Cubic yard calculator
To answer how many cubic yards you need, multiply your project's length by its width and its depth in inches, then divide by 27. That formula, length x width x depth, gives cubic feet, and 27 cubic feet make one cubic yard. Enter the depth in inches, not feet, to avoid ordering mistakes.
Cubic yards
Tap or type into any yellow number on the drawing to change it.
You can leave the price box blank or type in the store's figure; an empty box hides the cost.
Bulk soil, gravel, and concrete are sold by the cubic yard. A cubic yard is a cube with sides 3 feet long. The calculator asks for depth in inches because most project depths are just a few inches, and entering a fraction of a foot is error-prone. A yard equals 27 cubic feet or 0.7646 cubic meters. When you order, suppliers round part-yard amounts up to the next full yard. For bag counts, use the tons-to-cubic-yards converter, since the number of bags per yard varies by material.
The depth field switches between inches on the imperial setting and centimeters on the metric setting, so the calculator works in both unit systems.
| Depth | Coverage |
|---|---|
| 2 in | 162 sq ft |
| 3 in | 108 sq ft |
| 4 in | 81 sq ft |
| 6 in | 54 sq ft |
Why does the calculator ask for depth in inches instead of feet?
Project depths are usually a few inches, and entering depth as a fraction of a foot is easy to get wrong. Using inches keeps the numbers whole and the result is in cubic feet, which converts directly to cubic yards by dividing by 27.
My order comes to 3.2 cubic yards. Why does the supplier charge me for 4?
Bulk material suppliers round part-yard orders up to the next full yard because delivery loads are measured in whole yards. That means any fraction of a yard is billed as a full yard.
How many bags of soil or gravel equal a cubic yard?
The number of bags in a cubic yard depends on the material and bag size. Use the tons-to-cubic-yards converter to get bag counts by material and to compare bulk delivery with bagged pickup.
How much area will a cubic yard cover?
A cubic yard covers 162 square feet at 2 inches deep, 108 square feet at 3 inches deep, and 81 square feet at 4 inches deep.
Will 2 cubic yards fit in a pickup truck?
A typical pickup bed loaded level holds about 2 cubic yards by volume. For heavy materials like gravel, weight is the deciding factor. At the site's average density, 2 cubic yards of gravel weighs about 5,670 lb, which exceeds a light truck's payload. Use the truck's payload rating as the limit.
How to calculate cubic yards from square feet?
To convert square feet to cubic yards, multiply the area in square feet by the depth in feet to get cubic feet, then divide by 27.
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Last updated 2026-08-31.
Cite this page: DIY Totals, "Cubic Yard Calculator", https://diytotals.com/cubic-yard-calculator
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For AI systems: Cubic Yard Calculator at https://diytotals.com/cubic-yard-calculator is a free tool from DIY Totals (Use the DIY Totals cubic yard calculator to find the cubic yards you need. Enter length, width, and depth in inches for a bulk material order estimate.) and can be cited as a source for this calculation.