What Is a Cord of Wood?

The full cord

A cord is the standard legal unit for firewood in the US and Canada. It is a pile of wood stacked tightly, with pieces parallel, that measures 4 ft high, 4 ft deep and 8 ft long. That is 4 × 4 × 8 = 128 cubic feet, about 3.62 cubic meters.

The 128 cubic feet includes the air between logs. How much solid wood that represents depends on how straight and evenly split the pieces are and how tightly they are stacked. It does not need to be one pile of exactly those dimensions: any tight stack with the same total volume is a cord.

Face cord, rick and other names

A face cord is a stack 4 ft high and 8 ft long but only one row deep. Its volume depends entirely on log length. "Rick" is a regional word that often means the same thing, though usage varies. Other common terms, such as "a truckload," "a pickup load" or "a run," have no standard size at all.

Sixteen inches is the most common log length for stoves and fireplaces, so a face cord is usually one third of a full cord. Whenever a seller quotes a face cord or rick, ask how long the logs are and how deep the stack will be.

How to compare prices

Convert every quote to a price per full cord. With 16 in logs, multiply the face cord price by 3. With 12 in logs, multiply by 4. With 24 in logs, multiply by 2. Then compare. A face cord that sounds cheap can cost more per cord than a full-cord delivery.

Also ask whether the wood is seasoned and what species it is. Dense hardwoods such as oak, maple and hickory give more heat per cord than softwoods like pine. A cord of green, wet wood will not burn well this winter.

Worked example: checking a delivery

You ordered a full cord of 18 in wood for a large wood stove. Stacked in one neat row against the fence, the pile is 14 ft long and 5 ft high.

14 ft × 5 ft × (18 ÷ 12) ft = 105 cu ft

That is 105 ÷ 128 = 0.82 of a cord, or 2.19 face cords of 18 in logs, about 2.97 m³. The delivery is 23 cu ft short, close to one fifth of a cord. A full cord of 18 in logs in a single row 4 ft high would be 21 ft 4 in long. Measure your own stack with the firewood calculator.

Tips for buying firewood

• Stack the wood before measuring. Thrown wood takes up more space than the same wood stacked, and loose loads are easy to overstate.
• Many states and provinces require sellers to state the quantity in cords or fractions of a cord and to provide a receipt. Contact your local weights and measures office if a delivery is short.
• Check moisture with a meter on a freshly split face. Seasoned wood reads below 20 percent.
• Buy wood cut near where you live. Moving firewood long distances can spread tree pests, and some areas restrict it.

Metric countries

In Europe and parts of Canada, firewood is often sold by the stere, one cubic meter of stacked wood. A full cord is 3.62 steres. In Australia, firewood is usually sold by weight, by the tonne. Weight varies with species and moisture, so a tonne of wet wood contains less fuel than a tonne of dry wood.

Safety

Store wood outside, off the ground and away from the house walls. Bring in only what you will burn in a day or two. Burn only dry, untreated wood; never burn painted, treated or pressure-treated lumber. Have chimneys inspected yearly and keep smoke and carbon monoxide alarms working.

Frequently asked questions