Yards to tons converter for gravel, sand and soil
Pick a material, then convert the volume you need into the weight suppliers sell by, or a weight into volume.
That's 1.09× as much as a bulk bag, while a pickup truck load is 1.96× more.
What it means
How much is that?
Typical loose, dry densities. Wet sand and compacted gravel can weigh 10–20 % more; ask your supplier for theirs.
Every unit
That load in every unit
Learn
Three things worth knowing
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1.4 tons a yard
Gravel and sand: about 1.4 US tons per cubic yard, 1.6 tonnes per m³. Mulch: about a third of a ton per yard.
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The cubic yard
US quarries and garden centers kept the cubic yard (27 ft³) because a dump truck bed is measured in it.
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Tons and tonnes
A US ton is 907 kg, a metric tonne 1,000 kg. Ordering “20 tons” from a metric supplier gets you 10 % more.
Shortcuts
Popular material conversions
Background
About bulk density
Landscape materials are sold by weight but needed by volume. The link is bulk density: gravel and sand weigh about 1.6 tonnes per cubic meter, so a cubic yard is about 1.35 US tons; topsoil is lighter, mulch much lighter.
To find the volume, multiply length × width × depth of the area, then convert here.