Soil calculator
Work out how much garden soil a raised bed or border needs, in bags and cubic yards.
Soil 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 yard of garden soil weighs about 0.94 US tons and covers about 22 square feet at 14.8 in.
How to work out how much garden soil you need
- Measure the area in feet and multiply length by width.
- Pick a depth in inches and multiply it by the area to get a volume.
- Multiply the volume by the bulk density, 1112 kg per cubic metre for garden soil, to get a weight.
- Divide the weight by your supplier's ton or cubic yard 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 garden soil?
About 0.94 US tons, at 1112 kg per cubic metre. Because published densities run from 890 to 1333, the honest answer is a range: between 0.75 and 1.12 tons per cubic yard depending on grading and how wet the load is.
How many cubic yards in a ton of garden soil?
About 1.07 cubic yards. One tonne is about 0.9 cubic metres.
How deep should garden soil be laid?
| Use | Depth | What the supplier says |
|---|---|---|
| Raised bed | 11.8 in to 17.7 in | Penn State Extension: a popular size is 4 feet by 8 feet by one foot deep, which is deep enough for annual plant root systems. The RHS puts 30cm as deep enough for salad leaves and strawberries. |
| Raised bed, deep rooted | 17.7 in to 23.6 in | RHS: most plants, especially fruit bushes, shrubs and small trees, need 45cm or more. Penn State notes that 18 to 24 inches needs less watering and gives more room for root growth. |
How much does garden soil weigh?
Between 890 and 1333 kg per cubic metre, a spread of 50 percent. Blended raised bed mixes are lighter than screened topsoil. The calculator above uses 1112, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sky Nursery (Shoreline, WA)US | 1500 pounds per yard | unstated |
| Quickcrop UKUK | approx 750 litres; Approx 1 Tonne | bulk bag, unstated |
| Australian Native Landscapes (ANL)AU | Garden Mix 1.2 (Tonnes / Metre) | loose ('Loose Tonnes' column) |
| Premier Landscape Products LLCUS | 2200 LBS/YARD | unstated |
What you can order garden soil in
| Pack | Where | Size |
|---|---|---|
| cubic yard | US, CA | 0.765 m3 |
| US ton | US, CA | 907 kg |
| 0.5 cu ft bag | US, CA | 0.014 m3 |
| 2 cu ft bag | US, CA | 0.057 m3 |