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How to Take Off Asphalt Shingle Roofing from Commercial Plans

By The Sharp Pencil team

Take asphalt or architectural shingle off commercial plans by roof plane, using the drawings and specs for slope and underlayment. Then measure every steep-slope edge and flashing as its own linear line: ridge, hip, valley, dead valley, rake, eave, endwall and sidewall, transitions, starter, drip edge, and gutters. Field SF alone is not a complete takeoff. When the set is silent on dead valley vs open valley, measure the valley path as valley and put the question on the Questions tab. Do not invent the dead-valley label. Open items go on the Questions tab, not into the number as a guess.

What a shingle takeoff has to include (not only squares)

A complete commercial shingle takeoff carries field area by plane and the steep-slope linear items. Stopping at field squares leaves starter, drip edge, ridge, hip, valley, and wall flashings unpriced. The table below is a working checklist for estimators, not a manufacturer schedule. Product names (ridge vent vs ridge cap, ice and water shield, and so on) come from the project specs and details. Do not invent a brand shingle system, and do not treat manufacturer coverage rules as Sharp Pencil defaults.

Sharp Pencil reports asphalt and architectural shingle field by plane in SF with sheet cites, and linear trim in LF. Squares may appear as a convenience label (SF divided by 100). A bundle count or cut list is not the standard package format.

Read the set before you measure

Shingle quantities hide across the roof plan, elevations, sections, enlarged details, structural sheets, and the roofing spec. The roof plan outline alone is not enough.

1. Find every asphalt or architectural shingle area on the roof plan and note which planes share slope.
2. Pull slope from the drawings (roof plan notes, elevations, or sections). Do not apply a residential pitch rule of thumb when the set gives a slope.
3. Read the roofing spec for shingle type (architectural / laminate vs three-tab when named), underlayment, ice and water shield extents, starter, drip edge profile, and ventilation. Those usually live in the spec and details, not as numbers on the roof plan.
4. Walk elevations and enlarged details for ridge, hip, valley, rake, eave, wall flashings, starter, and drip edge.
5. Check structural and mechanical sheets for penetrations that need boots or flashings.
6. If underlayment extents, ice and water shield extent, starter, or drip edge profile is missing, put it on the Questions tab. Do not invent a manufacturer coverage rule as a Sharp Pencil default.

For the broader habit of which sheets a roofing takeoff has to read, see the sheets a roofing takeoff has to read.

Take off the field (SF) by plane

Break the roof into planes that share slope. Measure each plane from the set. Plan-derived, slope-aware quantities beat a flat square-foot shortcut.

Identify the planes. Take horizontal dimensions from the plan. Apply slope from the drawings so field area is slope-corrected SF, not plan area alone. Account for hips, valleys, and wall cuts as conditions on those planes, not as averaged lengths across the whole roof.

Report field by plane in SF with the source sheet and its basis. That is how standing seam and shingle areas ship today. If you show squares, derive them from SF (SF÷100) as an estimator convenience label only. Squares are not a second measured quantity, and the package does not return a bundle count or cut list.

Waste belongs only as the spec or detail requires, or as an open question. Do not invent a waste percent as Sharp Pencil's rule.

Underlayment and ice and water shield: use SF (or LF of eave/rake extent) when the set dimensions them. If extents are missing, Questions tab. Do not invent manufacturer ice-and-water or starter coverage rules as Sharp Pencil defaults.

Take off the steep-slope linear items one by one

Every edge condition gets its own linear line. A single "perimeter" total hides different products and prices.

Walk the checklist from Table 1. Separate ridge from hip, valley from dead valley, rake from eave, endwall from sidewall, starter from drip edge, and drip edge from gutter when the documents split them. Starter, drip edge, and eave stay separate by default.

Full steep-slope linear checklist: ridge, hip, valley, dead valley, rake, eave, endwall and sidewall flashing, transitions, starter, drip edge, gutters.

Dead valley. When the set names it or draws a closed or blind valley that does not discharge freely at an eave, measure it as its own LF line. If the set is silent, measure the valley path as valley and put "dead valley vs open valley?" on the Questions tab. Do not invent the dead-valley label.

Transitions to low-slope membrane. Measure the transition as its own linear line. Which manufacturer overlap applies belongs on the mixed-system commercial roof takeoff page, not here.

Parapet and coping. Do not take over parapet membrane wrap, termination bar, or coping from the low-slope parapet page. If a shingle wall condition meets a parapet, measure the shingle wall flashing on this takeoff and see parapet membrane takeoff for the membrane wrap side.

Gutters. Include gutters in LF when roofing scope owns them on the bid docs or specs. If ownership is unclear or "by others," put "who owns gutters?" on the Questions tab. Do not invent scope.

Sister system: standing seam uses the same linear discipline

Standing seam metal on a steep commercial roof still needs ridge, hip, valley, dead valley, rake, eave, wall flashings, starter, drip edge, and gutters as separate lines. The difference is the field product (panels / metal field), not the need for linear items.

If your shop bids both shingle and standing seam, the linear-item habit is shared. Only the field product and the detail sheets change. For the metal method, see standing seam metal roof takeoff.

Common misses on shingle takeoffs

• Field SF or squares without ridge, hip, valley, rake, starter, and drip edge
• Treating valley and dead valley as one line when the set distinguishes them, or inventing a dead-valley label when the set is silent
• Folding shingle area into an adjacent membrane square footage (see mixed-system takeoff)
• Pricing starter and drip edge as one blended eave line when the set splits them
• Pricing gutters or ice and water shield without checking scope or extents
• Guessing waste percent or underlayment extents when the spec is silent (Questions tab instead)
• Skipping penetrations that need boots or flashings

Worked example: one commercial shingle entry roof (made up, not a real job)

This example is invented. Use it only to see how field SF and linear LF sit next to each other on a small set. No dollar totals.

Assumptions (invented): simple gable entry roof, ridge length 40 LF, each plane plan run eave-to-ridge 12 ft, slope 6:12 from the drawings (slope factor about 1.118), two sidewall flashings against a higher wall at 14 LF each, starter and drip edge at eaves, gutters in roofing scope per the bid docs, ice and water shield extent not dimensioned in the set.

This invented entry roof is simplified: no hips, valleys, or transitions. A full commercial set usually has more linear lines.

Questions tab (example): Ice and water shield extent not dimensioned in Division 07 or the eave details. Do not invent a manufacturer coverage strip. Send the question before pricing that line.

FAQ

How do I take off asphalt shingle from commercial plans?

Break the roof into planes that share slope. Measure each plane from the set with slope from the drawings, report field in SF with sheet cites, then take every steep-slope edge and flashing as its own linear line. Open items go on the Questions tab, not into the number as a guess.

What linear items belong on a shingle roof takeoff?

Ridge, hip, valley, dead valley, rake, eave, endwall and sidewall flashing, transitions, starter, drip edge, and gutters, plus any accessory the set calls out. Separate each condition. A single perimeter total hides different products and prices.

Is a shingle takeoff just roof squares?

No. Field SF by plane is only the start. Squares may help as SF÷100 for convenience, but trim and flashing are priced and ordered by the linear foot, and missing those lines is where shingle bids come up short.

How is a standing seam takeoff different from shingle on linear items?

It is not different on the linear side. Standing seam still needs ridge, hip, valley, dead valley, rake, eave, wall flashings, starter, drip edge, and gutters as separate lines. The difference is the field product, panels or metal field versus shingle SF, not the need for linear items. See standing seam metal roof takeoff.

What does Sharp Pencil send back on a shingle job?

Four files, one package: START HERE, marked-up drawings PDF, Takeoff.xlsx with a Questions tab, and the material order list. Every quantity carries its source sheet and its basis.

Why send your takeoffs to Sharp Pencil

The expensive miss on a shingle bid is not the field squares. It is the ridge, hip, valley, starter, drip edge, wall flashing, and gutter lines that never got measured.

• Usually within one business day. Delivered within 48 hours*. A takeoff stuck in a week-long queue does you no good when the bid is due sooner.
• Every page gets read. Send the full set: architectural, structural, mechanical, plumbing, and the spec book if you have it.
• Every quantity names its sheet. Every quantity carries its source sheet and its basis, so you can check it against the drawings.
• Questions instead of guesses. If the set leaves something open, it goes on the Questions tab in Takeoff.xlsx, not into the number as a guess.
• Checked before it goes out. Every paid takeoff is checked before delivery.
• Four files, one package. START HERE, marked-up drawings PDF, Takeoff.xlsx with a Questions tab, and the material order list.
• Your plans stay yours. A plan set you send us will never be used to compete with you, and plan sets are deleted whenever you ask. See what happens to your plans.
• First takeoff free, one per contractor, on a job you're bidding or quoting. After that, our monthly plans (Shop 12, Shop 25, and Shop 60) are the main way to buy, or pay $395 per takeoff. See what a takeoff costs and how it works.

Commercial roofing takeoffs for low-slope (TPO, EPDM, PVC, mod bit and BUR), standing seam and shingle roofs. Residential is not our focus today, but ask if you have a job in mind. See our commercial roofing takeoff services and where every number comes from.

Get your first takeoff free · See full pricing and plan terms · Or email [email protected]

*Clock starts once any questions we send you are answered.

The Sharp Pencil team

Sources

• Sharp Pencil, Standing seam metal roof takeoff: https://getsharppencil.com/standing-seam-metal-roof-takeoff
• Sharp Pencil, Mixed-system commercial roof takeoff: https://getsharppencil.com/mixed-system-commercial-roof-takeoff
• Sharp Pencil, Commercial roof parapet membrane takeoff: https://getsharppencil.com/commercial-roof-parapet-membrane-takeoff
• Sharp Pencil, Roofing takeoff drawing sheets: https://getsharppencil.com/roofing-takeoff-drawing-sheets
• Sharp Pencil home page (pricing, package, free offer, turnaround): https://getsharppencil.com/