Topsoil & Soil Calculator

Area × depth gives the finished volume the bed holds. The settling buffer adds a percentage on top to give the volume to order — the headline cubic-yards-bulk number. Bags and weight are computed on the ordered volume, because that is what actually gets delivered. Bag counts always round up: a partial bag is a whole bag.

area (dimensions): A_sqft = length_ft × width_ft
area (direct):     A_sqft = entered area

finished:  V_cuft = A_sqft × (depth_in / 12)
           V_cuyd = V_cuft / 27          (12 × 27 = 324)
ordered:   V_ord_cuft = V_cuft × (1 + settling% / 100)
           V_ord_cuyd = V_ord_cuft / 27
weight:    tons   = V_ord_cuyd × density (tons/yd³)
bags:      bags   = ceil(V_ord_cuft / bagSize_cuft)

bags per cubic yard (sanity): 27 / bagSize
  0.75 cu ft → 36   ·   1.0 → 27   ·   1.5 → 18   ·   2.0 → 13.5

cost (optional):
  bulk_cost   = V_ord_cuyd × $/cu yd
  bagged_cost = bags × $/bag

Density bands per soil type: screened topsoil ~1.0–1.3 tons/yd³ (default 1.2), compost / garden mix ~1.0 (lighter organic blend), unscreened fill ~1.4–1.7 (default 1.4). These are surfaced ranges from the cited incumbents, not asserted hard numbers — pick Custom and read the bag label for an exact figure. Weight is approximate (≈): density varies with moisture and organic content. Depth presets are our own suggested defaults and are not source-backed — only "refresh garden 3–6 in" is confirmed; set your own depth.

Soil is almost always the layer under something else. When the grade is ready for turf, what to charge to lay and roll the sod prices the install on the same footprint, while on a larger or steeper lot pricing a hydroseeded lawn covers the slurry route instead. Either way, the yards above travel better on a takeoff list the crew and the supplier both work from.