Landscaping
Landscaping Topsoil Calculator
Calculate topsoil for a job including delivery, spreading and the grade work it implies.
Result
Soil settles. Freshly spread topsoil loses roughly 10% to 20% of its depth once it is watered and walked on, which is why the waste allowance here is really a settlement allowance.
Get a Free Business AuditWhat moves the number
- Volume from area and finished depth plus a settlement allowance.
- Whether the site needs grading before soil arrives.
- Access for a tipper and whether the soil can be placed directly.
Where this one goes wrong
Treating soil as a material line rather than an earthworks job. Spreading and levelling soil to a consistent grade is skilled time, and a quote that prices the material generously and the labour thinly loses money.
Questions
About this calculator
Should grading be quoted separately?
Yes. Establishing a level and a fall is a different task from importing material, and combining them hides the part that takes the time.
What if the existing ground is compacted?
It needs breaking up before soil goes on, or the new layer sits on a pan and drains badly. That is additional work that has to be seen before quoting.
How is soil best moved on a tight site?
It is the question that decides the price. Machine access turns a day into an hour, and no access turns an hour into a day of barrowing.
The formula
cubic yards = length x width x (depth / 12) / 27
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How to use this calculator
- Length (ft) (ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 40 ft.
- Width (ft) (ft). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 20 ft.
- Depth of topsoil (inches) (in). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 4 in.
- Waste / compaction allowance (%). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 10%.
- Cost per cubic yard ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $32.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to cubic yards needed, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Length (ft) | 40 ft |
| Width (ft) | 20 ft |
| Depth of topsoil (inches) | 4 in |
| Waste / compaction allowance | 10% |
| Cost per cubic yard | $32 |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Cubic yards needed main result | 10.9 |
| Cubic feet | 293.3 |
| Approximate tons | 12.0 |
| Estimated cost | $347.65 |
You need about 10.9 cubic yards (12.0 tons), costing roughly $347.65 delivered.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only cost per cubic yard, this is what happens to cubic yards needed. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Cost per cubic yard ($) | Cubic yards needed |
|---|---|
| $16 | 10.9 |
| $24 | 10.9 |
| $32 example above | 10.9 |
| $48 | 10.9 |
| $64 | 10.9 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Length (ft) (ft)
- Measured in ft, starting at 40 ft.
- Width (ft) (ft)
- Measured in ft, starting at 20 ft.
- Depth of topsoil (inches) (in)
- Measured in in, starting at 4 in.
- Waste / compaction allowance (%)
- A percentage, between 0 and 60, starting at 10%.
- Cost per cubic yard ($)
- A money amount, starting at $32.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Cubic yards needed | The headline result. A decimal figure. |
| Cubic feet | A decimal figure. |
| Approximate tons | A decimal figure. |
| Estimated cost | A money figure. |
Seasonality is not in this
Coverage and material figures assume the area you enter. Slope, access for machinery, existing growth and the time of year all affect both quantity and labour, and none of them appear in a calculation like this.
Estimating is the easy part
The jobs you never hear about cost more than the ones you mis-measure. BDEVY builds the marketing, systems and automation that bring them in.