SettingsSettings for this calculationUS
Internal length at the waterline.
At the WATERLINE, not the coping and not the shell. A floating cover is cut to the shape of the water surface, so anything above the water — the coping overhang, the beam, the surround — is not part of it. On a pool with a roll-out step or a beach entry, the cover follows that shape too, and a rectangle ordered for a pool with a shaped end leaves the end uncovered.
Internal width at the waterline.
Order this generous and trim on site rather than the other way round. A cover slightly too large is cut to fit in an afternoon with scissors; a cover slightly too small leaves a strip of open water permanently, and an uncovered strip goes on evaporating and losing heat at the full rate — which defeats most of what the cover was bought to do.
Average of the shallow and deep ends.
For a pool with a constant slope, average the two end depths. For one with a distinct deep end and a long shallow section, weight by area rather than taking a plain average — a plain average overstates the volume.
A cover covers the water; a liner wraps the shell.
This choice changes WHAT is being measured, not just the price. A cover follows the water surface — one flat shape. A liner follows the shell: the floor, all four walls, the slope into the deep end and every step, which on a typical pool is a far larger area than the surface. Picking the wrong one here gives an answer for the wrong product and it will be wrong by more than a margin.
Material area
338 sq ft
Rectangular geometry. A freeform pool needs a template or a survey — the perimeter of a curved shell is longer than its bounding rectangle suggests.
- Water surface
- 338 sq ft
- Wall area
- 390 sq ft
- Liner area with 8% allowance
- 786.24 sq ft
- Water volume
- 62.59 yd³
- Area in sq ft
- 338 sq ft
They open the calculator with your figures already in it
Pool Cover & Liner Area Calculator: 338 sq ft — shown in imperial, US market. The link sets both, so the result they see is the one on your screen.
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How this was calculated
Formula source(s)
- Solar covers are cut to the water surface; overlapping the coping traps debris and shortens cover life
- Liner area = floor + walls, plus an allowance for the bead track and floor radius
Inputs used
- Pool length
- 26 ft
- Pool width
- 13 ft
- Average depth
- 5 ft
- Material
- Solar or winter cover — surface only
- Liner allowance
- 8
Intermediate steps
- Water surface
- 338 sq ft
- Wall area
- 390 sq ft
- Liner area with 8% allowance
- 786.24 sq ft
- Water volume
- 62.59 yd³
- Area in sq ft
- 338 sq ft
Confidence note: Rectangular geometry. A freeform pool needs a template or a survey — the perimeter of a curved shell is longer than its bounding rectangle suggests.
What this calculation does not cover
- Assumes a rectangular pool with a uniform average depth. Steps, benches and a distinct deep end all change the wall area.
- A liner should be ordered against the manufacturer's measuring form, not a calculated area.
Estimated cost — your price
This site holds no price list for this material — local prices vary too much to publish honestly. Enter your supplier's price and the result is costed with it.
Part of a bigger job
This trade is one line of a job takeoff. Run the whole job and every other trade comes back with it, off the same measurements.
Computed in your browser — nothing you enter is uploaded. Presented in US customary units and US trade terminology. Where a formula follows a published standard, that standard and its edition are cited beside it on this page; where none governs, the page says so. Local amendments override model codes — verify against the code in force where you build.
Sources checked 2026-09-17 · v1.1.0
Regulatory standards & verification citations2
- Solar covers are cut to the water surface; overlapping the coping traps debris and shortens cover life
- Liner area = floor + walls, plus an allowance for the bead track and floor radius
Cite this page
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