optimizer?
- Kerf-aware packing — first-fit/best-fit decreasing heuristics plus a swap improvement pass; the blade's bite is subtracted between every cut, so parts come out full length.
- Visual cutting diagrams — every stick rendered as an SVG bar: parts in order, kerf gaps marked, trim zones shaded, offcuts labeled with their exact length.
- Two optimization modes — least total waste, or fewest boards used, depending on whether lumber cost or trip count matters more.
- Shop-ready outputs — printable cut ticket, CSV download, and a shareable URL that encodes the whole job (stock, kerf, and cut list).
- 100% client-side — your project measurements never leave your browser; no signup, no account, works offline once loaded.
Common Use Cases
- Deck and fence builds: Turn a 2x4 and 2x6 shopping list into an exact board count before the lumber-yard run — pickets, rails, and balusters pack surprisingly tight once kerf is accounted for.
- Cabinet face frames and drawer boxes: Dozens of repeated rails, stiles, and drawer sides are where a cut optimizer earns its keep: the diagrams become your cut order at the table saw.
- Trim and molding runs: Baseboard, casing, and crown molding come in fixed lengths with expensive per-foot pricing — least-waste mode pays for itself on the first room.
- Pipe, conduit, and metal stock: Plumbers and electricians cut EMT conduit, copper, and PVC from 10-ft sticks; the same 1D math applies, and the CSV becomes the material takeoff.
- Lumber-yard shopping lists: Walk in knowing exactly how many boards of each length to buy — no guessing, no third trip back for the two pieces you forgot.
Cut List Optimizer vs Alternatives
- trade-schools.net's Cut-List Optimizer: The closest direct rival: a solid kerf-aware linear optimizer with a share link. Ours adds per-stick SVG diagrams, a printable shop ticket, CSV export, trim allowance for rough ends, and a documented improvement pass — the full job, not just the packing.
- CutList Plus (desktop software): The woodworker's power tool: full 2D sheet nesting, inventory, and project costing — and a paid desktop app to learn. Overkill if you only need linear cuts optimized in thirty seconds in a browser.
- A spreadsheet: Maximum flexibility and the old shop standby. But you're hand-packing the stock problem, one formula typo silently corrupts the count, and there are no cutting diagrams to follow at the saw.
- Pencil and paper: The traditional method — fine for three cuts on a Saturday. Hopeless for thirty, and it never tells you the waste percentage before you buy.
Bottom line: for full sheet-goods nesting, dedicated 2D software earns its keep. For linear stock — boards, trim, molding, pipe, conduit — a kerf-aware 1D optimizer with diagrams and a printable shop ticket is the fastest path from parts list to cut plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is kerf and why does it matter for a cut list?
Kerf is the width of material your saw blade turns into sawdust on every cut — about 1/8 inch (3.2 mm) for a typical table saw blade. Ignore it and the error compounds: five cuts on one board eats 5/8 inch, so your last pieces come up short. A kerf-aware optimizer subtracts the kerf between every cut, which is why the diagrams here show thin gaps between parts.
How many 8-foot boards do I need for my project?
That is exactly what the optimizer answers: enter your cut list with the stock length set to 96 inches and it reports the board count, total waste, and waste percentage. As a rough rule before optimizing, add up your parts' total length, divide by the stock length, and round up — then add 10–15% for kerf and offcuts you can't reuse.
What is the cutting stock problem?
The classic optimization puzzle: pack a set of required lengths into the fewest fixed-length stocks with minimum waste. It's NP-hard, so tools use heuristics — this one sorts parts longest-first (first-fit/best-fit decreasing) then runs an improvement pass that swaps parts between sticks to squeeze out more savings. Optimal for small cut lists, near-optimal for large ones.
Should I cut the longest pieces first?
Yes — that's the standard shop rule, and the optimizer does it automatically by packing longest-first. Long parts are the hardest to place, so they get first pick of fresh boards; short parts then fill the gaps. Cutting short pieces first is how you end up with a pile of unusable offcuts.
How much extra lumber should I buy?
Buy 10–15% more than the parts total for typical furniture and trim work — more if your cut list has many long pieces (they waste more) or you're new to the saw. The optimizer's waste percentage tells you the true number for your exact list: if it reports 8% waste on 100 board-feet of parts, 110 board-feet of stock covers it with margin.
Can this optimize plywood sheet cuts too?
Not directly — this is a linear (1D) optimizer for boards, trim, molding, dowels, pipe, and conduit. Sheet goods (plywood, MDF) need 2D nesting, which is a different math problem. Workaround: decide your rip widths first, then run each rip width here as a linear job — the per-stick diagrams double as your rip-cut plan.