Landscaping and garden material calculators
Most landscaping materials are bought by volume or by weight, so the estimate is area times depth, then converted. One cubic yard is 27 cu ft per cu yd or 0.764554857984 m3 per cu yd. Stone is often sold by the ton, and its weight per yard depends on the product: clean coarse stone runs at 90–102 lb/ft3, crusher run at 130–160 lb/ft3. The calculators below handle the depth, the conversion and the bag or bulk-bag count.
Which landscaping calculator matches my job?
Group the job by what you are moving. Loose materials that you spread, such as stone, bark and soil, are volume jobs: measure the area, choose a depth and the calculator converts to yards, tons or bags. Units that you lay, such as pavers and wall blocks, are counting jobs, with a base of loose stone underneath that is itself a volume job. Fences are a linear job, counted along the run.
The table matches common garden projects to the tool that answers them. If your material is not listed, the volume in cubic yards or cubic metres tool gives a plain volume for any depth.
| Project | Calculator | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Gravel drive, path or patio base | gravel in cubic yards or tonnes | Volume, weight by stone type, bags or bulk bags |
| Bark or wood chip on beds and borders | mulch volume tool | Cubic yards, cubic metres and bags by size |
| New lawn, raised bed or levelling | cubic yards of soil or dirt | Volume with settlement allowance, bags or bulk bags |
| Block-paved patio or driveway | pavers or paving slabs needed | Pavers, base stone, bedding sand, jointing sand |
| Garden wall that holds back soil | retaining wall blocks and base gravel | Blocks, caps, base trench stone and drainage stone |
| Boundary or privacy fence | fence posts, panels and rails | Posts, panels or rails and pickets, post-hole concrete |
Landscaping calculators and guides
Why does a ton of gravel cover less than I expected?
Because stone is sold loose and measured compacted, and the two differ a lot. Aggregates take up 27-60% more volume loose than when compacted, so loose volume = compacted volume x 1.27 to 1.60. Penn State's Driving Surface Aggregate is placed 8 in loose to finish at 6 in compacted, or 6 in loose to 4.5 in, i.e. it loses about a quarter of its depth. If you order the compacted volume of a driveway base as loose stone, you will be short after rolling. The gravel for a driveway guide shows how to allow for it layer by layer.
Weight per yard also changes with the rock and the grading. The supplier figures below come from one large US quarry operator and are typical values, not guarantees; ask your yard for the figure it uses on its weighbridge. In the UK, decorative stone is bagged by weight and the depth guidance is in millimetres. Long Rake Spar suggests about 50 mm depth for 14-20 mm gravel and for 20-40 mm slate. Tarmac's Type 1 MOT sub-base is sold in an 850 kg bulk bag.
| Geology | Product | lb per cu ft | lb per cu yd | Short tons per cu yd | kg per m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traprock | Screenings | 124 | 3,348 | 1.67 | 1,986 |
| Traprock | Crushed stone base / crusher run | 160 | 4,320 | 2.16 | 2,563 |
| Traprock | Coarse aggregate (clean stone) | 102 | 2,754 | 1.38 | 1,634 |
| Traprock | Sand | 110 | 2,970 | 1.49 | 1,762 |
| Limestone | Screenings | 113 | 3,051 | 1.53 | 1,810 |
| Limestone | Crushed stone base / crusher run | 138 | 3,726 | 1.86 | 2,211 |
| Limestone | Coarse aggregate (clean stone) | 96 | 2,592 | 1.3 | 1,538 |
| Limestone | Sand | 106 | 2,862 | 1.43 | 1,698 |
| Granite | Screenings | 113 | 3,051 | 1.53 | 1,810 |
| Granite | Crushed stone base / crusher run | 145 | 3,915 | 1.96 | 2,323 |
| Granite | Coarse aggregate (clean stone) | 96 | 2,592 | 1.3 | 1,538 |
| Granite | Sand | 106 | 2,862 | 1.43 | 1,698 |
| Sand & Gravel | Screenings | 112 | 3,024 | 1.51 | 1,794 |
| Sand & Gravel | Crushed stone base / crusher run | 130 | 3,510 | 1.75 | 2,082 |
| Sand & Gravel | Coarse aggregate (clean stone) | 98 | 2,646 | 1.32 | 1,570 |
| Sand & Gravel | Sand | 110 | 2,970 | 1.49 | 1,762 |
| Sandstone | Screenings | 110 | 2,970 | 1.49 | 1,762 |
| Sandstone | Crushed stone base / crusher run | 138 | 3,726 | 1.86 | 2,211 |
| Sandstone | Coarse aggregate (clean stone) | 90 | 2,430 | 1.22 | 1,442 |
| Sandstone | Sand | 100 | 2,700 | 1.35 | 1,602 |
How deep should mulch, topsoil and gravel go?
Depth guidance comes from extension services and makers, and it varies with the job. For mulch, more is not better. Around trees and shrubs on well-drained soil, 3 in (75 mm) is the low end of the 3-4 in layer Iowa State and Mississippi State recommend. Penn State says mulch should be no thicker than 3-4 in; Rutgers says total depth, including old mulch, should not exceed 3 in. The RHS says organic mulches are ideally 7.5 cm (3 in) thick. Read mulch depth and coverage for clay soils and for keeping mulch off trunks.
Lawns need a real root zone. NMSU says the absolute minimum soil depth for a lawn is 4 in, with 6 in or more recommended for deep roots. A quick planning figure: About 12.5 cubic yards of topsoil make a 4 in layer over 1,000 sq ft (exact geometry: 12.35 yd3). The topsoil depth for lawns and beds guide covers raised beds and turf preparation.
Pavers sit on a compacted base whose depth depends on the traffic. CMHA/ICPI: sidewalks, patios and pedestrian areas need at least 4 in (100 mm) of compacted aggregate base over well-drained soil. CMHA/ICPI: residential driveways on well-drained soil need at least 6 in (150 mm) of base; ICPI's application guide gives 6-8 in. Bedding sand is screeded to a nominal 1 in (25 mm), uncompacted; it must not be used to fill dips in the base. Paver counts per area are product-specific: A 4x8 Holland paver (actual 7.75 x 3.88 in, 4 lb) lays at 4.8 units per square foot. Marshalls Driveline 50 (200 x 100 x 50 mm) comes 488 blocks per pack covering 9.76 m2, i.e. 50 blocks per m2.
| Depth (in) | Depth (mm) | Area (sq ft) | Area (m²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | 324 | 30.1 |
| 2 | 51 | 162 | 15.1 |
| 3 | 76 | 108 | 10 |
| 4 | 102 | 81 | 7.5 |
How are fence materials counted?
Along the line, from post spacing. US pre-built wood panels are set with posts 8 ft on center. Standard UK fence panels are 1.83 m (6 ft) wide. Post center-to-center equals the panel width plus one post width. Each post needs a hole, and the hole size sets the concrete. Dig the hole about three times the post width (4 in post -> 12 in hole). Where ground freezes, post holes go below the frost line (check local code). Gates, corners and slopes change the count, which is why the measuring a fence line guide is worth reading before you order.
How much stone, soil and mulch is used each year?
A great deal, and most of it is not for gardens. USGS estimates 1.5 billion metric tons of crushed stone worth $27 billion was produced in the US in 2025 at 3,500 quarries, with 72% used as construction aggregate, mostly for roads. In Great Britain, Great Britain sales of sand and gravel fell to 40.97 million tonnes in 2025 from 53.77 million in 2021, with 17.09 million tonnes sold as sand for concreting, per DBT Table 4b. Recycled material now covers a large part of the UK market: MPA estimates 74.7 million tonnes of recycled and secondary aggregates were used in Great Britain in 2024, just under a third of total construction aggregates supply. Crushed concrete and other recycled aggregate can suit sub-base work, so ask your supplier whether it is graded to the specification your job needs.
Garden products are changing too. Peat made up 24.1% of the 3.15 million cubic metres of growing media supplied to the UK horticultural market in 2023 (761,479 m³), down from 39.0% in 2021, per Defra's growing media production datasheets. Wood fibre (1,055,510 m³) and bark (365,792 m³) together made up 45.1% of UK growing media volume in 2023, more than peat, per Defra's growing media datasheets. In the US, garden waste is a large stream. Americans generated 35.4 million tons of yard trimmings in 2018 (12.1% of municipal solid waste), of which 22.3 million tons (63%) were composted, per EPA's Facts and Figures; 2018 is still EPA's latest national year and mulch spread directly on land is not counted. Fences are a common project in their own right: About 2.85 million US homeowners reported fencing or wall projects in 2023, totalling about $10.7 billion (Harvard JCHS Table A-1, 2023 AHS).
The how much a yard of gravel weighs page collects densities for many more materials with a source per row. See also the jobsite waste data and the building material price index, which includes the lumber series behind fence prices.
Where do the landscaping calculators stop?
They give quantities for a site you have already planned. They cannot judge drainage, soil type or frost depth, and all three can change how deep a base must be. Colder climates and continually wet or weak soils require thicker bases than these minimums. Densities are typical figures, so a delivery by weight can differ from the volume you ordered; the stone's moisture alone shifts it.
Retaining walls over the engineer threshold, fences on steep slopes and drives that carry heavy vehicles all need local rules or a professional, not just a quantity. Every figure the calculators use is listed in their sources, and how the calculators work explains how conflicting values are handled. Decks, stairs and post footings are in the neighbouring deck, stair and post tools section.
Landscaping calculator questions
How many bags of mulch make a cubic yard?
It depends on the bag. A common US mulch bag holds 2 cu ft (56.6 L); Scotts' label says it covers 8 sq ft 3 in deep. Some US bark mulch is sold in 3 cu ft (85 L) bags, which cover 12 sq ft 3 in deep. Divide the yard's 27 cu ft per cu yd by the bag volume and round up.
Can I use stone dust as bedding sand under pavers?
The paving industry says no. Use concrete sand (ASTM C33); not mason sand, limestone screenings or stone dust.
How big is a UK bulk bag of topsoil or bark?
Melcourt topsoil bulk bags hold 0.6 m3 and weigh 510-630 kg. Melcourt's bulk bags hold 0.6 m3 (21 cu ft, 0.78 cu yd) of mulch. Weights vary with moisture, so suppliers sell these by volume.
Do retaining wall blocks need a gravel base?
Yes, on compacted stone in a trench. Place at least 6 in (150 mm) of compacted wall rock in the base trench. Allan Block's base trench is 24 in (600 mm) wide.
Sources (40)
- Allan Block Corporation
- AB Collection - block specifications (commercial installation manual), checked
- Basic Installation - residential retaining walls, checked
- Barrette Outdoor Living
- Wood Fence Installation Instructions (BOM-WOODFENCE), hosted by The Home Depot, checked
- Belgard (Oldcastle APG)
- Belgard Technical Resource Guide (BEL25-D-516650), pp. 17 and 27, checked
- California Building Standards Commission (via GoCodeBook)
- 2025 California Residential Code R404.4 Retaining walls (IRC-based text), checked
- Concrete Masonry & Hardscapes Association (CMHA, successor to ICPI)
- Tech Note PAV-TEC-002-22 - Construction of Interlocking Concrete Pavements (formerly ICPI Tech Spec 2), checked
- Department for Business and Trade (DBT), UK (data from ONS, DBT and Mineral Products Association)
- Monthly Bulletin of Building Materials and Components, September 2026 (Bulletin 617), data tables, checked
- Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra)
- Annual use of peat and alternatives in the UK horticultural market 2021 to 2023 (growing media production datasheets), checked
- Grange Fencing
- Grange Fencing Brochure 2021, checked
- Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (ICPI)
- Tech Spec 10 - Application Guide for Interlocking Concrete Pavements, checked
- Iowa State University Extension and Outreach
- How deep should the mulch layer be around trees and shrubs?, checked
- Jacksons Fencing
- Featherboard Panel - Flat Top specification sheet (2019), checked
- How to Dig Post Holes: Expert Tips, checked
- Johnson's Garden Centers (retailer listing)
- Grade-A All Bark Cedar Mulch (3 cu. ft.), checked
- Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University
- Improving America's Housing 2025, checked
- Long Rake Spar Co. Ltd (UK)
- Long Rake Spar Aggregates Brochure - Quantifying your requirements (Suitable Depths; Weight and Bags tables), checked
- MKM Building Supplies (retailer listing of Tarmac product)
- Tarmac Building Products Type 1 MOT Bulk Bag 850 kg (product listing), checked
- Marshalls plc (UK)
- Marshalls Driveways brochure 2020 - Driveline 50 / Standard Block Paving pack data, checked
- Melcourt Industries Ltd (UK)
- Ornamental Bark Mulch product page (specification and how to use), checked
- Topsoil Blended Loam product page (specification and how to use), checked
- Mineral Products Association (MPA), UK
- Profile of the UK Mineral Products Industry, 2025 Edition, checked
- Mississippi State University Extension (S. Collins-Smith)
- How to mulch (Extension for Real Life blog), checked
- National Institute of Standards and Technology
- Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C: General Tables of Units of Measurement, checked
- Special Publication 811 (2008), Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI), Appendix B.8, checked
- New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension (B. Leinauer)
- Guide H-509 Turfgrass Establishment (rev. Dec 2016), checked
- Paver manufacturer use & care guide (hosted by Lowe's; brand not named on sheet)
- 4x8 Holland Paver - Use & Care Guide, checked
- Penn State Center for Dirt and Gravel Roads
- Technical Bulletin: Driving Surface Aggregate (2025), checked
- Penn State Extension (V. Cotrone)
- Learning How to Properly Mulch Can Save Your Tree (Aug 25, 2025), checked
- QUIKRETE Companies
- Setting Posts (QUIKRETE at-home project instructions), checked
- Royal Horticultural Society (UK)
- Mulches and mulching, checked
- Rutgers Cooperative Extension (Crawford, Cabrera)
- FS099 Problems With Over-Mulching Trees and Shrubs (July 2021), checked
- Sakrete (Oldcastle APG)
- Pro Tips: How To Set Posts & Poles, checked
- Scotts Miracle-Gro (label text as shown on Ace Hardware listing)
- Scotts Nature Scapes Color Enhanced Mulch 2 cu ft, checked
- The Home Depot (manufacturer not named on document)
- Wood Fence Kits Installation Instructions, checked
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), National Minerals Information Center
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Stone (Crushed), checked
- UK Parliament (legislation.gov.uk)
- Weights and Measures Act 1985, Schedule 1, checked
- US Environmental Protection Agency
- Yard Trimmings: Material-Specific Data (Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste and Recycling), checked
- University of Tennessee Extension (Samples, Sorochan)
- W160-A Turfgrass Establishment: Preparing to Plant (2007), checked
- Vulcan Materials Company
- Construction Aggregates Calculator (density estimator by geology and product type), checked
- Wisconsin Highway Research Program / WisDOT (Cetin, Bulduk, Likos, Edil)
- Weight-Volume Relationships and Conversion Factors for Soils and Aggregates of Wisconsin, WHRP G22-05 (Dec 2023), checked
Every number on this page is taken from these documents. How we choose and check sources.