Landscaping
Topsoil Calculator
Figure out how much topsoil you need for a lawn, garden bed, or grading project. Enter your area and depth to get cubic yards, tons, truckloads, and cost.
Inputs
Live estimate
Material needed
6.17 cu yd
- Area
- 500 sq ft
- Cubic feet
- 166.67
- Cubic yards
- 6.17
- Estimated tons
- 6.79 tons
- Estimated truckloads
- 0.62
You will likely need
- •6.17 cu yd — material needed
- •Schedule 1 truck load
- •Approximate delivered weight: 6.79 tons
Diagram
Live estimate
- Mathematical quantity
- 6 cu yd
- Topsoil settles over time (initial order not auto-inflated)
- Informational
- Field conditions
- Not applied
- Adjusted requirement
- 6 cu yd
- Ordering rule
- Round up to whole cubic yard
- Suggested order
- 7 cu yd
Screened topsoil settles after watering and long-term biology. Yardexa does not automatically add a blanket percentage; plan a small seasonal top-off instead of over-ordering up front.
What you actually need in the field, before rounding to a supplier-friendly ordering unit.
Estimator confidence
HighScreened topsoil settles after watering and may compact further over the first season. Yardexa does not automatically add a blanket settlement percentage to the initial order; plan a small future top-off rather than over-ordering up front.
Improve confidence: For beds where finish grade must hold immediately, order slightly high and plan a small top-off after the first watering.
Why this behavior applies: Settlement is real but timing-dependent. A single blanket default hides that distinction; the initial order stays at the geometric volume.
- Finished depth after watering — Small changes in target depth drive most of the volume.
- Bed area accuracy — Irregular beds under-measure without a tape and a sketch.
- Whether the yard delivers screened or blended topsoil — Blended mixes settle more than pure screened soil.
- Verify existing subgrade — a low spot can silently double your topsoil order.
- Delivery access matters. Wheelbarrow routes and slope reduce productivity fast.
- For lawns, screened topsoil pays for itself in seeding results.
- Forgetting settlement — ordering the exact calculated volume and coming up short.
- Ignoring existing grades and slope, which changes the true fill depth.
- Confusing topsoil with fill dirt — fill dirt is subsoil and won't grow plants.
Smart tips
- Ordering 5–10% extra is standard on irregular layouts. Running short costs more than the excess.
How it's calculated
Area is derived from your shape inputs and converted to sq ft.
Depth is converted to feet; cubic feet = area × depth.
Cubic yards = cubic feet ÷ 27, then × (1 + waste %) × (1 + compaction %).
Estimated tons = cubic yards (with waste) × 1.1.
Truckloads = cubic yards (with waste) ÷ truck capacity.
Total cost = cubic yards (with waste) × price per cubic yard + delivery.
Material assumptions
- Screened topsoil density: 1.1 tons per cubic yard.
- Typical lawn depth: 4–6 inches. Garden beds: 8–12 inches.
- Add 5–10% for settling and spillage.
Frequently asked questions
Related calculators
Related articles
Deeper guidance from the Learn library — sizing, depth, waste, and ordering for this material.
- How Much Mulch Do I Need?A step-by-step method for turning a bed's square footage into an accurate mulch order — depth, waste, and delivery included.
- How Much Topsoil Do I Need?New lawns want 4–6 inches. Vegetable beds want 12 inches. Here's how to translate those depths into an accurate topsoil order.
- How Deep Should Mulch Be?2–3 inches for beds, 3–4 for trees, 9+ for playground safety. Here's why depth matters and what happens outside that range.
- How to Measure Square Footage for LandscapingAccurate square footage is where every material estimate begins. Here's the method landscapers use for any bed shape, no matter how odd.
These results are estimates only. Confirm quantities, compaction, waste, and delivery requirements with your supplier or project professional before ordering materials.