Topsoil Calculator
Topsoil is ordered in cubic yards but disappoints in inches: the fluffed-up load that comes off the truck settles once it is spread, raked, and rained on, and a lawn graded flush today sits low next month. This calculator sizes that in — enter your area and depth and it returns cubic yards, tons, and 40 lb bags, ordering extra so the soil finishes at the grade you planned instead of below it.
Total weight ≈ 1,757.44 lb (0.88 tons). Bulk material is heavy — check your vehicle's payload/GVWR; over ~1 ton, delivery is usually safer than hauling it yourself.
Bag or bulk?
You need only about 0.8 cubic yards (0.88 tons). Under ~2 cubic yards, bagged is usually the better call — you can carry the bags yourself and skip arranging a bulk drop, with no leftover pile to deal with.
- 29 × 40 lb bag (0.75 cu ft)
Quantities are planning estimates — confirm with your supplier.
How it works
We take the area you enter times your depth to get the in-place volume (area × depth) — the soil you actually want sitting on the ground. Enter dimensions in feet, inches, yards, or metric. Depth depends on the job: seeding or sodding a new lawn commonly calls for 4–6 inches of quality topsoil, raised beds usually run 6–12 inches of mix, and topdressing an existing lawn is the opposite extreme — a thin ¼–½ inch pass, never enough to bury the grass.
Then the adjustment that makes this page worth using: settling. Topsoil comes off the truck fluffed loose from digging and dumping; spreading, raking, watering, and the first rain knock it back down. Landscape suppliers typically advise ordering 15–25% extra, and this calculator defaults to 15% settlement, sizing the loose delivered volume as order = in-place ÷ (1 − settlement) × (1 + waste). Order only the in-place number and your finished grade ends up low — the exact low spots you were trying to fix. The one job that opts out is topdressing: there the ¼–½ inch is the loose layer you spread, so set settling to 0% and keep each pass thin — the 15% default belongs to fills and grading, where the watered-in final grade is what matters.
What you get: cubic yards, tons, and a 40 lb bag count. Weight uses screened topsoil's as-delivered density near 2,200 lb/yd³ — call it a ton-plus per yard, more after rain — so check the total against your truck's payload and GVWR before hauling it yourself. Bags are counted by volume (a 40 lb bag holds about 0.75 cu ft, so 36 bags make a yard), not by dividing weight: bagged topsoil is drier and fluffier than the bulk product, so weight math would badly overcount the bags you need.
Choosing between the two products usually sold under this name: screened topsoil is native soil run through a screen to pull rocks and roots — the bulk standard for grading, filling, and lawn prep. Garden soil or topsoil–compost blend is amended with organic matter, noticeably lighter (near 1,500 lb/yd³), and meant for planting beds and raised beds rather than structural fill. Naming varies by region and supplier — "black dirt" can mean either — so read what is actually in the product, not the label on the sign.
The calls worth getting right before you order: don't pay topsoil prices for holes — if you are raising grade by feet rather than inches, fill dirt does the bulk and topsoil goes on top as the growing layer. Don't fill beds with pure compost either; it keeps decomposing and settling long after soil has stabilized, so use it as an amendment blended into soil, not as the fill itself. And at lawn scale the bag math turns absurd fast — a modest re-grade can run hundreds of 40 lb bags, which is why anything past a half-yard or so is a bulk order. Once the soil is down, beds usually get a mulch layer on top — that one is sized by volume with zero compaction allowance, then refreshed later as it thins.
Worked example
New-lawn prep, 25 ft × 20 ft, 4 in of screened topsoil, 15% settle
Prepping a 25 ft × 20 ft area for new seed with 4 inches of screened topsoil. The soil arrives fluffed from the truck and settles about 15% once it is spread, raked, and watered in — so the loose volume ordered has to be larger than the 4-inch layer you want to finish flush with the surrounding grade.
Notice the bag count: at lawn scale it is not a serious option — this is firmly a bulk delivery, and at a ton-plus per yard, one to have dropped where you need it rather than hauled load by load.
- Area
- 500 sq ft
- Volume (in place)
- 6.17 cu yd
- Order (compaction + waste)
- 7.99 cu yd
- Weight
- 8.79 tons
- 40 lb bag (0.75 cu ft)
- 288
Coverage at a glance
| Depth | 1 ton covers | 1 cu yd covers |
|---|---|---|
| 2" | 147 sq ft | 162 sq ft |
| 4" | 74 sq ft | 81 sq ft |
| 6" | 49 sq ft | 54 sq ft |
FAQ
How much topsoil do I need for a new lawn?
Seeding and sodding guidance commonly calls for 4–6 inches of quality topsoil. Enter your lawn area and that depth above and the calculator returns cubic yards and tons, with 15% settling already built in so the finished grade lands where you planned. The worked example on this page runs a 25 ft × 20 ft section at 4 inches so you can see how fast lawn jobs leave bag territory.
How many bags of topsoil are in a cubic yard?
About 36: the standard 40 lb bag holds roughly 0.75 cubic feet, and a cubic yard is 27 cubic feet (27 ÷ 0.75 = 36). The calculator counts bags by volume, not by weight — bagged topsoil is sold drier and fluffier than bulk, so dividing the bulk weight by 40 lb would tell you to buy half again as many bags as you actually need.
How much does a yard of topsoil weigh?
Around 2,000 lb (a short ton) bone dry, and more like 2,200–2,400 lb as typically delivered with normal moisture — rain-soaked loads run heavier still. That is why this calculator reports total weight: a single yard is already near the payload limit of many half-ton pickups, so for more than a yard, plan on delivery or multiple trips.
Why do I need to order extra topsoil for settling?
Because the volume on the truck is not the volume on the ground. Topsoil gets fluffed up by digging, loading, and dumping; once you spread, rake, and water it, it settles back down — typically 15–25%. The calculator defaults to 15% and sizes the loose order as in-place ÷ 0.85, so the layer finishes at your target grade. Skip the allowance and the lawn you leveled develops the same low spots you were filling.
What is the difference between topsoil, garden soil, and compost?
Screened topsoil is real native soil with rocks and debris screened out — the default for grading and lawns. Garden soil is a blended product: topsoil cut with compost and amendments, lighter and richer, made for planting beds and raised beds. Compost is fully decomposed organic matter on its own — superb as an amendment, poor as fill, because it keeps breaking down and settling. Blend compost into soil rather than filling with it straight.
Can I topdress my lawn with topsoil?
Yes, but keep it thin — about ¼ to ½ inch per pass, raked in so grass blades stay exposed. Any deeper risks smothering the lawn you are trying to improve. For levelling deeper low spots, build up gradually over multiple passes a few weeks apart rather than burying the area in one go. The calculator accepts fractional depths — for topdressing, enter the depth as the loose layer you will spread and set settling to 0%, since a surface dressing is raked thin rather than graded flush; save the 15% settling default for new-lawn fills and grading, where the watered-in final grade is what matters.