How to use this calculator
- 1Enter the plot size — pick marla (225 or 272¼ sq ft), kanal, sq ft or m² from the menu next to the box — and the number of storeys. Or choose to type the covered area if you have the plan.
- 2Check the covered share. Estimators often assume about 80 % of a small plot on each floor; your authority's bye-laws may allow less (DHA Lahore: about 72 % of a 5 marla plot), and bigger plots need wider clear spaces.
- 3Choose grey structure or a complete house, and the quality. The rates fill in from September 2026 figures; replace them with your builder's rates.
- 4Choose how the house is built — RCC frame or load-bearing brick walls — to fill in the material rules, or type your own.
- 5Read the cost in rupees and lakh, and the rough cement, steel, bricks, sand and crush.
The formula
- 01Covered area = plot × ground share + plot × upper share × (storeys − 1) (or typed)
- 02Grey cost = covered area × grey rate · Finishing = covered area × finishing rate
- 03Complete house = grey cost + finishing · Lakh = cost ÷ 100,000
- 04Cement bags = covered sq ft × bags per sq ft, rounded up · Steel = covered sq ft × kg per sq ft
- 05Bricks = covered sq ft × bricks per sq ft · Sand, crush = covered sq ft × cft per sq ft
Builders in Pakistan quote per square foot of covered area — every roofed floor added up — not per sq ft of plot. A 5 marla plot (1,125 sq ft) built double storey with 80 % covered on each floor is 1,800 sq ft of covered area.
The starting rates are the rounded middle of what builders and property portals published between April and September 2026: grey structure PKR 3,000 (economy), 3,300 (standard) and 3,700 (premium) per sq ft, and finishing PKR 2,500, 4,000 and 6,000 per sq ft. A complete standard house is therefore about PKR 7,300 per sq ft. Rates move with cement and steel prices, so treat them as a starting point and replace them with a current quote.
Material quantities per sq ft depend mostly on how the house carries its weight. An RCC frame (columns and beams) uses more cement and steel; a house whose brick walls carry the slabs uses more bricks and much less steel. The two settings fill in the rules from published figures for each; your engineer's bill of quantities is always better.
Worked example
A 5 marla (225 ft²) plot built double storey, with 80% of the plot covered on each floor, has 1,800 ft² of covered area.
At 3,300 per ft² for the grey structure and 4,000 per ft² for finishing (standard quality, September 2026), a complete house costs about 13,140,000 rupees — 131.4 lakh.
As an RCC frame it needs roughly 810 bags of cement, 7.2 t of steel, 36,000 bricks, 3,240 ft³ of sand and 2,520 ft³ of crush.
Tips before you buy
- Get the structure designed by an engineer and the map approved before you start; changes later cost far more.
- Ask two or three builders for an itemised quote (BOQ) and compare what each one includes, not just the rate per sq ft.
- Buy cement and steel in stages as the work needs them; prices change, and cement stored for months loses strength.
- Check the steel grade (Grade 60) and brick quality (first class, "awwal") yourself on delivery.
- Keep 10–15 % of the budget aside for price rises and changes during the work.
Frequently asked questions
What is the construction cost per sq ft in Pakistan in 2026?
Published rates in April–September 2026 put the grey structure at about PKR 2,500–4,500 per sq ft and a complete house at about PKR 4,500–10,000 per sq ft or more, depending on city, quality and builder. The calculator starts from PKR 3,300 grey and 7,300 complete (standard) — replace them with a local quote.
How much does it cost to build a 5 marla house?
Double storey with 80 % covered on each floor, a 5 marla (1,125 sq ft) plot has about 1,800 sq ft of covered area: about PKR 59 lakh for the grey structure and about PKR 1.3 crore complete at standard September 2026 rates. Enter your own plot, storeys and rates for your figure.
What is included in grey structure?
Usually the foundations, RCC (columns, beams, slabs), brickwork, plaster, and the electrical conduits and plumbing pipes inside the walls and slabs. Finishing adds the floors, doors, windows, paint, fittings and kitchen. Builders' lists differ, so check each quote.
How many bags of cement do I need per sq ft?
Rules of thumb give about 0.40–0.50 bags of 50 kg per sq ft of covered area for an RCC frame house, and itemised lists for Pakistani houses with load-bearing brick walls about 0.24–0.31. The calculator shows both; your engineer's bill of quantities is the real figure.
How much steel (sarya) is needed per sq ft?
About 3.5–4.5 kg per sq ft for an RCC frame by common rules of thumb, and about 1.5 kg per sq ft in itemised lists for 5 and 10 marla houses whose brick walls carry the slabs (about 3 tons for a 5 marla double storey). The structural design decides.
What is covered area?
The roofed floor area of all storeys added up. It is less than the plot times the storeys, because the bye-laws require open space at the front, back and sides — in DHA Lahore about 72 % of a 5 marla plot and 63 % of a 10 marla plot can be covered on the ground floor.
Also searched as: construction cost calculator Pakistangrey structure cost calculator5 marla house construction cost10 marla house construction cost1 kanal house construction costconstruction rate per square foot Pakistanhouse material calculator Pakistan
Sources
- Zameen construction cost calculator – 5 marla grey structure, Islamabad: PKR 2,715 per sq ft, 2,025 sq ft covered (prices updated 9 Sep 2026)
- Zameen construction cost calculator – 10 marla grey structure, Lahore: PKR 2,848 per sq ft (9 Sep 2026)
- Zameen construction cost calculator – 1 kanal complete house, Lahore: PKR 4,471 per sq ft (9 Sep 2026)
- Toolsfluent – Construction cost calculator Pakistan 2026: grey PKR 2,800 / 3,200 / 3,600 and finishing 2,000 / 3,200 / 5,000 per sq ft; 80 % ground-floor coverage (rates verified 19 Aug 2026)
- Glorious Builders – Construction cost in Pakistan 2026: grey PKR 2,900–3,900 and finishing PKR 3,800–6,500 per sq ft by category (19 Apr 2026)
- Avenir Developments – Grey structure cost calculator: Lahore PKR 3,000–4,000 per sq ft; RCC frame material quantities (rates reviewed Q4 2026)
- Paknest Builders – Construction rates 2026: grey PKR 2,000–3,800, turnkey PKR 5,000–9,000+ per sq ft
- MK Builders – House construction cost in Pakistan (5 Jul 2026): grey PKR 2,800–4,500, turnkey PKR 6,700–8,800 (standard) per sq ft
- DHA Lahore Construction & Development Bye-laws 2026: clear spaces by plot size (5 marla, 25 × 45 ft: 5 ft front, 3 ft rear, 3 ft side) and first-floor covered area (5 marla 100 % of ground floor, 7–10 marla 82 %, 1 kanal 80 %)
- Zameen blog – A+ 5 marla house (1,925 sq ft): 50,000 bricks, 525 bags of cement, 3 tons of steel, 3,850 cft of sand, 1,500 cft of crush (26 Mar 2021)
- Zameen blog – A category 10 marla house (3,300 sq ft): 90,000 bricks, 800 bags of cement, 5 tons of steel, 8,200 cft of sand, 2,600 cft of crush (10 Mar 2020)
- ACCO – Grey structure cost in Pakistan: 5 marla (1,975 sq ft) 56,000 bricks, 605 bags, 3 tons of steel, 3,052 cft of sand, 1,721 cft of crush (29 Mar 2025)
- Houseyog – Construction material estimation (6 Mar 2026): cement 0.40–0.50 bags and steel 3.5–4.5 kg per sq ft for RCC frame houses
- Construction cost estimator thumb rules: cement 0.4 bags and steel 4 kg per sq ft — civil-engineering-calculators.com
- Grey Structure Calculator Pakistan (rate model 29 Aug 2026): cement 0.43 bags, steel 4.2 kg, sand 1.75 cft, crush 1.45 cft per sq ft
Formulas last reviewed: September 30, 2026 ·How we check our formulas