What does a cut list look like?

A table with one row per part type: part name, quantity, length, width, material, and any grain or edging notes. Sheet parts carry two dimensions; linear parts carry one.

Should quantity be per item or per job?

Per job. Writing 6 gables for three cabinets avoids multiplication errors at the saw. Put the per-item count in the notes if it helps the build sequence.

Do I list finished sizes or oversize?

Finished sizes. If you intend to cut oversize and trim, note the allowance in the notes column rather than building it into the dimensions, or it gets applied twice.

What format should a cut list be in for import?

CSV or XLSX, one unit throughout, numbers without unit suffixes, one row per part type, no merged cells or totals rows inside the data.

Is a cut list the same as a bill of materials?

No. A BOM covers everything the job consumes including hardware and finish. A cut list covers only the pieces that get cut from stock.

Guide · 6 min read

Cut list examples

A blank template only gets you so far. What most people actually want when they search for a cutting list example is a filled-in one: real part names, real dimensions, and enough rows to see how the columns get used. Below are three complete examples covering the three situations you are likely to be in - a single piece of sheet-goods furniture, a repeating run of cabinets, and a linear framing job - plus notes on the format itself and what changes when the list is going into software rather than onto a clipboard.

Open free sheet cut list optimizer Cut list template

The columns a cut list needs

Every cut list is the same handful of columns. Add more and people stop reading them; use fewer and the person at the saw has to ask.

Length and width are always finished sizes, after any allowance you intend to make. If you plan to cut oversize and trim, say so in the notes column rather than quietly inflating the numbers, or the next person will add the allowance twice.

Column	Holds	Example
Part	What the piece is called on the drawing	Side, left
Qty	How many identical pieces	2
Length	Long finished dimension	1800 mm
Width	Short finished dimension (sheet parts only)	300 mm
Material	Stock the part is cut from, including thickness	18 mm birch ply
Grain	Whether the part may be rotated	Locked
Edging	Which edges get banded, if any	Front long edge
Notes	Anything the operator must know	Drill shelf pins before assembly

Example 1: bookcase in 18 mm plywood

A 1800 mm tall, 800 mm wide, 300 mm deep bookcase with five fixed shelves and a rebated back. Two materials, so two groups - the 6 mm back never nests with the 18 mm carcass.

Note that the shelves are 764 mm rather than 800 mm: the sides are 18 mm each, so the internal width is 800 − 36 = 764 mm. Getting that subtraction wrong is the single most common cut list error, and it is invisible until assembly.

Bookcase cut list calculator

Part	Qty	Length	Width	Material	Grain
Side	2	1800	300	18 mm birch ply	Locked
Top	1	764	300	18 mm birch ply	Locked
Bottom	1	764	300	18 mm birch ply	Locked
Shelf	5	764	292	18 mm birch ply	Locked
Plinth	1	764	100	18 mm birch ply	Free
Back	1	1790	790	6 mm birch ply	Locked

Shelves are 292 mm deep rather than 300 to sit behind the front edge. Back is sized for a 5 mm rebate on all four sides.

Example 2: three base cabinets, 720 × 560, in melamine

Repeating casework is where a cut list stops being a list and starts being a small database. Three identical 800 mm base cabinets, 720 mm high and 560 mm deep, built frameless from 18 mm white melamine with a 16 mm back in a groove.

The quantities are per-job, not per-cabinet, which is the convention that avoids arithmetic at the saw. Write the per-cabinet count in the notes if the crew builds one at a time.

Kitchen cabinet cut list calculator What belongs on a cabinet cut list

Part	Qty	Length	Width	Material	Edging
Gable	6	720	560	18 mm white melamine	Front edge
Deck, bottom	3	764	560	18 mm white melamine	Front edge
Stretcher, front	3	764	100	18 mm white melamine	Front edge
Stretcher, rear	3	764	100	18 mm white melamine	None
Shelf, adjustable	3	760	540	18 mm white melamine	Front edge
Back	3	700	780	16 mm white melamine	None
Toe kick	3	800	150	18 mm white melamine	Top edge

Two gables per cabinet, hence 6. Shelves are cut 4 mm narrower than the internal width so they drop in without scraping.

Example 3: deck frame in treated 2×8 and 2×6

Linear jobs drop the width column entirely - the stock profile carries it - and add a stock length column, because which bundle you buy changes the answer.

A 4.8 × 3.6 m deck on 400 mm joist centres: rim joists and joists in 2×8, blocking in 2×6. Joists are 3.6 m less two rim thicknesses, so 3.6 m − 2 × 38 mm = 3524 mm.

Deck cut list calculator Run a linear cut list

Part	Qty	Length	Stock	Notes
Rim joist	2	4800	Treated 2×8	Full length, no splice
End joist	2	3524	Treated 2×8
Joist	11	3524	Treated 2×8	400 mm centres
Blocking	11	362	Treated 2×6	Staggered mid-span
Ledger	1	4800	Treated 2×8	Bolt pattern per detail

Buy 2×8 in 3.6 m and 4.8 m; a linear optimizer will tell you the split that leaves the least drop.

Formatting for software instead of a clipboard

A cut list you intend to import needs slightly stricter habits than one you are going to read yourself. Nothing exotic - just consistency.

One unit throughout: all millimetres or all inches, never mixed by row
Numbers in number columns - "1800" not "1800 mm" or "~1800"
One row per part type with a quantity, not one row per physical piece
Material spelled identically on every row that shares a stock item
No merged cells, no blank spacer rows, no totals row inside the data
Fractions written consistently if you work imperial - 23 1/4 or 23.25, not both

Cutlistor imports CSV and XLSX up to 5 rows on the free tier and matches your column headings to its own, so you rarely have to rearrange a spreadsheet you already keep.

Blank cut list template Importing an Excel cut list

What these lists turn into

None of the three examples above is a cutting plan yet. Each is the input. Run example 1 through a sheet optimizer and you get one 18 mm sheet with the eight carcass parts nested on it and a labelled offcut, plus a separate 6 mm diagram for the back. Run example 3 through a linear optimizer and you get a bar-by-bar cutting sequence with the drop on each stick.

That gap between list and plan is exactly where material gets wasted, because eyeballing it is unreliable in a way that feels reliable at the time.

Sheet cut layout produced from a cabinet cut list, showing nested panels and their labels — The same parts list, optimized: parts placed on stock with kerf accounted for and the offcut dimensioned.

FAQ

What does a cut list look like?: A table with one row per part type: part name, quantity, length, width, material, and any grain or edging notes. Sheet parts carry two dimensions; linear parts carry one.
Should quantity be per item or per job?: Per job. Writing 6 gables for three cabinets avoids multiplication errors at the saw. Put the per-item count in the notes if it helps the build sequence.
Do I list finished sizes or oversize?: Finished sizes. If you intend to cut oversize and trim, note the allowance in the notes column rather than building it into the dimensions, or it gets applied twice.
What format should a cut list be in for import?: CSV or XLSX, one unit throughout, numbers without unit suffixes, one row per part type, no merged cells or totals rows inside the data.
Is a cut list the same as a bill of materials?: No. A BOM covers everything the job consumes including hardware and finish. A cut list covers only the pieces that get cut from stock.