Gravel Calculator
Enter the size and depth of a driveway, path or patio base to get the gravel in cubic yards and tons, for crushed stone, pea gravel, crusher run or stone dust.
In feet. For 10 ft 6 in, enter 10.5.
The depth of the finished layer, in inches. Your supplier can tell you what depth suits your ground and use.
Vulcan Materials and Martin Marietta list 1.22 to 1.4 tons per cubic yard for this material, depending on the rock. The quarry or yard can tell you theirs.
For 2 paths of the same size, enter 2.
For uneven ground and stone that packs down. Enter 0 for the exact amount.
Gravel you need
3.59 tons
That is 2.72 cubic yards, with 10% extra, about 7,170 lb. Order 4 tons: rounded up to the next half ton, so you have a little to spare.
| One area: 20 ft × 10 ft | 200 sq ft |
|---|---|
| × 4 in deep (÷ 12 = 0.3333 ft) | 66.67 ft³ |
| 10% extra | +6.67 ft³ |
| Gravel volume | 73.33 ft³ |
| ÷ 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard | 2.72 yd³ |
| × 1.32 tons per cubic yard | 3.59 tons |
Tons are US tons of 2,000 lb. Some suppliers sell by the ton and some by the cubic yard; both amounts are above.
How this is calculated
First the volume: length × width × depth, with the depth in inches divided by 12. A driveway 20 ft long and 10 ft wide, 4 inches deep, holds 20 × 10 × 4 ÷ 12 = 66.67 cubic feet. With 10% extra that is 73.33 cubic feet, and divided by 27 it is 2.72 cubic yards.
Then the weight: cubic yards × tons per cubic yard. Crushed stone at 1.32 tons per cubic yard gives 2.716 × 1.32 = 3.59 tons. The calculator rounds that up to the next half ton, 4 tons, so you have a little to spare. Vulcan Materials and Martin Marietta work out tonnage the same way in their own calculators: length × width × thickness × density.
How much a cubic yard of gravel weighs
| Gravel | Vulcan Materials | Martin Marietta | Calculator starts at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crushed stone | 1.22 to 1.38 | 1.32 to 1.4 | 1.32 |
| Pea gravel or river gravel | 1.32 | 1.36 | 1.36 |
| Crusher run or road base | 1.86 to 2.16 | 1.9 to 2.15 | 1.9 |
| Stone dust or screenings | 1.49 to 1.67 | 1.47 to 1.6 | 1.47 |
Each range covers the rock types the two quarry companies list: traprock, limestone, granite and (Vulcan) sandstone for crushed products, and sand and gravel for pea gravel. Vulcan gives its figures in pounds per cubic foot; × 27 ÷ 2,000 turns them into tons per cubic yard, so 96 lb per cubic foot is 1.30 tons. Crusher run and stone dust weigh more than clean stone because the fine particles fill the gaps between the stones. Your quarry or landscape yard can tell you the weight of what they sell; enter it in the weight field.
Depth and layers
Use the finished depth from your plan or your supplier. For a driveway built in layers, such as crusher run under clean stone, work out each layer on its own with its own weight and add the tons. The extra field (10% to start) covers uneven ground and stone that packs down; enter 0 for the exact amount. To mulch beds instead, use the mulch calculator.
Sources
Checked against the sources below on .
Questions people ask
How much gravel do I need for a 10 x 20 driveway?
At 4 inches deep, 10 × 20 ft is 66.67 cubic feet, or 2.47 cubic yards. That is 3.26 tons of crushed stone at 1.32 tons per cubic yard, or 4.69 tons of crusher run at 1.9, before any extra.
How much does a cubic yard of gravel weigh?
Clean crushed stone such as #57 weighs about 1.22 to 1.40 tons per cubic yard (2,440 to 2,800 lb) in the Vulcan Materials and Martin Marietta calculators. Crusher run weighs more, about 1.86 to 2.16 tons.
How many cubic yards are in a ton of gravel?
About 0.76 cubic yards of crushed stone at 1.32 tons per cubic yard (1 ÷ 1.32). For crusher run at 1.9 tons per cubic yard, it is about 0.53 cubic yards.
How much area does a ton of gravel cover?
A ton of crushed stone at 1.32 tons per cubic yard covers about 123 square feet 2 inches deep, 82 square feet 3 inches deep, or 61 square feet 4 inches deep.
How much pea gravel do I need for a path?
A path 3 ft wide and 30 ft long, 3 inches deep, holds 22.5 cubic feet, or 0.83 cubic yards. At 1.36 tons per cubic yard that is 1.13 tons, so order 1.5 tons.