VLSM Subnet Planner
Split one block into right-sized VLANs: best-fit allocation for every host count, growth headroom, /31 point-to-point links, plus the leftover free blocks and a utilisation figure.
Input
Input style
The space every segment must fit inside, e.g. 10.20.0.0/22.
SegmentHosts
Sizes every demand with this much headroom.
Which address to propose for the SVI.
Purely a note for your own runbook — the plan does not use it.
Export
5 segment(s) planned
Utilisation
Planned inside 10.20.0.0/22
- Base size
- 1,024
- Allocated
- 484
- Utilisation
- 47.3%
- Free
- 540
- Failed requests
- 0
- Gateway convention
- First usable
2^10 addresses
5 block(s)
Block space handed out, not host counts
4 block(s) left
Every segment placed
Your note: 10.20.0.1
Allocation
| Segment | Prefix | Usable range | Gateway | Hosts | Sized for | Usable | Reserved |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VLAN10-DATA | 10.20.0.0/24 | 10.20.0.1 – 10.20.0.254 | 10.20.0.1 | 200 | 200 | 254 | 2 |
| VLAN20-VOICE | 10.20.1.0/25 | 10.20.1.1 – 10.20.1.126 | 10.20.1.1 | 100 | 100 | 126 | 2 |
| VLAN30-IOT | 10.20.1.128/26 | 10.20.1.129 – 10.20.1.190 | 10.20.1.129 | 50 | 50 | 62 | 2 |
| VLAN40-MGMT | 10.20.1.192/27 | 10.20.1.193 – 10.20.1.222 | 10.20.1.193 | 25 | 25 | 30 | 2 |
| WAN-CORE-EDGE | 10.20.1.224/30 | 10.20.1.225 – 10.20.1.226 | 10.20.1.225 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Free blocks
Remaining space inside the base, as whole CIDR blocks
- 10.20.1.228/30 · 4 addr
- 10.20.1.232/29 · 8 addr
- 10.20.1.240/28 · 16 addr
- 10.20.2.0/23 · 512 addr
How the plan is chosen
Demands are sorted largest-first and each gets the smallest free block that fits (best fit decreasing), so no segment is starved by a smaller one placed first. 'Sized for' is the requested count after the growth headroom; 'Reserved' counts the network and broadcast addresses a /30-and-longer block gives up — a /31 or /32 gives up none (RFC 3021).
Frequently asked
- How does VLSM differ from fixed-length subnetting?
- Fixed-length subnetting gives every VLAN the same mask, so a 2-host WAN link wastes as much space as a 200-host VLAN. VLSM sizes each segment independently, which is what lets a /22 hold a 200-host, a 100-host and a 2-host segment without wasting a /24 on the link.
- Why does a 200-host VLAN get a /24 and a 100-host VLAN a /25?
- A /24 has 254 usable addresses and a /23 only 510, so 200 hosts fits a /24 exactly. 100 hosts fits a /25 (126 usable) but not a /26 (62 usable), which is why the planner rounds up to the next power of two.
- What is the growth headroom for?
- It inflates every demand before sizing, so a 100-host VLAN planned with 30% headroom is treated as 130 hosts and gets a /24 instead of a /25. Planning with headroom costs address space now and avoids a re-addressing project later.
- When should point-to-point links use a /31?
- RFC 3021 allows both addresses of a /31 to be used on a point-to-point link, so a 2-host WAN link needs only two addresses instead of the four a /30 burns. Enable the /31 toggle if both ends of your links support it, which most modern routers do.
- Does the planner use any of my addresses remotely?
- No. The whole calculation runs in your browser and the page makes no network requests, so your address plan never leaves the machine.
Next
- IPv4 Subnet CalculatorNetwork and broadcast address, usable host range, netmask and wildcard mask, host counts and the special-purpose classification for any address and prefix.
- Route Summarization CalculatorReduce a list of prefixes to the minimal exact cover, the single covering supernet, and the holes that the supernet would advertise but nobody owns.
- BGP Aggregation & Suppress-Map BuilderBuild a BGP aggregate plan for Cisco, Huawei, Arista or Juniper: what summary-only suppresses, what must stay visible, and which routes fall outside the aggregate and would be blackholed.