When you’re starting a new crochet pattern – especially a big crochet pattern, there’s always that stress of how much yarn you need to buy. The amount stated in the pattern is only a guideline – what if it’s not enough? What if you’re not using the same brand of yarn? What if you’re not following a pattern at all and creating your own design? Let’s answer all of these questions so you will always know how much yarn you need for your crochet blanket.
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Unfortunately there is no straightforward answer to this question because how much yarn you need for your blanket is going to depend on your tension, yarn weight, what hook size you use and what size blanket you’re going to be making. This sounds like a lot and that there’s no chance of getting a reasonable answer, but that’s not the case. We can get the amount of yarn you need to a decent range that isn’t going to leave you short of yarn or with several balls that you don’t know how to use up.
Different Blanket Sizes
There are several standard sizes of crochet blanket that you can make.
| Size | Inches | cm |
|---|---|---|
| Stroller | 24 x 30 | 61 x 76 |
| Lap | 28 x 36 | 71 x 91 |
| Crib | 36 x 36 | 91 x 91 |
| Baby | 36 x 48 | 91 x 122 |
| Throw | 52 x 60 | 132 x 152 |
| Single Bed | 66 x 90 | 168 x 229 |
| Double Bed | 80 x 90 | 203 x 229 |
| Queen Bed | 90 x 100 | 229 x 254 |
| King Bed | 108 x 100 | 274 x 254 |
Once you know what size blanket you’re aiming for we can start to work out how much yarn you’re going to need to make it. It’s also at this point that budgets and time constraints come into play. A King sized blanket needs 10 times the amount of yarn that a lap blanket does, which of course means that it takes 10 times as long to make too.
Yarn Weight
The next thing to consider is the weight of yarn you’re planning on using. The chunkier the yarn, the faster your blanket will grow. But you can use any weight of yarn for a blanket, it just depends on what look you prefer and what yarn you like to use. I prefer to use a Worsted or Aran weight yarn for my blankets as they give you the chance to add some nice detailed stitches but doesn’t take forever to crochet your blanket. Some of my favourite yarns in this weight are Caron Simply Soft, Paintbox Cotton Aran and Rico Creative Cotton Aran. If you prefer to use chunkier yarns than this then I recommend looking at Paintbox Yarns Simply Chunky and Lion Brand Hue & Me.
The yarn you choose helps us to get to the answer for the all important question of how much yarn you need. A chunky ball of yarn has fewer yards in each ball than a thinner yarn, so you’ll end up needing more balls of yarn. Once you’ve chosen your yarn, take a look at how many yards are in each ball, we’ll need to know this later on.
How Much Yarn To Crochet A Blanket?
Below is how much yarn is needed for each weight of yarn. There is a range for each one so that there is a buffer of 10% to account for tension differences. If your tension tends to be quite tight then you will need less yarn. If your tension is quite loose then you will need more yarn. I would add a caveat that if you are using a stitch that uses a lot of yarn such as the Crocodile stitch or lots of puffs, then you will need even more yarn than this and I’d add another 10-20% more yarn on top of this to account for those yarn heavy stitches.
| Size | Worsted | Chunky | Super Chunky |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stroller | 767–844 yds | 454–499 yds | 317–349 yds |
| Lap | 1078–1186 yds | 635–699 yds | 444–488 yds |
| Crib | 1387–1526 yds | 816–898 yds | 570–627 yds |
| Baby | 1849–2034 yds | 1089–1198 yds | 760–836 yds |
| Throw | 3338–3672 yds | 1966–2163 yds | 1373–1510 yds |
| Single Bed | 6356–6992 yds | 3742–4116 yds | 2614–2875 yds |
| Double Bed | 7707–8578 yds | 4536–4990 yds | 3168–3485 yds |
| Queen Bed | 9630–10593 yds | 5670–6237 yds | 3960–4356 yds |
| King Bed | 11556–12712 yds | 6804–7484 yds | 4752–5227 yds |
The yarn estimates in the table above are based on flat, simple stitches like C2C or plain double crochet. If you’re going to be using stitches that cross over each other like a Cable stitch such as Celtic Weave, then you’ll need a bit more yarn. If you’re using stitches that are much more yarn heavy like bobbles, then you’ll need even more yarn again as these do take up a lot of yardage. One of the biggest yarn eating stitches is the Crocodile stitch because those scales completely overlap other rows and it can need 2-3 times more yarn than a regular flat stitch – it’s one of the reasons mermaid blankets fell out of fashion so quickly. They took forever to make and the yarn they needed was ridiculous.
What About Yarn Eating Stitches?
When it comes to yarn heavy stitches it really is best to take note of your pattern’s recommendations, but if you are using your own design then swatching a section is really going to help you work out how much yarn your stitches are going to use up. If you make a swatch of plain double crochet, then make up a swatch of the same size with the stitch you’re planning on using, you can compare how much more yarn you used on the second and multiply that up to get the amount of yarn you’ll need.
For my upcoming crochet along I based all the recommended yarn amounts on what I used myself plus an extra 10% to account for looser tension. I tend to crochet quite tightly so I have to always add extra yarn to my patterns to make sure my crocheters buy enough for the project. You can find out more about my Study of Corners Crochet Along here. It starts on the 24th of July 2026 and is the perfect project for anyone who wants to try out a variety of corner to corner style stitches (picture below) in this double bed sized blanket.
Yarn Buying Tips
Some quick tips for before you buy your yarn.
- Make sure you buy enough. If you need to buy extra later you may find it difficult to find the same dye lot. Different dye lots are not the exact same colour – close, but not identical.
- If you’re unsure if your stitches will need extra yarn then make a swatch before you buy. Use any yarn you have and make a plain double crochet swatch and then make another swatch with the same number of rows and starting chain using the stitch in your pattern. This will tell you how much extra yarn you’re going to need.
- If you’re ever in doubt and your budget can cope, then buy a bit of extra yarn just in case. It’s better to have too much over too little. There are tons of single ball crochet patterns on the internet to help you use up any extra yarn.
If you found this helpful and want to keep levelling up your crochet, come and join the Froggity Frog’s Ribbit and Stitch Facebook group here. It’s a great place to share your blanket progress, ask questions and get inspired by what everyone else is making.
And if you’d like my free guide to 7 Overlooked Stitches Worth Trying, sign up to the newsletter here, it’s a great way to find your next favourite stitch before you cast on your next blanket.
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