Knitting Gauge Calculator: Stitches and Rows Per Inch, Per 4 in and Per 10 cm

Knit a swatch, wash it, let it dry, then count the stitches and rows over a measured patch. Enter those numbers below and the calculator gives your gauge in every common unit, the stitches and rows you need for a target size, and how to rescale a pattern written for a different gauge.

Your swatch

Measure in Inches Centimeters

Stitches counted

Over a width of

Rows counted

Over a height of

Target width

Same unit as the swatch

Target length

Pattern gauge (sts per 4 in)

Pattern stitch count

Your results

Your gauge per 4 inches

22 sts x 30 rows

CYC range: Light

For your target size

110 stitches, 180 rows

Per inch	5.5 sts, 7.5 rows
Per 10 cm	21.7 sts, 29.5 rows
Pattern count at your gauge	110 sts
Pattern count unchanged	18.2 in wide

How do you calculate knitting gauge?

Gauge is the number of stitches and rows in a measured length of knitted fabric. Stitch gauge controls width, and row gauge controls length. Patterns and yarn labels usually quote it per 4 inches or per 10 cm, because a wider sample averages out the small variations between individual stitches. The calculator uses three formulas, and the numbers below are the same default swatch the results panel shows.

1. Stitches per inch = stitches counted / width measured. 22 stitches over 4 inches is 5.5 stitches per inch. Rows work the same way: 30 rows over 4 inches is 7.5 rows per inch.
2. Stitches needed = target width x stitches per inch, rounded to a whole stitch. A 20 inch panel needs 20 x 5.5 = 110 stitches, and 24 inches of length is 24 x 7.5 = 180 rows.
3. Your count = pattern count x your gauge / pattern gauge. A pattern that casts on 100 stitches at 20 per 4 inches is 20 inches wide. At your gauge of 22, that width takes 100 x 22 / 20 = 110 stitches. If you kept the pattern's 100 stitches, your piece would come out only 18.2 inches wide.

When you measure in centimeters, the calculator converts to inches first (1 inch is 2.54 cm) and then reports both. A gauge of 22 stitches per 4 inches equals about 21.7 stitches per 10 cm, because 4 inches is slightly longer than 10 cm.

How do you measure a gauge swatch correctly?

Most gauge problems start with the swatch, not the math. A swatch that is too small, unwashed or measured at the edges gives a number the finished piece will never match.

• Knit it bigger than 4 inches. Cast on enough stitches for about 6 inches of width and knit about 6 inches of length, so you can measure a 4 inch patch in the middle, away from the cast on, bind off and edge stitches, which pull in.
• Use the pattern stitch and the pattern method. Stockinette, garter and ribbing all give different gauges on the same needles. If the project is knit in the round, knit the swatch in the round too, since many knitters work tighter or looser in the round than flat.
• Wash and dry it like the finished piece. Soak it, press out the water in a towel and lay it flat. Some yarns, especially superwash wool and plant fibers, grow noticeably when wet.
• Measure without stretching. Lay a ruler or gauge tool across the center, count full stitches, and if the edge of the ruler lands mid stitch, count the half. The calculator accepts half stitches.

If you do not want to measure exactly 4 inches, you do not have to. Count 17 stitches over 3.25 inches and enter both numbers: the calculator divides them for you, which is often more accurate than squinting at a partial stitch on a 4 inch mark. Our knitting needle size chart lists metric and US sizes if your swatch needle is only marked in one system.

What is the standard knitting gauge for each yarn weight?

The Craft Yarn Council publishes a gauge range for each numbered yarn weight in stockinette, together with the needle sizes most often used for it. Use it to sanity check your swatch: if your gauge sits well outside the range for the yarn on the label, recheck the count or the needle size. The last column uses the middle of each range to show roughly how many stitches a 20 inch wide piece takes.

The ranges overlap on purpose. A light (DK) yarn knit firmly can land in the fine range, and a loosely knit worsted can drift toward bulky. The label weight tells you where to start; the swatch tells you where you are. For every weight's needle, hook and yardage details, see the yarn weight chart.

What happens if your gauge is off by a stitch or two?

The table below takes one pattern, a piece that casts on 100 stitches and is designed at 20 stitches per 4 inches for a 20 inch width. It shows how wide the piece comes out if you knit those 100 stitches at other gauges, and how many stitches you would cast on instead to keep it 20 inches wide.

Two stitches per 4 inches sounds tiny, yet at 18 stitches the piece grows by +2.2 inches. On a sweater with a front and a back, that is roughly double. That is why the fix is usually to change needles rather than rescale: a pattern's shaping, stitch repeats and charts are all built on its gauge, and rescaling one count means rescaling every count.

When should you rescale a pattern instead of changing needles?

Rescaling works well for simple shapes: blankets, scarves, cowls, plain hats and anything built from rectangles. Enter the pattern gauge and a stitch count in the calculator and it gives the count for your gauge. Do this for every number that sets a width, and for row counts if your row gauge differs too.

Rescaling gets harder when the pattern has a stitch repeat. A lace or cable panel might need a multiple of 12 stitches, so a rescaled count of 110 has to become 108 or 120, which changes the width again. Our cast on calculator rounds to a stitch multiple for you. For shaped garments, shaping rates are tied to row gauge, so the increase and decrease evenly calculator helps once you know the new counts.

Fine gauges make all of this harder on the eyes. Counting 30 or more stitches per 4 inches in dark yarn is where a good task light pays off, and a steel needle set like the ChiaoGoo Twist Red Lace Complete covers every size from US 2 up, so swatching one size larger or smaller costs nothing extra. For long sessions, the Daylight Slimline 4 Floor puts bright 6,000K light over the chair instead of the whole room.

Does gauge change for knitting in the round, ribbing or colorwork?

Often, yes. Ribbing pulls in, so its stitch gauge is not a useful measure of width; patterns quote gauge in stockinette or in the main stitch pattern. Stranded colorwork is usually tighter than plain stockinette because the floats carried behind the work limit how far the stitches can spread, so knitters commonly swatch the chart itself. And garter stitch is much more compressed vertically than stockinette, so its row gauge is quite different even when its stitch gauge is similar. Whenever a pattern gives gauge in a specific stitch, swatch in that stitch, then enter the result here.