Building coverage calculator
Calculate your building coverage ratio and find out how much you are allowed to build on your plot. Our calculator takes into account property type, deduction rules and applicable percentage rates from the building regulations.
What is building coverage ratio?
The building coverage ratio refers to the floor area’s percentage share of the total plot area. A building coverage ratio indicates how much area you are allowed to build in relation to the size of the plot, and is intended to ensure that the plot is developed in accordance with its intended use.
When calculating the building coverage ratio, it is important to keep in mind that everything built on the plot is, as a general rule, included in the calculation.
The building coverage ratio thus regulates how much and how densely building is permitted in individual areas. This is done to ensure that, for example, green open spaces with well-functioning environments are preserved in densely built-up areas, or to preserve as much nature as possible in summer house areas.
What is the building coverage ratio on my plot?
The building coverage ratio is normally 30 percent in detached house areas, cf. the Building Regulations. However, if a local plan or other planning basis applies to the area, it is important to be aware that the provisions of the Building Regulations do not apply.
When calculating the building coverage ratio in such cases, you must use the calculation rules from the Building Regulations that were in force at the time the local plan came into effect. If the maximum building coverage ratio is set differently in a local plan, the local plan takes precedence over the Building Regulations.
A local plan may, for example, contain rules and requirements regarding the placement of buildings, including that the house must be built in a specific architectural style, with particular materials, colours, etc., if the house is, for example, deemed worthy of preservation.
Easements with restrictions on use and area limitations may be registered on the property, where the municipality, with legal authority under the Planning Act, enforces private law easements with building-regulating provisions.
Easements can be both public law (if an authority has had a right registered on a property) and private law (if the easement has been registered by a private individual).
Building Coverage Percentage Calculator
As part of our buyer advisory, minkøbermægler.dk has made it easy for you by creating a calculator that provides an overview of how much you are allowed to build.
Enter in square metres / m²
Enter in square metres / m²
Enter in square metres / m²
Assumptions for using this calculator:
- That you have a detached house (villa), holiday home, or terraced house
- That you know the size of your plot, the total living area (remember any living area in the basement), and your secondary buildings on the plot. You can find information about your home's living area and plot size at ois.dk
- The calculator uses building regulations with a maximum building coverage of 30% for detached houses/villas, 15% for holiday homes, and 40% for terraced houses
- The calculator shows how much area can still be built on the plot before the permitted building coverage is exceeded, or whether it has already been exceeded
- The building coverage is 30% for villas, 15% for holiday homes, and 40% for terraced houses, unless a different percentage is specified in local plans or easements
Building coverage ratio for summer houses
The building coverage ratio for holiday homes is 15%, unless otherwise stipulated in the local plan or the owner has obtained an exemption from the requirement from the local authorities. For summer houses, you should be aware that special rules apply regarding distance to boundaries, etc.
How is the building coverage ratio calculated?
When calculating the building coverage ratio for your property, you need to compare the total living area, as stated in your BBR report, along with other small structures on the plot (conservatory, covered terrace, etc.) with the size of the plot.
The BBR report will also indicate if any part of the basement has been approved for residential use. Keep in mind that not all small structures necessarily appear in the BBR report.
When calculating the building coverage ratio for detached single-family houses, semi-detached houses with vertical boundaries and summer houses, the first 50 m² of small buildings/secondary structures — i.e. garage, carport, shed, greenhouse, covered terrace, etc. — should not be included.
For terraced houses and linked houses, however, it is the first 20 m² that should not be included. It is important to note that conservatories and annexes must always be included in the calculation of the building coverage ratio.
The above rule is also known as the deduction rule, which was amended with the Building Regulations 2018 (BR18), where the threshold for what can be deducted in relation to small buildings/secondary structures has been increased compared to previously applicable building regulations.
It is important to note that integrated structures located under the same roof construction as the primary building — e.g. a garage or carport — are not considered secondary buildings according to the building regulations, and therefore these types of structures cannot be erected without a building permit.
Furthermore, you should be aware that when the total area of secondary buildings exceeds 50 m², a building permit is required, even if the building coverage ratio allows for building larger than 50 m² within the framework of the building coverage ratio.
Exceeding the building coverage ratio
If the maximum building coverage ratio is exceeded and the municipality has not granted an exemption, the municipality may require you to remove the part of the building that exceeds the permitted area.
This applies not only to the home itself, but also to, for example, conservatories, annexes, covered terraces, etc. As an owner, it is your responsibility to ensure that the building coverage ratio for your plot is not exceeded if, for example, you build an annex on the plot or extend the living area of the house.
If you are planning, for example, to build an extension to the house that expands the living area, the calculation of the building coverage ratio must be included in the application for a building permit.
Building coverage ratio for different property types according to the Building Regulations:
- 15 percent for summer houses
- 30 percent for detached single- and two-family houses with horizontal apartment boundaries located in a detached house area
- 40 percent for fully or partially attached single-family houses, including semi-detached houses, terraced houses, linked houses and similar dense/low-rise developments
- 45 percent for other buildings, including buildings not covered by nos. 1–4, and multi-storey residential buildings in an area not designated for this purpose
- 60 percent for multi-storey residential developments
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