Online Tool Store
· 5 min read
How to Convert Firewood Volume: Cords to Cubic Meters
Heshan Fernando
Co-founder & COO
You’re buying firewood from a seller who quotes “cubic meters,” but every price comparison you’ve seen elsewhere uses “cords,” and now you’re trying to figure out whether the delivery you’re about to pay for is actually a reasonable amount of wood. Or the reverse — you’re stacking wood yourself and want to know how many cubic meters your neatly stacked rows actually add up to.
Firewood measurement is genuinely inconsistent between regions and sellers, and unlike converting liters to gallons, there isn’t one clean multiplication factor — a “face cord” isn’t a fixed fraction of a full cord unless you know the log length being stacked, and a stack always contains air gaps that a straight volume conversion doesn’t account for.
What firewood volume conversion actually involves
A full cord is a stack measuring 4 feet by 4 feet by 8 feet — 128 cubic feet of stacked volume, which is about 3.62 cubic meters. A face cord (sometimes called a “rick”) is the same 4-by-8-foot face but with logs cut shorter than 4 feet, so its actual volume depends entirely on the log length, not just a fixed fraction of a cord. Converting between these units means first pinning down which measurement convention the person you’re talking to is actually using.
Why people get stuck here
- “Face cord” meaning different things. Because a face cord’s depth depends on log length, the same term can describe noticeably different actual wood volumes from one seller to another.
- Stacked volume vs. solid wood volume. A stack of round logs has real air gaps between pieces — typically 20-30% of the stacked volume is air, not wood — so “cubic meters of stacked firewood” isn’t the same as “cubic meters of solid wood.”
- Regional unit defaults. Some regions quote firewood by weight (tons) instead of volume, which adds moisture content as another variable that volume-only conversions can’t account for.
- Loosely stacked vs. tightly stacked deliveries. A truck-dumped, loose pile takes up more apparent volume than the same wood neatly stacked, which matters when a seller’s “cord” claim is based on how it looked on the truck.
What a good firewood converter looks like
Handles full cords, face cords, and metric units together
Letting you convert between cords, cubic meters, and cubic feet in either direction removes the need to memorize the 3.62 cubic meter conversion factor.
Accounts for log length in face cord conversions
Since a face cord’s actual volume depends on the length logs are cut to, a converter that asks for log length gives a genuinely accurate answer instead of a rough guess.
Shows an estimated solid-wood volume
Surfacing the air-gap-adjusted solid wood volume alongside the stacked volume gives a more honest picture of how much actual wood you’re getting or buying.
| Unit | Stacked Volume | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Full cord | 3.62 m³ (128 ft³) | Comparing standard US/Canada firewood pricing |
| Face cord (16” logs) | ~1.2 m³ | Regional deliveries measured by face, not depth |
| 1 stacked m³ (stère) | 1 m³ | Metric-region pricing and deliveries |
Common mistakes to avoid
- Assuming “face cord” always means a third of a full cord — it only does if the logs happen to be cut to 16 inches.
- Comparing a loose, truck-dumped volume estimate to a neatly stacked cord price without adjusting for the difference.
- Ignoring moisture content when comparing prices per volume, since well-seasoned wood delivers more usable heat per cord than green wood.
- Converting only stacked volume when what you actually care about is solid wood content, especially when comparing prices across sellers using different log lengths.
- Forgetting that regional definitions of a “cord” can vary slightly outside North America, so always confirm the seller’s actual stack dimensions when in doubt.
How to do it with Firewood Volume Converter
Online Tool Store’s Firewood Volume Converter runs the conversion entirely in your browser.
- Open the Firewood Volume Converter tool.
- Choose your starting unit — full cord, face cord, cubic meters, or cubic feet.
- If converting a face cord, enter the log length to get an accurate result.
- Read off the converted volume and the estimated solid-wood volume.
Frequently asked questions
How many cubic meters are in a cord of wood?
A full cord (4 ft × 4 ft × 8 ft, or 128 cubic feet) equals approximately 3.62 cubic meters of stacked volume. This is the standard conversion used across North America.
Is a face cord always a third of a full cord?
No. A face cord’s volume depends on the length the logs are cut to — it’s only exactly a third of a full cord if the logs are cut to 16 inches (since three 16-inch-deep rows make up the 4-foot depth of a full cord). Shorter or longer log lengths change the actual volume.
Why is solid wood volume lower than stacked volume?
Round logs stacked together always leave air gaps between the curved surfaces, typically accounting for 20-30% of the total stacked volume. Solid wood volume estimates try to subtract that air out to give a more realistic figure for actual burnable wood content.
Final thought
When you’re comparing firewood prices or planning storage space, get everyone talking about the same stacked-volume unit first — the actual conversion math is simple once that’s settled, and the log-length detail is the one thing worth double-checking before you commit to a delivery.