How to Estimate the Price of Installing Carpet

Measure the square footage of the room(s) being carpeted with a tape measure. To get the square footage, simply multiply the width by the length of the room. For instance, in a 12-by-14-foot room, the square footage would be 168 square feet.

Convert the square footage to square yards. Carpet is often sold per square yard and 1 square yard is equal to 9 square feet. Using the example of a 12-by-14-foot room with 168 square feet, the square yardage would be 168 divided by 9 or 18.67 square yards.

Multiply the square yardage by the price of the carpet. As of 2011, carpeting ranged from $4 to $15 per square yard. A room that is 18.67 square yard would cost $74.68 to $280.05.

Add the price of padding. Padding is additional and costs between 50 cents to $4.50 a square yard. Using the same example square yardage, the padding would cost between $9.34 and $84.02.

Figure the cost of labor. Installation of carpet and padding averages $1 per square yard to take up and dispose of the old carpet and padding and install new padding. Installation of the carpet itself runs between $3.50 and $6 per square yard; making the cost for a 18.67 square yard room from $84.02 to $130.69.

Total the various estimates. Using the 18.67 square yard or 168 square foot room, total installation costs would range between $168.04 and $494.76.