Blue metal calculator
Work out how much blue metal you need in tonnes, cubic metres and scoops.
Blue metal calculator
Use your supplier's density
You need
- Volume
- Weight
- Area
| Order by | Exact | Order, rounded up for anything sold in whole bags |
|---|
Enter your measurements to see what to order.
One cubic metre of blue metal weighs about 1.53 tonnes and covers about 20 square metres at 50mm.
How to work out how much blue metal you need
- Measure the area in metres and multiply length by width.
- Pick a depth in mm and multiply it by the area to get a volume.
- Multiply the volume by the bulk density, 1525 kg per cubic metre for blue metal, to get a weight.
- Divide the weight by your supplier's tonne or bulk bag to get what to order, and round up. Suppliers do not sell part bags.
- Add 10 percent. Covers settlement, uneven ground and the material lost around the edges. A second delivery for half a yard costs more than the extra you did not use.
How many tons in a cubic yard of blue metal?
About 1.29 US tons, at 1525 kg per cubic metre. Because published densities run from 1450 to 1600, the honest answer is a range: between 1.22 and 1.35 tons per cubic yard depending on grading and how wet the load is.
How many cubic yards in a ton of blue metal?
About 0.78 cubic yards. One tonne is about 0.66 cubic metres.
How much does blue metal weigh?
Between 1450 and 1600 kg per cubic metre, a spread of 10 percent. Crushed basalt. Quoted loose by Australian yards. The calculator above uses 1525, and you can replace it with your own supplier's figure.
4 published figures from 4 suppliers, read 2026-09-20.
| Supplier | Published figure | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Native Landscapes (ANL)AU | 1.45 loose tonnes per cubic metre | loose |
| Waratah Supplies (Sydney)AU | 1 Cubic Metre = 1.6 Ton | unstated |
| Elite Sand & Soil (Jamisontown, Penrith NSW)AU | roughly 1.5 tonnes per cubic metre; one tonne covers about 13 square metres at 50mm deep, or around 9 square metres at 75mm | unstated (clean-screened, free of dust and crusher fines) |
| Landscape Design Institute (LDI) industry bulk density chart, Rev 10 July 2020AU | 1.45 T/m3 loose density (stockpile), 1.55 T/m3 compacted density | loose (stockpile) and compacted |
What you can order blue metal in
| Pack | Where | Size |
|---|---|---|
| cubic metre | UK, AU | 1 m3 |
| tonne | UK, AU | 1,000 kg |
| scoop (0.4 cubic metre) | AU | 0.4 m3 |
Blue metal and crushed stone
In the US trade the same material is sold as crushed stone, ordered in cubic yards and tons, so the crushed stone calculator works in those units and at those depths.