Construction & landscaping
material calculators.
Zero guesswork.
Free calculators for concrete, gravel, mulch, pavers, brick, decks, and fences. Get cubic yards, tonnage, bag counts, and board and post counts for any jobsite in seconds.
Concrete Slabs, Footings & Bag Yields
Calculate exact cubic yard displacement, ready-mix truckload fractions (9.0 yd³ drums), and commercial premix bag counts (80 lb, 60 lb, 50 lb) with subgrade overpour margins.
Driveway Gravel & Quarry Tonnage
Convert site dimensions to scale short tons and cubic yards for #57 crushed limestone, dense grade crusher run, pea gravel, and decomposed granite with compaction factors.
Garden Mulch & Topsoil Estimator
Determine bulk cubic yard coverage and commercial retail bag yields (1.5, 2.0, and 3.0 cu ft) with automated 10% compaction and settling adjustments.
Irregular Area & Polygon Layouts
Combine rectangular, circular, and triangular layout segments into an aggregated square footage footprint with instant layer-depth volume conversions.
Paver Patio, Bedding Sand & Joint Sand
Estimate paver counts by size, bedding sand in cubic yards and tons, and bags of polymeric joint sand for any patio or walkway, with a cut allowance built in.
Brick Counts, Mortar & Site Mix
Estimate bricks per square foot, mortar volume, and premix bags or the cement and masonry sand for a site mix, with openings deducted and a waste allowance at a 3/8 inch joint.
Deck Boards, Joists, Footings & Screws
A full deck material list: decking boards by stock length, joists and beams, concrete footings in bags and cubic yards, and deck screws, with a waste allowance built in.
Fence Posts, Pickets, Rails & Concrete
Estimate posts, pickets or vinyl panels, rails, and the concrete per post hole from your fence length, for wood privacy, picket, and shadowbox styles or vinyl panels.
The Volume Math Behind These Calculators
1. The Imperial Displacement Constant (27 cu ft)
Detail that 1 cubic yard = 3 ft × 3 ft × 3 ft = 27 cubic feet = 46,656 cubic inches. The baseline displacement equation ensures accurate volumetric space calculations:
Cubic Yards =
[Length (ft) × Width (ft) × (Thickness / 12)] / 27
2. The Fast Field Multiplier (324 Rule)
The contractor shortcut: Square Footage × (Thickness in inches / 324) = Cubic Yards.
Why it works: 27 cu ft/yd³ × 12 inches/ft = 324. At a 3-inch depth, 1 cubic yard covers exactly 324 / 3 = 108 sq ft; at a 4-inch depth, it covers 324 / 4 = 81 sq ft.
Cubic Yards = (Square Footage × Thickness) / 324
Material Weights at a Glance
A quick teaser of volume-to-weight baselines. The full chart lives on the density page.
| Material Name | Density (lbs/cu ft) | Yield per 1 Ton (yd³) | Standard Subgrade Application |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3000 PSI Concrete | 142 | 0.52 | Footings & Slabs |
| Crusher Run (21A) | 115 | 0.65 | Structural Base |
| #57 Limestone | 104 | 0.71 | Driveway Top Dressing |
| Pea Gravel | 100 | 0.74 | Walkways & Drainage |
| Screened Loam | 82 | 0.91 | Lawn Grading |
| Hardwood Mulch | 26 | 2.85 | Garden Beds |
Why Volumetric Precision Matters (The 3 Jobsite Pitfalls)
The Cold Joint Hazard
Under-ordering concrete by even 0.25 cubic yards leaves the slab unfinished. If the first pour sets before the makeup truck arrives, a structural "cold joint" forms, permanently weakening the slab.
Weighbridge vs. Volume Variances
Quarry scales measure mass, not volume. Porous aggregates absorb rain, increasing their scale weight by up to 5–8%. This moisture directly increases scale tonnage without adding usable ground-coverage volume.
The Compaction Shrinkage Factor
Uncompacted base gravel (like crusher run) loses 12–15% of its loose volume once mechanically packed with a vibratory plate. Failing to account for this shrinkage leads to shallow base layers.
Questions About the Calculators
Pick by material. Use the concrete calculator for slabs, footings, and columns; gravel and stone for driveways and base; mulch and topsoil for beds and lawns; pavers or brick for hardscape and walls; and the deck or fence estimators for framing. The polygon tool turns an odd shaped area into square footage you can carry into any of the others.
Yes. Every calculator on Aggregate Yard is free with no sign up. They run in your browser, so there is nothing to install and no account to create.
Yes. The calculators run entirely in your browser and keep working on a phone with weak signal, since nothing is sent to a server. You can price a job standing in the driveway.
Add a margin for cuts, spillage, and uneven ground. A common range is 5 to 15 percent depending on the material and how irregular the area is, and every calculator has a waste setting so you can dial it in.
No. Calculations happen in your browser and are never sent to a server. Saved Job Manifest items live only in your own browser storage, so your measurements stay on your device.