Dirt Yards Calculator: How Many Yards of Dirt Do I Need?
Let’s dig deep to find the answer
Convert the cubic footage of your garden bed into cubic yards.
The deeper your garden bed, the more yards of dirt you’ll need to fill it.
Order bulk dirt delivery to save on costs.
There’s nothing quite like a summer garden blooming with flowers, plants, and produce. But without the proper soil, your garden might wither instead of bloom. So, when you’re planning a new garden bed, calculating how many yards of dirt you need is a must. This guide will walk you through the process so you can ensure you order just the right amount.
How Many Yards of Dirt Is Needed for the Project?
The best types of growing soil, dirt, mulch, compost, and topsoil are all measured in cubic yards. The amount you need will depend on the size of your garden bed and the desired soil depth. Here are some examples:
| Bed Size in Feet | Square Footage | Yards of Dirt Needed (3” Depth) | Yards of Dirt Needed (6” Depth) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2x15 | 30 | 0.28 | 0.56 |
| 4x8 | 32 | 0.3 | 0.59 |
| 4x10 | 40 | 0.37 | 0.74 |
| 6x12 | 72 | 0.67 | 1.33 |
| 8x12 | 96 | 0.89 | 1.78 |
How to Calculate How Many Yards of Dirt You Need
The formula to calculate the amount of dirt you need for your garden involves measuring the area’s cubic footage and converting it to cubic yards. Here’s how to do that.
Cubic Yards of Dirt Needed = Area Cubic Footage / 27
If you’re ordering dirt in bulk, you can just order what you need. If you’re buying bags of dirt, check how many yards each bag contains to determine how many bags you’ll need.
How to Measure for Dirt
Measuring for dirt might seem complex because you need to convert feet to yards, but the process is actually quite simple. Follow these steps to determine how much dirt you need for your garden project:
Multiply the length and width of your garden bed in feet to get the total square footage.
Divide the desired depth of your dirt layer in inches by 12 for the soil depth in feet.
Multiply the square footage by the soil depth in feet to get the total cubic footage.
Divide the cubic footage by 27 to get the total cubic yards.
For example, a 4-foot-by-10-foot garden bed measures 40 square feet.
If you want a 3-inch-deep layer of dirt, that’s 0.25 feet.
Multiply the total square footage by the soil depth for a total cubic footage of 10.
Finally, divide the cubic footage by 27 for a total of 0.37 cubic yards of dirt required for the space.
From there, you can calculate your total fill dirt costs to prevent expensive future surprises.
Who to Hire for Dirt Delivery and Installation
If you only need a few bags of dirt, you can head to your local garden center and load the bags in your car or truck. However, it’s more cost-effective for larger projects to have dirt delivered in bulk by a local dirt-hauling company. Many of these contractors will also install the dirt in your yard (or even build up the soil and regrade your house foundation), saving you from the back-breaking manual labor. However, you can also have the dirt delivered and move it to the required areas yourself.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much 4 yards of dirt will cover depends on how deep you want the soil to be. In general, a yard of dirt will cover 324 square feet for a 1-inch depth or 100 square feet for a 3-inch depth. Therefore, you can expect 4 yards to cover between 400 and 1,296 square feet if you keep your soil depth between 1 and 3 inches.
Yes, a cubic yard of dirt will fit in most standard-size pickup trucks. However, consider the truck’s payload as well as the truck bed dimensions before loading it up with dirt. Soil can be quite heavy, and if the total weight of a yard of dirt exceeds your truck’s payload capacity, you risk damaging the chassis and suspension.
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