Coverage per Cubic Yard and per Ton

Coverage per cubic yard and per ton

One cubic yard covers 324 sq ft at 1 in deep, 108 sq ft at 3 in and 81 sq ft at 4 in, whatever the material. A ton covers more or less depending on how heavy the material is.

Square feet per cubic yard

A cubic yard is 27 cubic feet, which is 324 slices of one square foot by one inch. Divide 324 by the depth in inches to find the area a yard covers. This holds for gravel, soil, mulch, sand and concrete alike, because it is only volume.

Coverage of one cubic yard
Depth	Sq ft per cu yd	Sq yd per cu yd	Cu yd per 100 sq ft
1 in	324	36	0.31
2 in	162	18	0.62
3 in	108	12	0.93
4 in	81	9	1.23
5 in	64.8	7.2	1.54
6 in	54	6	1.85
8 in	40.5	4.5	2.47
10 in	32.4	3.6	3.09
12 in	27	3	3.7

Square feet per ton

A ton of a lighter material fills more space, so it spreads further. These figures use the loose weights on the weight per cubic yard page.

Square feet one US ton covers, loose
Material	Cu ft per ton	1 in	2 in	3 in	4 in	6 in
Gravel (mixed sizes)	20	240	120	80	60	40
Pea gravel	20	240	120	80	60	40
Crushed stone (#57 and other clean stone)	20	240	120	80	60	40
River rock	20.8	249	125	83	62	42
Stone dust (screenings)	22.5	270	135	90	68	45
Sand	20	240	120	80	60	40
Topsoil	22.5	270	135	90	68	45

For a compacted base, a ton covers less: crusher run at 1.9 tons per compacted cubic yard covers about 43 sq ft at 4 in.

Concrete coverage

Concrete, no extra included
Slab thickness	Sq ft per cu yd	Sq ft per 80 lb bag	Sq ft per 60 lb bag
3.5 in	92.6	2.06	1.54
4 in	81	1.8	1.35
5 in	64.8	1.44	1.08
6 in	54	1.2	0.9
8 in	40.5	0.9	0.68
12 in	27	0.6	0.45

The bag figures use the QUIKRETE Concrete Mix yields of 0.60 cu ft for an 80 lb bag and 0.45 cu ft for a 60 lb bag.

Sources

How Much Compost, Soil or Mulch Do I Need to Purchase?, Texas AgriLife Extension Service, Travis County, February 2010. Square feet times depth in inches, divided by 324, gives cubic yards.
Standard Volume-to-Weight Conversion Factors, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, March 2016. Loose weights of gravel, rock, sand, sandy loam soil and shredded wood chips.
Maintenance Manual Volume 1, Appendix: Useful Information, California Department of Transportation, July 2014. Loose weights of crushed gravel, limestone, granite, screenings, sand and soil; 111 lb of asphalt mix per square yard per inch; 2.0 tons per compacted cubic yard of base.
QUIKRETE Concrete Mix (No. 1101) data sheet, The QUIKRETE Companies, revised October 2022. Bag yields: 40 lb 0.30 cu ft, 50 lb 0.375, 60 lb 0.45, 80 lb 0.60, 90 lb 0.675; about 140 lb per cubic foot.