Firewood Cost Calculator

• A full cord is 128 cubic feet stacked: 4 ft x 4 ft x 8 ft. A face cord is about 43 cubic feet, roughly one third.
• Delivered mixed hardwood runs [RATE:mixed_hardwood_cord] plus [RATE:delivery_fee] delivery (market estimates, not government data).
• Burn only wood under 20% (EPA Method 28 threshold) moisture. A $15 to $35 meter is the only way to prove it.
• Oak delivers 24 to 27 million BTU per cord versus pine at 14 to 16, per the USDA Wood Handbook.
• Buying April through June saves roughly 30%, about $90 per cord on a $300 baseline.
• Budget $150 to $375 per year for a chimney sweep on top of wood cost.

BTU output determines how much heat you actually get per dollar. A cheap cord of pine can cost more to heat your home than pricier oak.

Price per cord tells you almost nothing on its own. Heat output per cord varies by up to 90% (USDA Wood Handbook Table 5-1) between species. The metric that matters is cost per million BTU.

BTU values come from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory Wood Handbook, the federal reference standard for wood properties. Cord prices are market estimates from contractor surveys, not a government survey. No federal firewood price survey exists.

Pine looks cheap per BTU, and on paper it is. It also burns fast, leaves heavy resin deposits, and forces you to reload the stove twice as often. Hardwood wins on convenience, not raw math.

A full cord is 128 cubic feet stacked tight: 4 feet high, 4 feet deep, 8 feet long. That's the legal definition in most states. A face cord is one row deep, roughly 43 cubic feet, about a third of a cord.

The USDA Forest Service and state agriculture departments list firewood short-measure as a leading consumer complaint. The fix is simple. Get the dimensions in writing before delivery.

Do the math on the quote. If a supplier sells you a face cord for $180, your effective cost per full cord is $540. That's roughly double the estimated market rate for delivered hardwood.

After delivery, restack it yourself and measure. Height times depth times length should hit 128 cubic feet. A tidy stack that lands at 90 cubic feet is 30% short by volume (USDA Forest Service cord measurement guidelines).

Cord count depends on how you burn, not just house size. Under-ordering is the expensive mistake because January reorders run $50 to $150 per cord above spring pricing.

All dollar ranges are market estimates. Cold climate means winter lows below 0°F, like Minnesota or Maine. Mild means lows rarely under 20°F.

If you're new to a house, order the low end of your range in spring and add a cord in early fall once you've watched one cold snap.

Run the calculator defaults. Three cords of mixed hardwood at $150–$350 gives $450 to $1,050 for the wood. Add one delivery at $75 to $150.

Total: $525 to $1,200 for the season. That lands in the supplemental-heat scenario, enough to carry 20% to 40% of the heating load (EPA wood heater sizing guidance) on a 1,200 to 1,800 sq ft home in a moderate climate.

Your next move is three phone calls. Ask each supplier for stack dimensions in writing, the species mix, and how long the wood has been split. Then bring a moisture meter to the delivery.

Two quotes that both say "$300 a cord" can differ by 200% in delivered heat value (USDA Forest Service cord standards) in real value once you check dimensions and moisture.

The calculator prices wood and delivery. Your real first-season spend runs higher.

• Annual chimney sweep: $150 to $375. Not optional if you burn regularly.
• Moisture meter: $15 to $35, one time. The only tool that proves seasoning.
• Log rack or storage structure: $40 to $200, one time.
• Stacking service: $20 to $80 per cord if you don't stack it yourself.

Skipping the sweep is the worst trade on this page. Cleaning runs $150 to $375. A chimney fire rebuild runs $3,000 to $15,000. The Chimney Safety Institute of America recommends inspection annually or after every 80 fires.

Also worth noting: if you plan to buy box-store kiln-dried bundles as your primary heat, this calculator understates your cost by 3 to 5 times. Bundles work out to roughly $1,000 to $1,500 per cord equivalent.

Firewood prices peak November through February and bottom out April through June. Market consensus puts the spring discount near 30%, per Maine DOER Heating Fuel Price Survey seasonal data.

On a $300 baseline cord, that's about $90 saved per cord. A three-cord household saves roughly $270 by ordering in May instead of November.

Spring buying has a second payoff. Dense hardwoods like oak and hickory need 12 to 24 months to season properly. Wood bought in October has no time to dry.

The EIA biomass energy overview confirms moisture content is the primary driver of wood heat output.

Softwoods season in 6 to 12 months. Maple and birch need about 12.

Don't take the driver's word. Test before you sign anything or hand over cash.

• Split a piece and press a moisture meter to the fresh face. You want under 20% (EPA Method 28 threshold), ideally 15% to 19% (EPA certified wood heater standard).
• Check the split ends for radial cracks. Grey, checked ends mean dry. Bright and wet means green.
• Try peeling bark off a random piece. Seasoned wood sheds bark easily.
• Knock two pieces together. Dry wood cracks sharply. Green wood thuds.
• Lift a few pieces. Green oak can weigh twice as much as seasoned oak.

Green wood delivers roughly half the usable heat of seasoned wood because energy burns off evaporating water, a pattern documented by USDA Forest Service wood heating research.

Paying seasoned prices for green wood means paying full price for half the value, plus creosote buildup you'll pay to remove later.

Wood dries because air moves through it. A dumped pile stays wet for years.

• Elevate the stack off the ground on pallets or 2x4s.
• Leave the sides open. Cover the top only, with a tarp overhanging about a foot.
• Stack loosely with gaps between rows. Tight is slow.
• Put bark side up on the top layer so it sheds rain.
• Burn oldest wood first.

Keep the stack at least 3 feet from any structure. In termite-active regions push that to 20 to 30 feet. Termite remediation averages $1,000 to $3,000, which erases several seasons of firewood savings in one invoice.

If your wood still reads above 20% (EPA threshold) moisture after six months, the cause is almost always a dead pile with no airflow or ground contact wicking water back in.

Delivery runs $75–$150, and beyond 15 miles suppliers often add $25 to $100. Stacking adds $20 to $80 per cord.

Pick up yourself only if you know your truck bed volume. A standard 8-foot pickup bed loaded to the rails holds about a third to half a cord, per USDA Forest Service guidance. Three cords means six to nine trips.

Skip delivery when you're buying under a cord and live within 10 miles. Pay for it on any multi-cord order. Fuel and time usually beat the fee.

Stack it yourself unless mobility makes that unsafe. An hour of work saves $20 to $80 per cord and forces you to verify the volume you paid for.