How to Count Rows in Knitting

Why counting rows matters

Patterns are written in rows. "Work 12 rows in rib", "decrease every 6th row", "repeat rows 1 to 8 four times". If your count drifts, a sleeve comes out longer than its partner or a decrease lands in the wrong place. Sometimes a pattern gives a length instead, and the Craft Yarn Council's guide to reading knitting patterns tells you to measure the piece flat and unstretched from the cast-on edge in that case. But whenever the pattern says a number of rows, you need to be able to find that number in the fabric itself.

The good news is that knitted fabric records every row you have worked. You only need to know what one row looks like in the stitch you are using.

Counting rows in stockinette

Stockinette is the smooth fabric made by knitting the right-side rows and purling the wrong-side rows. On the knit side, each stitch looks like a small V. Every V stacked in a column is one row.

1. Lay the work flat with the knit side facing you.
2. Pick one column of stitches near the middle, away from the edges, where the stitches are clearest.
3. Find the cast-on edge. Do not count it as a row. Lion Brand and KnitPro both say to start on the row above the cast-on.
4. Count each V up the column.

The part that trips people up is the top. Lion Brand counts the loops sitting on the needle as a row too, because you have worked them. In its example, the knitter counts eight Vs in the fabric plus the row on the needle, for nine rows worked, so the next row to knit is row 10. KnitPro describes stopping at the row before the needle. Both are describing the same fabric, they just answer different questions. If you want "how many rows have I finished", include the row on the needle. If you are only counting what is visible in the fabric, stop below it. Pick one convention and use it every time.

A needle tip or a blunt darning needle helps. Slide it up the column and move it one V at a time as you count. KnitPro suggests this for fuzzy or dark yarns where the stitches are hard to see.

Reverse stockinette and the purl side

On the purl side, stitches look like small bumps rather than Vs (KnitPro calls them upside-down Us). They can be counted, but it is easier to flip the work and count the Vs on the knit side. Lion Brand gives the same advice for reverse stockinette: count from the back, where the fabric shows the Vs.

Row Counter: Knit & Crochet

Counts rows and stitches for knitting and crochet projects, with linked counters and per-row notes.

Get it on Google Play

Counting the fabric is the way to check your place. Keeping a running count as you knit means you rarely have to. Row Counter turns the whole screen into a +1 button, so you can tap after each row with your needles still in hand, and undo a tap if you add one by mistake.

Counting rows in garter stitch

Garter stitch is knit on every row. It has no Vs on either side. Instead it forms horizontal ridges, and each ridge is made of two rows.

Lion Brand's method:

1. Count the ridges on the front of the work.
2. Turn it over and count the ridges on the back.
3. Add the two numbers.

In its example, four ridges on the front and five on the back make nine rows. Counting both sides is more reliable than counting one side and doubling, because it shows you when you have finished on an odd row. If you know you always stop at the end of an even row, counting the ridges on one side and doubling the number works too.

As with stockinette, leave out the cast-on edge, and look in the middle of the fabric rather than at the edges.

Counting rows in rib, seed and moss stitch

Textured stitches mix knits and purls, which makes rows harder to see. The trick is to find a column that is knit on the side facing you. In 1x1 or 2x2 rib, the knit columns show stacked Vs just like stockinette, so count up one of those. Stretching the rib sideways a little opens the columns and makes the Vs easier to read.

Seed and moss stitch alternate knit and purl within each column, so there is no clean column of Vs. Count the bumps and Vs together up one column, one stitch per row, with a needle tip as a pointer. Go slowly and count twice. These fabrics are where a running count or regular markers pay off most.

Counting rows in cables and lace

Cables give you a landmark. KnitPro suggests finding the small hole where the cable crossed, then counting the stitches above it. That tells you how many rows you have worked since the last crossing.

Lion Brand suggests marking the crossing row as you go. After working the cable row, put a locking marker or safety pin on one of the cable stitches. Later, count the Vs above the marker to see how many rows remain before the next cross. The same trick helps with lace and with yarns where stitches are hard to see.

The common mistakes

• Counting the cast-on as a row. It is not one. Both Lion Brand and KnitPro say to start above it.
• Mixing up the needle row. Decide whether you include the row on the needle and stay consistent.
• Counting at the edge. Edge stitches are often loose or uneven. Count in the middle.
• Counting a twisted column. If the Vs seem to jump sideways, you have drifted to the next column. Use a needle tip to stay on one.
• Counting once. Count twice. If the two numbers disagree, count a third time with a marker every ten rows.

Make counting easier next time

Counting the fabric is a skill worth having, because it lets you check your work and recover after a lost count. But you do not want to do it after every row. A few habits keep the count without effort:

• Place a marker every 5 or 10 rows. KnitPro suggests this, so you can count markers and multiply rather than counting every V.
• Mark special rows, such as cable crossings or the start of shaping.
• Keep a running count in a counter or app, and check it against the fabric now and then.

Our guide to keeping track of rows in knitting covers these habits in more detail, and what is a row counter explains the tools. If you also crochet, how to count crochet rows covers the same job for crochet fabric.