Count your laminate sheets
Enter the area of shutters and exposed panels, not the whole carcass.
How this calculator works
- Surface = shutter area × faces factor. The 1.9 factor for outer plus balancing reflects that the inner sheet is usually a cheaper 0.8 mm plain, so it is counted at 0.9 of a full sheet's cost.
- Area to buy = surface × wastage factor.
- Sheets = ceiling(area to buy ÷ sheet area). Always rounded up, and always ordered from one batch.
- Adhesive = one kilogram per two sheets, minimum one kilogram, at ₹280 per kilogram for a good synthetic rubber contact adhesive.
- Edge banding is priced per running foot of exposed edge, which you measure separately — a shutter has banding on all four edges, so a 2 × 7 ft shutter carries 18 running feet.
- Labour = surface area × ₹45, the Mumbai rate for pressing and trimming laminate on a prepared carcass.
| Item | Rate used | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Standard laminate, 1 mm | ₹1,450 / sheet | ₹45 per sq ft — the volume grade |
| Textured / high-gloss, 1 mm | ₹2,200 – 3,800 / sheet | Fingerprint-resistant matt costs more again |
| Balancing laminate, 0.8 mm | ₹650 – 900 / sheet | Plain white or grey, inner faces only |
| 0.8 mm PVC edge band | ₹22 / running ft | Lifts at corners within two to three years |
| 2 mm PVC edge band | ₹55 / running ft | Machined radius, survives knocks — the standard |
| Acrylic matching band | ₹120 / running ft | For acrylic shutters, near-invisible joint |
| Adhesive | ₹280 / kg | One kilogram covers about two sheets both sides |
| Pasting labour | ₹45 / sq ft | Pressing and trimming on a prepared carcass |
Design and build under one accountable roof
Worked example — 120 sq ft of shutters
| Step | Arithmetic | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Shutter area | as entered | 120 sq ft |
| Outer + balancing | × 1.90 | 228 sq ft |
| Wastage at 12% | × 1.12 | 255.4 sq ft |
| Sheets at 32 sq ft | ceiling(255.4 ÷ 32) | 8 sheets |
| Laminate | 8 × ₹1,450 | ₹11,600 |
| 2 mm edge band | 80 ft × ₹55 | ₹4,400 |
| Adhesive | 4 kg × ₹280 | ₹1,120 |
| Pasting labour | 228 × ₹45 | ₹10,260 |
| Total | sum | ₹27,380 |
The two details that decide how laminate ages
The first is the edge band. A 0.8 mm PVC band is glued to a square edge and it lifts — at corners first, then along the top edge of anything near heat or steam. A 2 mm band is machined with a small radius, sits in a rebate and survives being knocked by a vacuum cleaner. The cost difference across a whole flat is perhaps ₹18,000. The visual difference in year four is the difference between joinery that looks maintained and joinery that looks tired.
The second is the balancing laminate. A sheet of laminate on one face of a plywood shutter pulls as it cures and as humidity changes; laminate on both faces pulls equally and the shutter stays flat. Contractors save ₹700 a shutter by skipping the inner sheet, and the shutters bow within a year. It is the single most common defect we are called in to inspect on other people's work, and it cannot be fixed without replacing the shutter.
One more practical note: laminate patterns run directionally. A wood-grain laminate laid with the grain running horizontally on one shutter and vertically on the next will be visible from across the room. Specify grain direction on the drawing, and ask for all shutters in one run to come from the same batch — laminate, like tile and fabric, is dyed in lots.
Sheet, adhesive and edge-band prices here are what the market charges in October 2026 and are nobody’s audited rate. The pasting labour figure is ours, taken from joinery Greenbox has made and fitted, and it is the only line on this page that represents our work rather than a purchase. Treat the output as a planning figure: accurate enough to brief a landlord, a bank or a family, and not accurate enough to sign a contract against.
What this tool does not cover
- The plywood carcass underneath — see the plywood sheet calculator.
- Acrylic, PU, membrane and veneer finishes, which are priced per sq ft of shutter rather than per sheet.
- Post-forming, curved shutters and profile-wrapped edges, all of which need factory work.
- Hardware, hinges and handles.
- Site conditions — pasting laminate below 20°C or in monsoon damp gives a weaker bond, and good fabricators will say so.
- For a comparison of laminate against acrylic and PU on the same carcass, use the material cost comparison tool.
Selected work by Greenbox Design Studio. Tap any image to enlarge.
Frequently asked questions
How many sq ft is one laminate sheet?+
A standard sheet is 8 × 4 ft, which is 32 square feet. Ten-foot sheets at 40 sq ft are available in some ranges and are useful for full-height wardrobe shutters where a 7 ft shutter would otherwise waste most of an 8 ft sheet.
Do I need laminate on the inside of shutters?+
Yes. A shutter laminated on one face only will bow toward that face within a year in Mumbai humidity, and the doors stop aligning. A plain 0.8 mm balancing laminate on the inner face costs about ₹700 per shutter and prevents it entirely.
What does laminate work cost per sq ft?+
Roughly ₹45 per sq ft for the laminate itself at volume grades, plus ₹45 per sq ft of pasting labour and about ₹5 for adhesive. Edge banding is separate at ₹22 to ₹120 per running foot depending on type.
Is 2 mm edge banding worth the extra cost?+
Yes, and it is the highest-return small upgrade in joinery. A 0.8 mm band lifts at corners within two to three years; a 2 mm band is machined with a radius and survives daily knocks. Across a whole flat the difference is around ₹18,000.
How much laminate wastage should I allow?+
Twelve per cent for standard shutters. Eight if the shutters are large and uniform, twenty for a run of narrow drawer fronts where nothing nests. Order the whole job in one batch — laminate colour varies between production lots.