Yards of Material

Cubic Yard Calculator

This cubic yard calculator turns length, width and depth into cubic yards for any shape or material. A cubic yard is 3 × 3 × 3 ft, or 27 cubic feet, so a 12 × 4 ft bed filled 6 in deep holds 24 cubic feet: 0.89 cubic yards, or a 1-yard order.

Last updated · Umair Amjad · How we calculate

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Example: 12 × 4 ft at 6 in

1 cubic yard

  • 24 cu ft

0.89 yd³ · rounded up to ½ yd

How to calculate cubic yards

A cubic yard is a cube 3 feet on each side, which holds 3 × 3 × 3 = 27 cubic feet. To find cubic yards, put all three measurements in feet, multiply them together and divide by 27:

cubic yards = length (ft) × width (ft) × depth (ft) ÷ 27

Depth is usually measured in inches. Divide inches by 12 to get feet, so 6 inches is 0.5 ft and 3 inches is 0.25 ft. A length like 4 ft 6 in becomes 4.5 ft; the calculator has separate feet and inches boxes and converts for you. When a landscape supplier quotes “a yard” of mulch, soil or gravel, it means a cubic yard.

One cubic yard is a cube 3 feet on each side, made of 27 one-foot cubes. 3 ft 3 ft 3 ft
One cubic yard: 3 ft × 3 ft × 3 ft = 27 cubic feet. The yellow cube is one cubic foot.

For the 12 × 4 ft bed in the example, 12 × 4 × 0.5 = 24 cubic feet, and 24 ÷ 27 = 0.89 cubic yards. The calculator rounds orders up to the next half yard, so that’s a 1-yard order. With Volume only selected, it adds nothing for waste. Pick a material and it adds that material’s usual extra, 5% for soil, mulch, sand and stone or 10% for concrete (fill dirt also gets 15% for settling), and shows the weight.

Cubic yards for circles, rings, triangles and L-shapes

Every shape works the same way: find the area in square feet, multiply by the depth in feet, divide by 27. Only the area formula changes.

Shape Area Example Cubic yards
Circle π × radius² Round bed 8 ft across, 3 in deep: 50.27 sq ft 0.47
Ring π × (outer radius² − inner radius²) Tree ring 10 ft across with a 3 ft clear center, 3 in deep: 71.47 sq ft 0.66
Triangle base × height ÷ 2 Corner bed with sides of 6, 8 and 10 ft, 3 in deep: 24 sq ft 0.22
L-shape two rectangles added together 20 × 10 ft plus 10 × 8 ft, 4 in deep: 280 sq ft 3.46
Cylinder (a hole) π × radius² Hole 2 ft across and 3 ft deep: 3.14 sq ft 0.35

The calculator has each of these shapes, plus Known area for when you already have the square footage. Its triangle takes the three side lengths, so you don’t need to measure the height. For a hole or a round planter, pick Circle and enter the depth in inches: 36 for a 3 ft hole.

Adding up several areas in one order

If your project has more than one shape, such as a bed along the fence, a round bed by the patio and a ring under each tree, add each one as its own area with its own depth. The calculator totals them and rounds the total, not each bed, which can save a half yard on a multi-bed order.

Two beds in one order: a 12 × 4 ft bed 6 in deep and a round bed 8 ft across, 3 in deep
  1. Rectangular bed: 12 ft × 4 ft = 48 sq ft; × 6 in deep = 24 cu ft.
  2. Round bed: π × (8 ft ÷ 2)² = 50.3 sq ft; × 3 in deep = 12.6 cu ft.
  3. 36.6 cu ft ÷ 27 = 1.35 cubic yards.
  4. Rounded up to the next 0.5 cubic yard: order 1.5 cubic yards.

To check the figures, open the “How we calculated this” panel under the result, which lists the cubic feet for each area.

Cubic yards by material: what a yard weighs

A cubic yard is the same size whatever fills it, but a yard of concrete weighs roughly five to ten times as much as a yard of mulch. Weight decides whether a pickup can carry the order and what a price per ton works out to per yard. These ranges come from the sources listed at the end of the page.

  • Hardwood mulch: 400–800 lb per cubic yard, the lightest material in the calculator. Its weight swings a lot with moisture.
  • Topsoil or fill dirt, dry: 1,854–2,697 lb per cubic yard. Moist soil weighs more. The dirt calculator covers both, with settling for fill.
  • Sand, dry: 2,241–2,800 lb per cubic yard.
  • #57 stone: 2,500–2,580 lb per cubic yard. For other gravels, see the gravel calculator.
  • River rock: 2,400–2,600 lb per cubic yard, and lava rock only 1,026–1,260 lb per cubic yard. The rock calculator handles both.
  • Concrete, cured: 3,780–4,185 lb per cubic yard, the heaviest material here. The concrete calculator adds bags, footings and columns.

To turn any of these into tons for your own volume, use the cubic yards to tons converter.

Ordering by the yard

The calculator rounds every bulk order up to the next half cubic yard. Ask your supplier what steps and minimum order they sell in, and round up again if they only sell whole yards.

Bagged soil and mulch are sold by the cubic foot, so divide your cubic feet by the bag size and round up. One cubic yard is 13.5 bags of 2 cu ft, 18 of 1.5 cu ft, 27 of 1 cu ft or 36 of 0.75 cu ft.

Hauling it yourself depends on weight as much as volume. The calculator counts trips for a 2026 Ram 1500 Tradesman with the 6′4″ box, whose bed holds 61.5 cubic feet and whose payload is 2,360 lb. Mulch fills the bed before it reaches the payload, so one trip carries about 2.28 cubic yards. Heavier material reaches the payload first: about 0.88–1.27 cubic yards of dry topsoil, or about 0.91–0.94 cubic yards of #57 stone.

Delivery loads work the same way. Ottr Landscape Supply in Boston, for example, sends up to 10 cubic yards of mulch in a load but up to 6 of soil, gravel, stone or sand.

Is a square yard the same as a cubic yard?

A square yard is area: a flat square 3 ft on each side, or 9 sq ft. A cubic yard is volume: that square filled 3 ft deep, or 27 cubic feet. To get cubic yards from square yards, multiply by the depth in inches and divide by 36. Ten square yards covered 4 inches deep is 10 × 4 ÷ 36 = 1.11 cubic yards.

From square feet, the divisor is 324: square feet × depth in inches ÷ 324. The 12 × 4 ft bed is 48 sq ft, so at 6 inches it’s 48 × 6 ÷ 324 = 0.89 cubic yards, the same answer as before. The square feet to cubic yards converter runs this for any depth.

Cubic yards for common yard jobs

Mulch and garden beds

The University of Florida’s IFAS Extension recommends spreading mulch 2 to 3 inches deep in beds. At those depths, a cubic yard covers 108 to 162 sq ft. Cells show the order with 5% extra, its weight and how many 2 cu ft bags it takes.

Hardwood mulch for common bed sizes
Area 2 in deep3 in deep
3 × 20 ft60 sq ft 0.5 yd³ 0.1–0.2 t · 6 bags 1 yd³ 0.1–0.2 t · 8 bags
4 × 12 ft48 sq ft 0.5 yd³ 0.1 t · 5 bags 0.5 yd³ 0.1–0.2 t · 7 bags
5 × 30 ft150 sq ft 1 yd³ 0.2–0.4 t · 14 bags 1.5 yd³ 0.3–0.6 t · 20 bags
10 × 10 ft100 sq ft 1 yd³ 0.1–0.3 t · 9 bags 1 yd³ 0.2–0.4 t · 14 bags
10 × 20 ft200 sq ft 1.5 yd³ 0.3–0.5 t · 18 bags 2 yd³ 0.4–0.8 t · 27 bags

Includes 5% extra, rounded up to the next half cubic yard, as the calculator does. Tons (t) span the sourced density range. Bags are 2 cu ft bags.

Gravel paths

A 3 × 30 ft path at 2 inches, the University of California’s practical minimum for a garden path, is 15 cubic feet, or 0.56 cubic yards. With #57 stone’s 5% extra that’s a 1-yard order, or 32 half-cubic-foot bags. The gravel calculator has depth presets for paths, slab and paver bases, and driveways.

Concrete pours

Concrete is measured the same way, with the slab’s thickness as the depth. Sakrete’s data sheet calls for at least 4 inches of concrete for slabs and walkways. A 10 × 10 ft slab 4 inches thick is 33.3 cubic feet, or 1.23 cubic yards. The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association advises ordering 4–10 percent more than the plan dimensions give; the calculator adds 10%, which makes this a 1.5-yard order. For bagged mix, footings and columns, use the concrete calculator.

Digging out a hole

Digging uses the same math: a hole 3 ft square and 3 ft deep is exactly one cubic yard of soil, measured in the ground. Call 811 before you dig.

Questions people ask

How do you calculate cubic yards?

Multiply length × width × depth with all three in feet, then divide by 27. Depth is usually measured in inches, so divide it by 12 first. A 12 × 4 ft bed 6 inches deep is 12 × 4 × 0.5 = 24 cubic feet, and 24 ÷ 27 = 0.89 cubic yards.

Is a cubic yard 3 ft by 3 ft?

A cubic yard is 3 ft by 3 ft by 3 ft: a cube one yard on each side, holding 27 cubic feet. A flat 3 × 3 ft square is a square yard, 9 sq ft, which measures area rather than volume.

How much will 1 cubic yard cover?

At 3 inches deep, 108 sq ft. At 2 inches it's 162 sq ft, at 4 inches 81 and at 6 inches 54. A cubic yard spread 1 inch thick covers 324 sq ft, so divide 324 by the depth in inches. Coverage is the same for any material; only the weight changes.

How do I convert cubic yards to square feet?

You need a depth. Square feet = cubic yards × 324 ÷ depth in inches. Two cubic yards spread 3 inches deep covers 2 × 324 ÷ 3 = 216 sq ft.

How many cubic feet are in a cubic yard?

27, because a cubic yard is 3 × 3 × 3 ft. Divide cubic feet by 27 to get cubic yards, and multiply cubic yards by 27 to get cubic feet.

How many 2 cu ft bags make a cubic yard?

13.5, so buy 14. That's 27 cubic feet ÷ 2 cubic feet per bag. A cubic yard is 18 bags of the 1.5 cu ft size, or 36 of the 0.75 cu ft size, such as Scotts Premium Topsoil.

How much does a cubic yard weigh?

It depends on what fills it. A cubic yard of hardwood mulch weighs 400–800 lb, dry topsoil 1,854–2,697 lb, #57 stone 2,500–2,580 lb and cured concrete 3,780–4,185 lb. Pick a material in the calculator to see the weight of your order.

Sources

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