How to Calculate the Weight of Steel Tubing

Knowing the exact weight of a steel tube is essential for accurate cost estimation, design integrity, and efficient shipping. Whether you’re a contract manufacturer, structural engineer, or DIY fabricator, understanding how to calculate steel tube weight helps ensure precision at every stage of production.

This guide shares the simple steel tube weight formulas the experts at Leonhardt Manufacturing use every day — including ready-to-use equations for round, square, and rectangular tubing in both inch-pound and metric units.

1. Round Steel Tube (Pipe) – Most Common

Weight per foot (lbs/ft) = 10.68 × (OD − wall) × wall

Where:

OD = Outside Diameter (inches)
wall = Wall thickness (inches)

Example: 2″ SCH40 pipe OD = 2.375″, wall = 0.154″

Weight = 10.68 × (2.375 − 0.154) × 0.154 = 3.66 lbs/ft

Metric version (kg/m): Weight = 0.02466 × (OD − wall) × wall × length (in meters)

(OD and wall in mm)

2. Square Steel Tube

Weight per foot (lbs/ft) = 13.36 × (side − wall) × wall

Example: 2″ × 2″ × 1/8″ (0.125″) wall

Weight = 13.36 × (2 − 0.125) × 0.125 = 3.14 lbs/ft

3. Rectangular Tube

Weight per foot (lbs/ft) = 13.36 × ( (side A + side B − 2 × wall) × wall )

Example: 3″ × 2″ × 0.188″ wall

Weight = 13.36 × (3 + 2 − 2×0.188) × 0.188 = 5.59 lbs/ft

Instant Excel / Google Sheets Formula (Copy-Paste This)

If you prefer to skip manual calculations, these formulas can be easily adapted in Excel or Google Sheets to find steel tube weight instantly.
Just enter your tube dimensions, wall thickness, and length in separate cells — then copy the version below, replacing the words (like OD or wall) with your actual cell references (for example, A2, B2, C2).

For round tube:

Formula =10.68 x (OD-wall) x wall x length_ft
Excel Version =10.68*(A2-B2)*B2*C2

For square tube:

Formula =13.36 x (side-wall) x wall x length_ft
Excel Version =13.36*(A2 - B2)*B2*C2

For rectangular tube:

Formula 
=13.36*((width + height - 2 x wall) x wall) x length_ft
Excel Version =13.36*((A2 + B2 - 2*C2)*C2)*D2

💡 Tip: Use plain keyboard symbols — the asterisk * for multiply and hyphen - for subtract. Using special characters (× or –) or words (OD, wall) will cause a “#NAME?” error.

📊 Want to make it even easier?
Download our free Steel Tube Weight Calculator (Excel template) — pre-loaded with formulas for round, square, and rectangular tubing.

Real-World Quick Reference Chart (A36 Steel)

Need a quick reference without doing the math? This A36 steel tubing weight chart lists common tube sizes and their weight per foot, making it easy to estimate material and shipping costs on the spot.

Size Wall lbs/ft

Size	Wall	lbs/ft	kg/m
1″ × 1″ × 16ga (0.065″)	0.065	0.81	1.21
2″ × 2″ × 11ga (0.120″)	0.120	3.01	4.48
2″ × 2″ × 1/4″	0.250	5.85	8.71
4″ × 2″ × 3/16″	0.188	14.13	21.03
3″ OD × 0.120″	0.120	3.69	5.49
2″ SCH40 (2.375″ OD)	0.154	3.65	5.43

Understanding how to calculate steel tube weight is the first step toward better planning, budgeting, and design accuracy. At Leonhardt Manufacturing, we apply these same formulas every day to produce complex, repeatable tubular parts with the highest level of precision. If your next project demands consistent quality and dependable results, contact our team to discuss your tube fabrication needs.

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