Mulch/Soil/Gravel Calculator
Convert a landscaping area and depth into cubic yards, bags or tonnes.
About Mulch/Soil/Gravel Calculator
Volume is a simple product of area and depth, but the mass varies fourfold across these materials, which is what determines whether a vehicle can carry the load. Bags are far more expensive per cubic metre than bulk delivery. The crossover from bags to bulk delivery is usually around one cubic metre, and the coverage line shows how quickly depth consumes material.
Formula
Mulch/Soil/Gravel
Volume = area × depth; mass = volume × material density
- cubic yard
- The usual bulk delivery unit, equal to 0.765 m³
- density
- Bark mulch is about 0.4 t/m³ while gravel is around 1.6
Worked example
With the default values below, Mulch/Soil/Gravel Calculator returns Volume Required of 2.250. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.
Inputs used
- Area to coverminimum 0 m2
- 30 m2
- Depthminimum 0 mm
- 75 mm
- Materialone of Bark mulch, Topsoil, Compost, Gravel
- Bark mulch
- Bag volumeminimum 1 L
- 50 L
Results
- Volume Required
- 2.250 m3
- Volume in Cubic Yards
- 2.943 yd3
- Bags Required
- 45
- Approximate Mass
- 0.900 t
- Area One Cubic Metre Covers
- 13.33 m2
Step by step
- 1Values used
- 2Mulch/Soil/Gravel
- 3Volume Required= 2.250 m3
- 4Volume in Cubic Yards= 2.943 yd3
- 5Bags Required= 45
- 6Approximate Mass= 0.900 t
- 7Area One Cubic Metre Covers= 13.33 m2
Assumptions and limits
- The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
- In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
- Figures are rounded for display to 3 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.
How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is Mulch/Soil/Gravel calculated?
Volume = area × depth; mass = volume × material density Volume is a simple product of area and depth, but the mass varies fourfold across these materials, which is what determines whether a vehicle can carry the load. Bags are far more expensive per cubic metre than bulk delivery.
Why does Mulch/Soil/Gravel matter?
The crossover from bags to bulk delivery is usually around one cubic metre, and the coverage line shows how quickly depth consumes material.
What values do I need to enter?
This calculator takes 4 inputs: Area to cover, Depth, Material, Bag volume. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.