Staircase Angle Calculator
There are two easy ways to do this:
If you do not have an angle finder, then using our staircase angle calculator below is quick, easy, and accurate.
What Measurements Do I Need To Calculate My Staircase Angle?
How Do I Measure If There Are No Rails Installed?
Measuring the staircase angle is still very simple if you haven't yet installed rails.Instead of measuring to the underside of the handrail, you need to pick a nominal point on the post to measure to. Make a mark on the post when you have so you know where to measure to when you are looking for measurement A.
As an idea, this could be:
We recommend option 1 as the greater distance you have for your figures, the better accuracy of the result, as there is a smaller margin of error in the accuracy of the measurements.
Make Sure Your Posts Are Not Leaning When Measuring
The C measurement needs to be measured vertically. Remember to use a spirit level to check your posts are vertical and are not leaning at all.
- If you do not have a handrail installed yet, then as with above, pick the point on the post where you would like to take measurement A from. Then use a spirit level to level vertically. Then you can mark on the baserail (or staircase string) the intersection point if the post leans towards the staircase, or if it leans away from the stairs, then you would need to mark on the post a line down, then add another line at the angle the baserail goes into the post. This dimension is what you would use for measurement B.
- If you have rails in place and your posts are leaning toward the staircase, you can use the above technique but from where the underside of the handrail hits the post. However, if the post leans away from the stairs, then you can use a long spirit level from the point where the baserail meets the post (or string material if you have no baserail fixed yet) and level at a vertical then put a small mark on the handrail where this meets. You can then measure your A measurement from that mark to get an accurate staircase angle.
Make sure that your tape measure is straight and not sagging when taking these measurements as that will affect the accuracy of the results. Once you insert all your measurements into our staircase angle calculator, you will have your resulting staircase pitch. You can then look on our balustrade builder to find the cost of your staircase renovation project, whether that is a glass balustrade or a balustrade with spindles.