How much gravel do you need?
Enter your area and depth. Get cubic yards, tons, truck loads, and delivered cost in one step — for driveways, patios, French drains, and everything in between.
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- Stone types
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Gravel calculator
The main tool. Works for any rectangular, circular, or triangular area.
Most-used calculators
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Gravel Driveway Calculator
Size a full gravel driveway, including the three-layer build that professionals actually use.
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Gravel Cost Calculator
Total delivered cost for your gravel project, including material, haul fees, and optional spreading labor.
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Cubic Yards to Tons Calculator
Convert between cubic yards and tons for any gravel type, using real in-place densities.
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Pea Gravel Calculator
Pea gravel quantity and cost for patios, play areas, dog runs, and garden beds.
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French Drain Gravel Calculator
Gravel, pipe, and fabric quantities for a French drain trench of any length and depth.
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Paver Base Calculator
Base gravel and bedding sand for a paver patio, walkway, or driveway.
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Rock Calculator
How much rock you need in tons and cubic yards — crushed, base, river, drain, or decorative rock.
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Mulch Calculator
How much mulch you need in cubic yards and 2 or 3 cu ft bags, with bulk versus bagged cost.
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Topsoil Calculator
Cubic yards, tons, and bags of topsoil for new lawns, garden beds, and raised beds.
Open calculator →How deep should your gravel be?
Depth drives everything — get this wrong and every other number is wrong too. These are finished, compacted depths.
| Application | Recommended depth |
|---|---|
| Decorative bed / mulch replacement | 2" |
| Walkway or garden path | 2 – 3" |
| Patio base (under pavers) | 4 – 6" |
| Driveway top layer | 2 – 3" |
| New driveway, total build | 8 – 12" |
| Shed or parking pad base | 4 – 6" |
| French drain trench | 12 – 18" |
Not sure? The depth calculator picks it for you, and tells you how deep the stone you already have will actually spread.
Browse by category
Volume & Weight
Cubic yards, tons, coverage, and bag counts for any area.
Driveway
Multi-layer driveway bases, gravel depth, and resurfacing.
Landscaping
Pea gravel, river rock, decomposed granite, patios, and fire pits.
Drainage & Base
French drains, paver base, shed pads, and sub-base layers.
Sand, Soil & Mulch
Mulch, topsoil, sand, paver sand, polymeric sand, play sand, and pool bases.
Concrete & Comparisons
Concrete slabs with a gravel base, gravel versus concrete and asphalt, and delivery loads.
Gear for gravel projects
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True Temper Wheelbarrow with Pneumatic Tire and Steel Handles, 6 Cu. Ft
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Super Geotextile Woven Geotextile Fabric for Driveway and Road Stabilization, Construction Underlayment, Erosion Control, Commercial Grade 50 Year for Gravel Roads and Pavers (12.5x100) Ships Folded
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20ft. 40" L × 4" H Metal Landscape Edging, 6 Pack Garden Border | Heavy Duty Galvanized Steel Lawn Edging, No Dig Edging, Hammer-in Garden Edging Border, Metal Edging for Lawn, Pathway, Yard
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VEVOR Landscape Rake, 36" Head Aluminum Lake Weed Rake with 75" Long Handle for Loosening Soil, Lawn Care, Weeding Lake, Garden, Silver
View on AmazonGet the Gravel & Stone Calculator app for Android
Estimate gravel, stone, sand, and mulch on the job site, save projects, and share quantities with your supplier.
Building something else? Try our sister calculators
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Tile quantity, grout, and thinset estimates.
Smart Insulation Calculator
R-value, batt count, and blown-in coverage.
Smart Decking Calculator
Android app — deck cost, boards, and framing on site.
Smart Drywall Calculator
Android app — drywall sheets, mud, and tape estimates.
Smart Sod Calculator
Android app — sod rolls, pallets, and coverage.
Smart Insulation Calculator
Android app — R-value and batt coverage.
Smart Tile Calculator
Android app — tile, grout, and thinset quantities.
Smart Fencing Calculator
Android app — fence cost estimates on the go.
Frequently asked questions
- How much gravel do I need?
- Multiply the area in square feet by the depth in feet, then divide by 27 for cubic yards. A 20 ft × 12 ft area at 4 inches deep needs about 2.96 cubic yards, or roughly 4.4 tons of crushed stone. Add 10% for compaction.
- How many tons is a cubic yard of gravel?
- Between 1.35 and 1.5 tons depending on the stone. Crusher run is heaviest at about 1.5 tons per cubic yard, #57 stone is about 1.4, and rounded pea gravel is about 1.35.
- How much does gravel cost?
- Bulk gravel runs $22 to $70 per ton delivered in 2026. Crusher run is cheapest at $22–$40, #57 stone $30–$55, pea gravel $35–$70, and decorative river rock $55–$130. Delivery adds $60–$150 per load.
- How deep should gravel be?
- Two inches for decorative beds, two to three inches for walkways, four to six inches for patio and shed bases, and eight to twelve inches for a new driveway built in compacted layers.
- How much area does a ton of gravel cover?
- About 100 square feet at 2 inches deep, 67 square feet at 3 inches, or 50 square feet at 4 inches deep, for typical crushed stone.