Topsoil Calculator
Enter the area and depth to see how much topsoil you need in cubic yards, tons and bags, whether you're starting a lawn, top-dressing grass or filling garden beds.
How much does a yard of topsoil cover?
| Depth | 1 cubic yard covers | One 0.75 cu ft bag covers |
|---|---|---|
| 0.25 in | 1,296 sq ft | 36 sq ft |
| 0.5 in | 648 sq ft | 18 sq ft |
| 1 in | 324 sq ft | 9 sq ft |
| 2 in | 162 sq ft | 4.5 sq ft |
| 4 in | 81 sq ft | 2.2 sq ft |
| 6 in | 54 sq ft | 1.5 sq ft |
Topsoil for common area sizes
At 4 inches deep, including 10% extra for settling.
| Area | Cubic yards | 0.75 cu ft bags | Tons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 10 ft (100 sq ft) | 1.36 | 49 | 1.49 |
| 20 × 25 ft (500 sq ft) | 6.79 | 245 | 7.47 |
| 25 × 40 ft (1,000 sq ft) | 13.58 | 489 | 14.94 |
| 50 × 50 ft (2,500 sq ft) | 33.95 | 1223 | 37.35 |
| 50 × 100 ft (5,000 sq ft) | 67.9 | 2445 | 74.69 |
| 100 × 100 ft (10,000 sq ft) | 135.8 | 4889 | 149.38 |
How much topsoil for grass?
- Top-dressing an existing lawn: ¼ inch, raked in so the grass blades still show. More than ½ inch can smother it.
- Leveling low spots or overseeding: about ½ inch at a time.
- New lawn from seed or sod: 4–6 inches of good topsoil over the subsoil.
- New garden bed: 6–8 inches, or more for root vegetables. For framed beds, use the raised bed soil calculator.
Yards, tons and bags
A cubic yard of topsoil weighs around 1.1 tons (about 2,200 lb) and much more when wet. Bagged topsoil is usually sold in 40 lb bags of about 0.75 cubic feet, so a yard is 36 bags: bulk is far cheaper for anything beyond a small patch. A full-size pickup can usually carry about 1 cubic yard of soil by weight.
Planning when to plant? Find your last frost date and planting calendar by ZIP code at our sister site, My Frost Dates.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a yard of topsoil cover?
One cubic yard covers 324 square feet at 1 inch deep, 81 square feet at 4 inches and 54 square feet at 6 inches.
How many bags of topsoil are in a yard?
About 36 bags of the common 40-pound (0.75 cubic foot) size, or 27 bags of 1 cubic foot.
How much topsoil do I need to top-dress 1,000 square feet?
At ¼ inch deep, 1,000 square feet takes about 0.77 cubic yards of topsoil.