Roofing Material List: What You Need for Every Roof Type

The best roofing material list is built from the roof system, measured geometry, and manufacturer specification. A generic list can remind you what to check, but it cannot decide the exact tile, sheet, membrane, fixing pattern, lap, ventilation detail, or waste allowance for a real job.

Use this guide as a practical checklist for pitched and flat roofs. Then use the free roofing material calculator to turn measurements into quantities.

Start with five material groups

Most complete roof material schedules contain five groups:

1. Primary covering: tiles, shingles, sheets, panels, or membrane
2. Supporting layers: underlay, battens, decking, insulation, vapour control, and separation layers
3. Perimeter and junction details: ridge, hip, verge, eaves, valleys, abutments, outlets, and penetrations
4. Fixings and accessories: clips, screws, nails, tapes, sealants, closures, and ventilation products
5. Site and installation items: protection, waste, temporary weathering, lifting, and disposal

The most common ordering errors happen outside the primary covering. A correct tile count does not help if the order misses dry-ridge components, eaves support, ventilation, valley products, or the correct fixings.

Pitched tile roof material list

A pitched tile roof may require:

• Concrete, clay, slate, or other covering units
• Underlay suitable for the roof and exposure
• Counter-battens where specified
• Tile battens in the correct grade and size
• Ridge and hip units
• Dry-ridge and dry-hip systems, or specified mortar components
• Verge units or dry-verge system
• Eaves support trays, comb fillers, and ventilation
• Valleys, soakers, secret gutters, and abutment flashings
• Lead or approved alternative flashing products
• Tile clips, nails, screws, and storm fixings
• Roof vents, terminals, and penetration flashings
• Insulation and vapour control layers where in scope
• Fascia, soffit, gutters, outlets, and downpipes where included

Coverage varies by product, gauge, headlap, bond, and roof pitch. Use manufacturer quantity data for the exact product. The free roof tile calculator can help with the initial quantity, but it should not replace the product specification.

Asphalt shingle roof material list

A shingle system commonly includes:

• Shingle bundles
• Starter strip or starter shingles
• Ridge and hip cap shingles
• Approved underlayment
• Ice and water membrane where required by design or local rules
• Decking or sheathing
• Drip edge and perimeter trims
• Valleys and flashing materials
• Roofing nails of the specified type and length
• Sealant approved by the manufacturer
• Ventilation products
• Pipe boots and penetration flashings

Shingles are often sold by bundle or coverage area. Actual coverage depends on exposure and product format. Use the free shingle calculator after confirming the measured roof area.

Do not forget starter courses and cap products. They may use a different coverage rate from the field shingles.

Metal roof material list

A profiled sheet or metal panel roof may require:

• Roof sheets or panels
• Underlay, membrane, or separation layer
• Purlins, battens, or decking where in scope
• Ridge, hip, barge, eaves, and apron flashings
• Valley gutters and internal gutters
• Sidewall and headwall flashings
• Closures, fillers, foam seals, and tapes
• Primary and stitching fixings
• Washers, rivets, and approved sealants
• Rooflight sheets or proprietary rooflights
• Ventilation components
• Gutters, outlets, and downpipes
• Touch-up or edge protection products where specified

Sheet quantities depend on cover width, not overall sheet width. Check side laps, end laps, roof pitch, sheet direction, transport limits, and whether sheets can run from eaves to ridge in one length.

Use the free metal roofing calculator or free roof sheet calculator for an initial schedule. Finalise the order against supplier cover widths and flashing details.

Flat roof material list

The exact build-up varies between bituminous, single-ply, liquid-applied, EPDM, GRP, and other systems. A general flat roof checklist includes:

• Structural deck or overlay board
• Vapour control layer
• Insulation and tapered insulation where specified
• Carrier or separation layers
• Roof membrane or waterproofing system
• Primer, adhesive, fasteners, or bonding products
• Perimeter trims and termination bars
• Internal and external corner components
• Upstand and abutment materials
• Outlets, overflows, sumps, and leaf guards
• Pipe and service penetration details
• Rooflight kerb details
• Walkway or protection products
• Approved sealants and tapes

Flat roofing is detail-heavy. The field membrane can be a straightforward quantity, while corners, outlets, penetrations, changes in level, and terminations determine much of the material and labour.

Use the free flat roof calculator to estimate area and core quantities, then build the full schedule from the selected system details.

Roof sheathing and decking

If the job includes sheathing or decking, record board type, grade, dimensions, thickness, orientation, joint layout, support spacing, expansion gaps, and fixing requirements.

Use the free roof sheathing calculator to estimate board quantities. Check whether damaged existing deck can be quantified before strip-off. If not, include a clear provisional allowance or unit rate rather than pretending the quantity is known.

Flashings, edges, and rainwater goods

Create separate lines for every roof edge and junction:

• Ridges and hips
• Valleys
• Verges or barge details
• Eaves
• Abutments and parapets
• Changes in pitch
• Rooflights, pipes, vents, and chimneys
• Gutters, outlets, and downpipes

Linear details require lengths, laps, stop ends, corners, joints, and waste. The free roof flashing calculator and free guttering calculator help organise these quantities.

Fixings and small components

Small items can stop a job even when the main materials are on site. Make a dedicated accessories section for nails, screws, clips, washers, rivets, brackets, straps, tapes, sealants, adhesives, closures, ventilation products, end caps, outlets, and connectors.

Avoid writing ?sundries? as one unexplained allowance on the order. A checklist is easier to verify and helps prevent repeated supplier trips.

Worked example: organising a material schedule

Assume a measured gable roof has 110 m? of true roof area, 12 metres of ridge, 24 metres of eaves, and 20 metres of verge.

Build the schedule in this order:

1. Confirm the selected roof covering and manufacturer coverage.
2. Calculate covering units for 110 m? before waste.
3. Add a roof-specific waste allowance based on cuts and product format.
4. Calculate underlay by roll coverage and required laps.
5. Calculate battens from gauge and roof dimensions.
6. Add 12 metres of ridge system plus joints and ends.
7. Add 24 metres of eaves support and ventilation.
8. Add 20 metres of verge system.
9. Add fixings and accessories from the fixing specification.
10. Add gutters and downpipes if included.

This sequence separates measured quantities from product coverage and then from waste. That makes the schedule easier to check.

How to avoid missing materials

• Compare the list with the roof plan component by component.
• Compare it with the specification and manufacturer details.
• Check every edge, junction, penetration, and outlet.
• Confirm colours, finishes, profiles, and compatible accessories.
• Confirm lead times and minimum order quantities.
• Mark items supplied by others.
• Separate confirmed quantities from provisional allowances.
• Ask another person to review complex roofs.

If you still need the measurements, start with how to do a roof takeoff and how to measure a roof for materials. For quantity principles, read how much roofing material do you need.

From material list to quote and order

A spreadsheet can hold a list, but it often separates measurement, pricing, quoting, and ordering. QuoteCore+ uses Smart Components? to connect repeatable material and labour logic with the quote workflow.

A Smart Component can carry materials, calculations, waste rules, prices, drawings, and images your business uses repeatedly. Watch What are Smart Components?? and How to Set Up Roofing Smart Components for a practical overview.

Frequently asked questions

What materials do I need for a roof?

At minimum, consider the covering, supporting layers, perimeter and junction details, fixings, ventilation, and rainwater goods. The exact list depends on the roof system, design, location, and manufacturer specification.

Should I order one waste percentage for every roofing material?

No. Sheets, tiles, shingles, membranes, battens, and flashings create waste differently. Review geometry, cutting patterns, pack sizes, reusable offcuts, and breakage risk for each group.

Can a roofing calculator create a final supplier order?

A calculator can produce useful quantities, but a final order should use confirmed dimensions, selected product data, required accessories, colours, lead times, and supplier pack sizes.

What roofing items are most often forgotten?

Fixings, closures, eaves components, ventilation, flashing accessories, outlets, stop ends, sealants, and small proprietary system parts are common omissions.

How should I handle unknown deck replacement?

State a provisional allowance or unit rate and explain when it applies. Do not present an unknown concealed quantity as fixed.

Build your first schedule with the free roofing material calculator. When you want materials, pricing, quotes, and orders connected, explore roofing quoting software.