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Which Drum Head Sizes Do I Need? Measuring Up a Kit
Ordering the wrong size head is the most avoidable mistake in this category, and it tends to happen the afternoon before a show. Heads are sized by shell diameter, and depth is irrelevant.
~6 min read · Updated September 2026 · By the Stage Supply team
In this guide: Short answer · How to measure · Typical kits · Sizes we hold · Tom packs · E-Ring packs · Shop the range · FAQ
Measuring a drum takes thirty seconds and almost nobody does it, which is how the wrong size ends up in the basket. This guide covers how to measure without getting it wrong, what the standard kit configurations use, and exactly which sizes sit on our shelf ready to go out the same day.
The short answer
Drum heads are sized by the diameter of the shell, in inches, and depth is irrelevant. A 12 x 8 tom takes a 12 inch head; so does a 12 x 10. Measure across the top of the bare shell, outside edge to outside edge, not across the old head and not inside the shell.
How to measure
- Take the old head off. Measuring across a fitted head includes the hoop, and you will end up half an inch out.
- Measure the shell across its widest point, from the outside edge of the wood to the outside edge on the far side, through the centre.
- Round to the nearest inch. Drums are built to nominal sizes. A shell that measures 12 and a bit takes a 12 inch head.
- If you cannot take the head off, the size is usually printed on the old head near the hoop, and most manufacturers print the shell size inside the drum too.
The one place this goes wrong is very old or hand-made drums, where the shell may not be a standard diameter. Evans’ Level 360 collar gives a head more tolerance in fitting than older designs did, but it does not turn an odd-sized shell into a standard one.
What a typical kit uses
Kit sizings are conventions rather than rules, and manufacturers use the words loosely, so treat these as a starting point and then measure.
| Setup | Toms | Bass | Snare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fusion | 10, 12 and 14 inch | 20 or 22 inch | 14 inch |
| Rock | 12, 13 and 16 inch | 22 inch | 14 inch |
| Compact and jazz | 10, 12 and 14 inch | 18 or 20 inch | 13 or 14 inch |
Two sizes are near-universal on a modern kit, which simplifies the job considerably. The snare is 14 inch, top and bottom, and the bass drum is 20 or 22. That is why our snare and bass stock is concentrated there.
Every size we hold
| Series | Type | Sizes on the shelf |
|---|---|---|
| G1 Clear | Single ply tom batter or resonant | 10, 12, 13, 14, 16 |
| G1 Coated | Single ply, snare or tom batter | 14 |
| G2 Coated | Twin ply batter | 10, 12, 13, 14, 16 |
| EC2 Clear | Twin ply controlled tom batter | 10, 12, 13, 14, 16 |
| UV1 Coated | Single ply, UV coating | 14 |
| HD Dry | Snare batter | 14 |
| EC Reverse Dot | Snare batter | 14 |
| Clear 300 | Snare side resonant | 14 |
| EMAD2 Clear | Bass batter | 20, 22 |
| EMAD Clear | Bass batter | 22 |
| EMAD Heavyweight | Bass batter | 22 |
Anything outside that list, including 8 and 18 inch toms, 24 inch bass heads and 13 inch snare sizes, we order in on the D’Addario account. Lead time is short, but it is not same day, so ring ahead if a show depends on it.
Tom packs, and what is in them
A tom pack is three heads at a better price than three singles, and ours are all the Rock configuration: 10, 12 and 16 inch.
- EC2 Tompack, Clear, Rock. Controlled twin ply. The default for a loud stage.
- G2 Tompack, Coated, Rock. Twin ply coated, warmer and more open than the EC2.
- UV2 Coated Tom Pack, Rock. Twin ply with the UV-cured coating, for players who go through heads.
If your kit is a 10, 12, 14 fusion setup rather than 10, 12, 16, buy singles. A pack you have to supplement with a 14 is not a saving.
E-Ring packs
E-Rings are external damping rings that float on top of a head rather than being built into it, so they are sized by drum diameter in the same way, and they come in pre-packed sets matched to common kits. The number after the size is the width of the ring, so a wider ring damps more.
| Pack | Contents |
|---|---|
| Fusion E-Ring pack | 10 inch x 1 inch, 12 inch x 1.5 inch, 14 inch x 1.5 inch, 14 inch x 1 inch |
| Rock E-Ring pack | 10 inch x 1 inch, 12 inch x 1.5 inch, 14 inch x 1.5 inch, 16 inch x 2 inch |
| Snare E-Ring pack | 14 inch x 1 inch, 14 inch x 1.5 inch |
How to use them is in tuning and damping a drum kit.
Popular sizes
Evans HD Dry 14 inchView product → Evans Clear 300 snare side, 14 inchView product → Evans EC2 Clear Rock tom packView product → Evans EMAD2 Clear, 22 inchView product →
Shop the range
Sorted by drum, so you can go straight to the size you measured.
Stocked in our own warehouse for next-day UK delivery, with trade counter collection available. Anything in the D’Addario, Evans, ProMark or PureSound catalogue that we do not shelve, we can order in, so ask us if you cannot see it.
Frequently asked questions
Does the depth of the drum change the head size?
No. Only the diameter matters. A 14 x 5.5 snare and a 14 x 8 snare take exactly the same 14 inch heads.
Is the head size the same top and bottom?
Yes, the diameter is the same, but the head itself should not be. Batters are thicker, resonants thinner, and on a snare the bottom head is a dedicated snare side head of around 3mil.
Do Evans heads fit other brands of drum?
Yes. Drum head sizing is standard across manufacturers, so a 12 inch Evans head fits any nominally 12 inch drum. Level 360 was designed specifically to improve how consistently heads seat across different shells and bearing edges.
The tom pack is 10, 12 and 16 but my kit is 10, 12 and 14. What now?
Buy the three singles. We stock every EC2 Clear and G2 Coated size from 10 to 16 individually, so you can put together any combination.
