About

About BuildMetricLab

BuildMetricLab is a free library of UK construction calculators for self-builders, tradespeople and homeowners. Every tool estimates a quantity or cost from the dimensions you enter — concrete, roofing, timber, masonry, flooring, drainage and more — in a few seconds, with no sign-up and no data sent anywhere.

What we make

The catalogue spans concrete and foundations, roofing, timber and framing, masonry and brickwork, flooring, painting and decorating, plumbing and heating, insulation, driveways and hard paving, drainage and earthworks, and planning and budgeting. Each page works metric-first with an imperial toggle where it helps, and shows the formula behind the result so you can audit the maths.

How it's made

Every calculator runs in your browser through one shared, open math engine. Each formula is a pure function of your inputs and well-known material constants, and the trade-default constants are cited on each tool. Nothing you type is stored or sent to a server, the site sets no advertising cookies, and there is no cross-site tracking.

Estimates, not professional sign-off

The tools are a planning aid. They do not replace structural, gas, electrical, drainage or Building Regulations advice, and they are not a certificate of compliance. For anything load-bearing or regulated, consult a suitably qualified professional — a chartered structural engineer, a Gas Safe registered engineer or an NICEIC-approved electrician as applicable — before committing to work. See the full disclaimer.

Who builds BuildMetricLab

Jobi

Creator & Maintainer, BuildMetricLab

Jobi is the creator and maintainer of BuildMetricLab, a free library of construction calculators for the UK and US covering concrete and foundations, roofing, timber and framing, masonry and brickwork, flooring, drainage and earthworks, and more.

Every calculator runs through one shared, open math engine. Each formula is a pure function of the numbers you enter and well-known material constants, and the working is printed on the page so you can audit it. Jobi writes and maintains that engine, sources the trade-default constants and cites them on each tool, and keeps the catalogue accurate — no sign-up, no paywall, and no inputs ever sent to a server.

BuildMetricLab is a planning aid, not a substitute for professional advice. The tools estimate quantities and costs; structural, gas, electrical, drainage and Building Regulations decisions stay with a suitably qualified engineer or your building control body. Every tool page shows its formula, its sources, and what it does not do, so an estimate can be checked before any order or work.

Builds and maintains the shared construction math engine
Sources UK and US trade-default material constants and cites them on every tool
Writes the calculator pages, formulas and worked examples
Keeps the catalogue free and private — no sign-up, no tracking, in-browser only

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Feedback and ideas

If a calculator behaves oddly, a figure looks wrong, or you want a tool that isn't on the site yet, email [email protected]. Every message is read.

BuildMetricLab is operated by Brightscale Labs Limited (Exeter, England).