A worked answer

How Much Fabric for a King Quilt?

A king quilt in our size guide finishes at 110 by 95 inches — a 76 by 80 inch king mattress with drop on the sides and foot. The back, the batting and the binding have straight answers. The top does not.

Two widths of backing fabric seamed together behind a smaller quilt top
Backing is the quilt plus overhang, seamed from as few widths of fabric as possible.

The numbers below are for that 110 by 95 inch quilt, with 4 inches of overhang for the backing and batting, 2 1/2 inch binding strips, and ordinary 42 inch quilting cotton. Change the quilt in the card and they follow.

Materials for a 110 × 95 inch quilt

Four inches of overhang on the back and the batting. Binding is 2 1/2 inch strips. The top is not in this list, because a pieced top is not a rectangle.

Binding, 42" fabric
7/8 yard
Backing, 42" fabric
8 5/8 yards
Backing, 108" fabric
3 3/8 yards
Batting to cut
118" × 103"

The top is not a rectangle

A pieced king top is not "110 times 95, divided by the width of the fabric." Seams, sashing, and the way a block is cut all change the yardage, and a single number would be a guess wearing a precise face. Design the top, or follow a pattern that already counted the pieces. Quiltler's fabric calculator does that from the design itself.

People still want a shopping range. A simple king top is often somewhere around 9 to 12 yards in total, split across several fabrics, before backing and binding. Treat that as a budget for the shop, then replace it with the pattern's list or a design before you cut.

Wide backing earns its keep on a king

A king top at 110 by 95 inches needs a back about 118 by 103 with four inches of overhang. On ordinary 42 inch quilting cotton that is three panels and more than eight yards. One hundred eight inch wide backing covers the shorter dimension in a single panel, cutting the backing purchase to a little over three yards — still a large piece to handle, but far fewer seams.

California kings are longer; use the card or the quilt sizes guide. Binding for this size is covered on how much binding for a king quilt, and the backing-only walkthrough is how much backing for a king quilt.

Related calculators

FAQ

How much fabric do I need for a king quilt?

For a 110 by 95 inch king, plan the backing, batting and binding with a calculator, and take the top yardage from the pattern or from a design. A simple pieced top is often in the range of 9 to 12 yards total, but that is a budget, not a cutting number.

How much backing for a king quilt?

A 110 by 95 inch top with 4 inches of overhang needs a back about 118" × 103". On 42 inch fabric that is 3 panels (8 5/8 yards). Wide backing, around 108 inches, is usually 3 3/8 yards.

What size is a king quilt?

110 by 95 inches is the size in Quiltler's guide for a 76 by 80 inch king mattress with drop on the sides and foot.

Design the quilt, then let the yardage follow

These calculators answer one question at a time. The studio counts every piece in a design, including binding, backing, and batting.

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