House roof planner
Roofs for rectangular houses: from gable and hip roofs to gambrel, mansard and pagoda roofs. Choose the size of your house, the roof type and the pitch, and build it layer by layer with stairs and slabs. Click blocks you have placed to keep track of where you are.
Left and right as in the side view.
The top row of the roof.
End view
roofwall and gableSeen from the west end: north on the left, south on the right. Click a layer to view it.
Top view, north is up. The arrow on a stair points to the high side, toward the ridge.
Build breakdown
Per layer, from bottom to top
| Layer | Width | Stairs | Slabs | Blocks | Gable |
|---|
Layer 1, row by row
Rows count from north to south. Start = column of the first block, counted from the west.
| Row | Start | Pattern | Pieces |
|---|
Build tips
- Build the walls first, up to the wall height that goes with layer 1. With overhang the lowest row of stairs hangs next to the top of the wall.
- Lay the eave along the full length first, then work row by row up to the ridge. On a gable roof every row is simply a straight line.
- Place stairs with the high side toward the ridge. Look at the ridge while you place them and they face the right way by themselves.
- With the low pitch each slab goes one layer higher than the stair before it. Place slabs in the bottom half of the block.
- On a hip roof the stairs on the diagonal hip lines form corner pieces by themselves where two stairs meet.
- On a gambrel or mansard roof build the steep part first: each time a block with a stair on top. Then carry on with the shallow pitch.
- On a pagoda roof place the slab edge first. The corners get a block with a slab on top, so they curl up.
- Upside-down stairs under the overhang make the eave look nicer. They are not included in the count.
3D and layer-by-layer build plan
To Minecraft
Download the roof as a schematic file and paste it into your world with WorldEdit, or rebuild it from a hologram in Litematica. Only the roof is included, without walls and gables. All stairs have their high side toward the ridge.
Shopping list
Add the amounts of this design to your list. There you see everything together, converted to stacks and shulker boxes.
How it is calculated
History and fun facts
The gable roof: the oldest roof shape
A gable roof has two sloped surfaces that meet at the top at the ridge. It is one of the oldest roof shapes in the world. Greek temples, medieval farmhouses and canal houses all have it.
It works simply: rain and snow slide down on two sides. The triangular wall at the short end is called the gable.
Hip roofs and half-hip roofs
A hip roof has a sloped surface on all four sides. So there is no straight gable. The roof catches less wind and is often used for farms and villas.
A half-hip roof sits in between. It has a gable, but the top of it is cut off at an angle. You see it on many Dutch and German farmhouses.
Gambrel roofs and mansard roofs
A gambrel roof has a steep part at the bottom and a shallow part at the top on each side. That gives a lot of space in the attic. It is well known from American and Dutch barns.
The mansard roof is named after the French architect François Mansart, who lived from 1598 to 1666. It became popular in Paris, where many buildings still have such a roof with dormer windows.
Shed roofs and pagoda roofs
A shed roof has only one sloped surface. It is easy to build and suits barns, extensions and modern houses.
Pagoda roofs come from China, Japan and Korea. The edges curl up at the corners. That looks light, even when the roof is large.
Why the pitch matters
Thatched roofs must be steep, so water runs off quickly. Tiled roofs can be flatter. In countries with a lot of snow, roofs are often steep so the snow slides off.
In Minecraft you set the pitch with stairs and slabs. One stair per block of height gives 45 degrees. With slabs in between the roof becomes flatter.
Did you know?
- The mansard roof is named after the French architect François Mansart (1598–1666).
- The Parthenon in Athens had a gable roof with a triangular pediment at each short end.
- A thatched roof usually has a pitch of at least 45 degrees.
- The top line of a roof is called the ridge.
- In Minecraft you craft 4 stairs from 6 blocks and 6 slabs from 3 blocks.
- A stair in Minecraft has a high and a low side, so you can walk up a roof without jumping.
About this tool
The House roof planner is a free Minecraft roof generator for rectangular houses. You choose the width and length of your house, the pitch (low, normal or steep) and the overhang outside the wall. Then you build the roof layer by layer with stairs and slabs.
There are seven roof types: gable, hip, half-hip, gambrel, mansard, shed and pagoda. For a shed roof you choose whether the high side is north or south. You make the ridge from blocks or slabs, and you can close the gables.
The end view shows the shape of the roof and the gable. The top view per layer shows where each stair, slab and block goes. An arrow on a stair points to the ridge. The table tells you for each layer how many stairs, slabs and gable blocks you need.
The 3D view and the layer-by-layer build plan show the result from every side. With the block palette you give the roof, the ridge and the gable each their own block. The materials calculator also shows how many blocks you need to craft.
Download the roof as a .schem file for WorldEdit or Litematica. It quickly teaches you how to build a Minecraft roof that looks neat, from a small cottage to a big barn.
Frequently asked questions
How do I build a roof in Minecraft?
First build the walls up to the height of layer 1. Then lay the bottom row of stairs along the full length. Work row by row up to the ridge, with the high side of each stair toward the ridge. Close the gables last.
Which pitch should I choose?
Normal uses one stair per layer, which is 45 degrees and suits most houses. Low uses slabs between the stairs and looks wide and calm. Steep puts blocks under the stairs and suits narrow town houses and churches.
How do I make the corners of a hip roof?
On the diagonal hip lines two stairs meet. Minecraft turns them into a corner piece by itself. Place both with the high side toward the ridge and it works out.
How do I make the eave look nicer?
Give the roof 1 block of overhang. Place upside-down stairs under the overhang for a neat edge. Those stairs are not in the count, so add a few extra.
Are the walls and gables in the .schem file?
No, only the roof is included. All stairs face their high side toward the ridge. You do see the gable blocks in the tool and in the count.
I have a round tower. Which tool do I use?
For round and square towers there is the tower roof planner, with spires, onion domes and more.
Can I build this in Bedrock?
Yes, the layer-by-layer plan works in every edition. The .schem file is for Java Edition with WorldEdit or Litematica.