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Soil Calculator
Work out how much topsoil, garden soil or compost you need to fill a raised bed, top-dress a lawn or level a low spot. Enter the area and depth to get cubic yards, cubic feet, bags and an estimated weight.
- Volume in cubic feet
- 33.6 cu ft
- Estimated weight
- 1.34 ton
- Area covered
- 32 ft²
- Bags needed
- 23
- Estimated cost
- $138.00
Saved setups
Save a set of inputs you reuse — your usual rate, your loan, your room sizes — and load it back in one tap.
Your recent calculations
Results you calculate here are kept on this device so you can come back to them.
Formula
How to use it
- Choose the shape and enter the dimensions of the bed or lawn area.
- Enter the depth of soil to add.
- Choose a bag size, or price by the cubic yard for bulk soil.
- Add 5–10% because loose soil settles after watering.
Worked examples
An 8 × 4 ft raised bed filled 12 inches deep with 1.5 cu ft bags at $6
- Volume in cubic feet
- 32 cu ft
- Volume needed
- 1.19 yd³
- Bags needed
- 22
- Estimated weight
- 1.28 ton
- Estimated cost
- $132.00
2 inches of topsoil over 25 × 20 ft with 10% extra, at $40 a yard
- Volume in cubic feet
- 91.67 cu ft
- Volume needed
- 3.4 yd³
- Estimated weight
- 3.67 ton
- Estimated cost
- $135.80
Depths that work
Raised vegetable beds: 10–12 in of soil. New lawn over poor ground: 4–6 in of topsoil. Top-dressing an existing lawn: ¼ to ½ in. Flower beds: 6–8 in of improved soil.
Soil settles, sometimes by 10–20% in a freshly filled raised bed, so fill slightly above the rim or keep a few bags back to top up.
Weight matters for delivery
A cubic yard of screened topsoil weighs roughly 2,000 to 2,700 lb depending on moisture, more than a half-ton pickup should carry. Bagged garden and potting mixes are far lighter because they are mostly peat, bark and compost; lower the density to 40–50 lb/ft³ for those.
Questions people ask
How much soil do I need for a 4×8 raised bed?
A 4 × 8 ft bed filled 12 in deep needs 32 cubic feet, which is 1.19 cubic yards or 22 bags of 1.5 cubic feet. At 10 in deep it is 26.7 cubic feet.
How many cubic feet are in a yard of soil?
27. A cubic yard is 3 ft × 3 ft × 3 ft. That is 18 bags of 1.5 cubic feet or 27 bags of 1 cubic foot.
How much topsoil for top-dressing a lawn?
About 0.77 cubic yards per 1,000 sq ft at ¼ in deep, or 1.54 cubic yards at ½ in.