DIY 8x8 Gable Storage Shed Plan

The full plan is $19.99: buy the 8×8 gable shed plan. To see the drawing style first, open the free 8×8 gable shed plan PDF.

8×8 shed plans: the numbers for a site check

Which way it faces: the ridge runs side to side, parallel to the door wall, so the eaves sit over the front and back walls and the gable triangles are on the two side walls. The roof overhangs 8″ past the front and back and 4″ at the sides, so the roof footprint is not square. Square the stakes to matching 11′ 3 3/4″ diagonals before the stone goes down.

How the 8×8 shed plans go together

Three skids and a floor you build in place

• Skids. Three 8 ft pressure-treated 4x4s, one board each, running left to right, parallel to the front wall, 3′ 10 1/4″ on center, so the front and back rims sit on the outer skids. Nothing on this plan is spliced.
• Frame. Two 8 ft rims and seven 7′ 9″ joists, nine 8 ft pressure-treated 2x6s in all. The nailed frame weighs about 150 lb and racks out of square if you lift it, so the plan has you build it in place on the skids and square it there.
• Deck. Two sheets of tongue and groove plywood: a full sheet at the front, then two 4 ft halves so the end joints stagger. Two rows cover about 7′ 11″, so the plan has you rip a 1×4 to 1″ and glue it along the back rim, where the wall’s bottom plate covers it.

How the walls go up on an 8 x 8 ft deck

Each wall is framed flat on the deck, squared by its diagonals and raised as a bare frame by two people. The siding goes on after all four stand.

• Hinge it. Drive two or three nails partly through the bottom plate into the deck at the tipping edge so the wall pivots, not slides.
• Two walls walk. Once a wall stands, 7′ 8 1/2″ of deck is free in front of it, less than a 7′ 9″ wall needs flat plus its 3 1/2″ setback. So the plan frames the front and right walls facing the other way, 6″ from the standing wall, tips them up there and walks them across on the bottom plate, never lifting them off the deck.
• Brace from outside. 12 ft 2×4 braces run to stakes about 5 ft out, keeping the deck clear for the next wall. Before you side a face, move its braces inside onto deck cleats.
• Side walls drop in. Their plates are 1/8″ shorter than the gap between the front and back walls, so plumb those two first.
• Siding alone. Screw a straight 2×4 ledger to the floor frame at the siding’s bottom line, stand each sheet on it, tack the top corner and nail it off.

What is on the 8×8 shed plans materials list

The shopping list is split by stage, so you can buy the floor first and the roof later, in the stock lengths that waste the least. A cut list gives every part’s length, and a cutting plan shows which board each part comes from.

• Foundation and floor: three 8 ft pressure-treated 4×4 skids, nine 8 ft pressure-treated 2x6s for the rims and joists, 2 sheets of tongue and groove plywood and a 10 ft 1×4 for the filler strip.
• Walls: 30 studs at 7′ 6″ from full 8 ft 2x4s (not precut studs), plates, a door header of two 2x6s with 1/2″ plywood between them, a doubled 2×6 window header, 8 sheets of T1-11 and 2 pieces of Z-flashing.
• Roof: nine 2×4 x 12 ft boards for 14 rafters and 4 fly rafters, a 10 ft 2×6 for the ridge, 5 rafter ties, 3 collar ties, 4 sheets of OSB, a roll of 15 lb felt, 4 bundles of shingles and 5 pieces of drip edge.
• Door, window and trim: 1 T1-11 sheet for both gable ends, 1 new sheet for the door leaf, 3 T-strap hinges, a handle and latch, the prefabricated window, 1×6 fascia, 1 sheet of 1/2″ plywood for the soffit and 1×4 casing and corner trim.
• Hardware and finish: 23 lb of 3 1/2″ framing nails, siding, sheathing and roofing nails, 14 hurricane ties, 4 tubes of construction adhesive, flashing tape, drip cap, insect screen and 3 gallons of paint.

Want the totals and the waste map before you buy the plan? Read our 8×8 shed material list guide.

The 8×8 shed door: what changed from the 2017 version

The 2017 version had a 27 inch door. The re-issued plan frames a wider opening and builds the door from materials on the list:

• Opening: 39″ wide by 76 1/2″ tall, 2′ 4 1/2″ to 5′ 7 1/2″ from the left corner, under a doubled 2×6 header. Clear height is 6′ 6″ once you cut out the bottom plate.
• Leaf: one, 3′ 2 1/2″ wide by 6′ 5 1/4″ tall, cut from a new T1-11 sheet because the siding cut from the opening is too short.
• Frame: a glued and screwed 1×4 frame on the outside face (two stiles and three rails) and two 1×4 braces cut at 39 degrees on the miter saw, rising from the hinge side.
• Hanging: three T-strap hinges, a 1×2 stop under the header and another down the latch side, and the latch on the free edge.

What you can fit in an 8×8 shed

• Tools on the side walls. Neither side wall has an opening, so rakes, shovels, hoses and a string trimmer hang on both, with an aisle from the door to the back.
• A bench with daylight. The window is centered in the back wall with its sill 3′ 1″ above the bottom plate, so a potting bench or workbench fits under it.
• Push mower, bikes and bins. The leaf is 3′ 2 1/2″ wide, so the clear width is a little under 39″. The deck sits 9 3/4″ up, so plan a small ramp for anything on wheels.
• Riding mowers: measure first. Many are wider than the opening. If yours is, look at a plan with a double door, such as the 8×10 below.
• Not a loft. The plan’s five rafter ties keep the walls from spreading, and it says to keep anything set on them light.

Stick-framed rafters on an 8×8 gable roof

Many 8×8 plans use trusses. This 3DSHEDPLANS plan frames the roof with 14 2×4 rafters 16″ on center against an 8′ 8″ 2×6 ridge board, plus 4 fly rafters on the rakes. The ridge is one board, so there is no truss jig and no temporary post.

• One pattern. Each rafter board is 5′ 3 1/2″ long with a birdsmouth (a 2 1/2″ seat and a 1 1/4″ heel), and two come out of each 12 ft board if you flip the pattern end for end. Test the first one on both sides with a ridge-thick block, then trace the rest.
• Ridge first. A 1′ 8 3/4″ center stud on each gable wall carries the ridge while you set the two end pairs, then the 5 pairs between them. The roof rises 2′ 2 5/16″ from the top of the walls to the top of the ridge.
• Ties. A 2×4 rafter tie sits on the plates beside each of the 5 interior pairs, 3 collar ties hold the ridge together in wind, and every rafter gets a hurricane tie.
• Venting. Air comes in through three screened 1″ holes in each beveled frieze block over the eave walls. The gable is too low for a louvered vent, so the gable siding stops 1″ under the end rafters and that gap is screened from inside.

Each roof side takes four OSB pieces, cut from 4 sheets in all, with every end joint on a rafter. In heavy snow or high wind areas, ask about loads and check your local permit office before you build.

Free 8×8 shed plans with materials list: the preview vs the full plan

The free 7-page PDF shows how the plan is drawn and what the shed looks like. The full 3DSHEDPLANS plan adds the materials list with every quantity, all 19 step sections, the stud tables for every wall, the door and rafter details, the gable siding cuts, the floor and roof sheet maps, the cut list, the cutting plan and the fastener schedule. Every number comes from one 3D model, checked by 86 automatic checks before publishing.

Before you build an 8×8 gable shed

• Permits. At 64 sq ft and 10′ 11 3/8″ tall, this shed may fall inside or outside local size and height limits, and setback rules vary by town and HOA. Check your local permit office before you buy lumber.
• Skids. Use ground-contact rated pressure-treated 4x4s (UC4A or higher), set each one crown up, and raise a low skid with more gravel or treated shims, never untreated wood.
• Keep it dry. Leave 6″ or more between the siding and the soil or mulch, and check the roof, caulk, paint and skids every spring.
• Materials. Store lumber flat and covered, since wet wood decays faster (USDA Forest Products Laboratory Wood Handbook). Check the stamp on each OSB sheet for its span rating (APA: OSB).

Tools and ladders the plan lists

Beyond a circular saw, drill/driver and framing hammer, the tool list adds a miter saw for the door braces and trim, a reciprocating saw for the threshold cut, two 24″ bar clamps for marking the rims, a 3 lb sledge for the brace stakes and a hand tamper for the pad. Two 8 ft step ladders reach the ridge, and a 16 ft extension ladder covers roof work from the eave, about 8′ 8″ up.

Related plans

• 2 ft wider, with a 5 ft double door in a 10 ft front wall: the 8×10 gable shed plan. The same 80 sq ft with the door in an 8 ft wall: the 10×8 gable shed plan.
• A square 100 sq ft: the 10×10 gable shed plan.
• Smaller, 48 sq ft: the 8×6 gable shed plan. A one-slope roof: the 6×6 lean-to shed plan.
• Every gable shed plan in one place.