focalScan — Wallpaper and Paint Calculator App for iPhone

How Many Rolls of Wallpaper Do I Need?

If you’ve ever stood in a wallpaper showroom wondering whether you need 8 rolls or 12, you’re not alone. Ordering too few means a second batch with potential dye-lot differences. Ordering too many means wasted material and money.

As a professional wallpaper installer, I built focalScan to solve exactly this problem — not just for pros, but for anyone tackling a room project.

What Is focalScan?

focalScan is an iPhone app that uses your phone’s built-in LiDAR sensor to measure a room in seconds. Point your phone, scan the space, and the app builds a 3D model with accurate wall dimensions, ceiling height, floor area, and perimeter — including doors and windows.

From there, you choose what you’re working on: wallpaper, paint, flooring, or trim. The app does the math and gives you purchase-ready quantities.

How the Wallpaper Calculator Works

Once your room is scanned, tap Wallpaper and focalScan walks you through the estimate:

Select your walls. Not every wall gets papered. The app lists each wall individually with its dimensions and square footage, so you can include or exclude specific surfaces. You can even set a chair rail height to calculate only the portion above or below it.

Enter your roll size. Specify your roll width and length to match the exact product you’re ordering. focalScan uses these dimensions along with your wall measurements to calculate the number of rolls you need.

Set pattern repeat and match type. If you’re working with a patterned wallpaper, enter the vertical repeat and select straight match, drop match, or random. focalScan factors in the waste from pattern alignment, which is where most manual estimates go wrong.

Get your roll count. The app shows the total wall area, net area after deductions, waste percentage, and the number of rolls (or yards) you need to order.

Beyond Wallpaper: Paint, Flooring, and Trim

focalScan isn’t just a wallpaper calculator. The same room scan powers four material estimators:

Paint — Enter your spread rate and number of coats, and the app calculates gallons needed. It accounts for wall area minus openings, so you’re not buying paint for doorways.

Flooring — Whether it’s hardwood, LVP, tile, or carpet, the app uses your floor area and lets you add an overage percentage for cuts and waste.

Trim & Molding — Get linear footage for baseboard, crown molding, or chair rail. The app deducts door openings and converts the total into piece counts based on standard lumber lengths.

This means one scan covers your entire material list for a room renovation — no re-measuring, no switching between apps or calculators.

The AI Pro Assistant

focalScan includes a built-in AI assistant that understands your room data. Ask it questions like “how much overage should I add for a drop-match pattern?” or “what spread rate should I use for this primer?” and it gives specific guidance based on your actual scan measurements.

3D Model and PDF Reports

Every scan produces a rotatable 3D model and a 2D floor plan. You can inspect dimensions from any angle, then export a PDF report with room measurements and material totals — useful for sending to a supplier, sharing with a client, or keeping in your project records.

The app also supports project sharing, so a designer can scan a room and send the project file to a contractor who has focalScan installed.

Pricing

focalScan is free to download with limited room captures. If you need unlimited scans and full access to all estimators, PDF reports, the AI assistant, and project sharing, there are two subscription options:

• Pro Weekly — $2.99/week (great for a single project)
• Pro Annual — $12.99/year (less than $1.10/month)

All billing is handled through Apple. You can cancel anytime in your iPhone settings.

focalScan FAQ

Is the app free?
Yes. You get limited free scans to try it out before subscribing.

What iPhone do I need?
Any iPhone with a LiDAR sensor — that’s iPhone 12 Pro and newer Pro models.

How accurate is the LiDAR scan?
LiDAR scanning is accurate within a small margin. For wallpaper ordering, the app’s estimates are reliable enough for professional use — I use it on my own jobs.

Can I scan rooms with vaulted or sloped ceilings?
Yes. focalScan handles irregular room shapes, angled walls, and non-standard ceiling heights.

What languages does it support?
16 languages including English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, Russian, Polish, Swedish, Vietnamese, Hindi, and Albanian. Both metric and imperial units are supported.

How do I cancel my subscription?
On your iPhone: Settings → [your name] → Subscriptions → focalScan → Cancel Subscription.

Who handles my payment information?
Only Apple processes payments. focalScan never sees or stores your payment details.