Gravel Calculator
Use this gravel calculator to estimate how much gravel you need in cubic yards, tons, bags, pallets, and truckloads for pea gravel, crushed gravel, driveway gravel, paths, and drainage.
Start with your area and depth, then choose pea gravel, crushed gravel, or drainage gravel to get a purchase-ready answer without doing the yard-to-ton or bag math by hand.
Quick Gravel Answers
Use the calculator above for the exact number, then use these quick rules to sanity-check depth, material, and buying format before you order gravel.
How much gravel do I need?
Measure your area and installed depth, then convert that volume into cubic yards, tons, bags, pallets, or truckloads based on the gravel type you plan to buy.
What depth is typical?
Start around 2–3 inches for decorative beds, 2.5–3 inches for paths, 1.5–2 inches for driveway top-up, and 4–12 inches for French drains.
Pea gravel or crushed gravel?
Use pea gravel or river rock for decorative beds and borders. Use crushed or angular gravel for paths, driveway refreshes, and other surfaces that need better stability.
Bags or bulk?
Bags make sense for small jobs under about 0.5 cubic yards. Once you are above roughly 1 cubic yard, bulk delivery is usually the cheaper and easier buying path.
After You Calculate: Choose the Right Gravel for the Job
Once you know the quantity, use this quick material guide to confirm that the gravel type matches the job instead of ordering the right amount of the wrong product.
| Project | Typical Material | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Decorative bed | Pea gravel or river rock | Appearance matters more than compaction |
| Path or walkway | Angular crushed gravel | Locks together better under foot traffic |
| Driveway surface | #57 gravel or similar clean angular stone | Drains well and stays more stable than rounded gravel |
| Driveway or pad base | Crusher run / DGA / #411 | Fines compact into a firmer structural layer |
| French drain | Clean drainage gravel | Water needs open void space, not compaction |
The biggest gravel mistake is choosing by appearance instead of function. Rounded gravel looks great in beds and borders, but angular gravel is what locks together for paths, driveways, and bases.
If water needs to move through the material, choose a clean drainage gravel. If tires or foot traffic need a firm surface, choose crushed gravel or crusher run instead.
Use the driveway depth guide, gravel weight guide, clean stone vs fines guide, and aggregate names guide when you need the next decision after the yardage.
Rounded Gravel
Pea gravel and river rock are smooth and decorative. They work best in garden beds, borders, and low-traffic areas where appearance matters more than compaction.
Angular Gravel
Crushed gravel, drainage gravel, and crusher run interlock or stay put better. Use them for walkways, driveway refreshes, paver base, and drainage trenches.
Gravel Depth Guide
Use these depth ranges as a final check before you place the order, especially when the same gravel area could be decorative, compacted, or drainage-focused.
| Use Case | Depth | Recommended Material |
|---|---|---|
| Decorative beds | 2–3" | Pea gravel, river rock |
| Paths / Walkways | 2.5–3" | Crushed gravel (angular) |
| Driveway top-up | 1.5–2" | Crusher run / DGA |
| French drains | 4–12" | Drainage gravel (#57) |
| Paver base | 4–6" | Crushed stone (3/4") |
Need a fuller breakdown by project type? See the Gravel Depth Guide for driveway, path, drainage, and decorative-bed depth recommendations before you order.
Check current gravel buying formats
If you are ready to compare bagged decorative gravel against driveway or base-material supplier options, use these retailer shortcuts after you lock the estimate.
How the Math Works
Area × depth = volume. The calculator converts your measured area into cubic feet, then to cubic yards, then into tons or bags based on the density of the gravel you chose.
Compaction matters on paths and driveways, so those presets add a compaction factor before the waste factor. That helps the buy list reflect what actually happens on-site instead of just giving a raw volume number.
Worked Example: Driveway Top-Up
A homeowner is refreshing a 12 × 40 ft driveway with 1.5 inches of crusher run. The driveway preset applies 10% compaction.
- 1 Driveway area: 12 ft × 40 ft = 480 sq ft
- 2 Depth (driveway top-up preset): 1.5 inches, compaction: 1.10
- 3 Volume: 480 × (1.5/12) × 1.10 = 66 cu ft = 2.4 cu yd
- 4 Add 10% waste: 2.4 × 1.10 = 2.7 cu yd
- 5 Weight (crusher run at 1.40 ton/yd): 3.8 tons
- 6 Recommendation: Order 2.7 cu yd bulk delivery (~$108 at $40/yd)
A homeowner is covering a 10 × 20 ft garden bed with pea gravel at 2.5 inches deep.
- 1 Garden bed area: 10 ft × 20 ft = 200 sq ft
- 2 Depth (decorative bed preset): 2.5 inches
- 3 Volume: 200 × (2.5/12) = 41.7 cu ft = 1.5 cu yd
- 4 Add 7% waste: 1.5 × 1.07 = 1.6 cu yd
- 5 Weight (pea gravel at 1.25 ton/yd): 2.0 tons
- 6 Bags: ~86 bags of 50-lb OR 2 pallets (56 bags each)
A homeowner is filling a 30 ft long French drain trench with drainage gravel around a 4-inch perforated pipe.
- 1 Trench: 30 ft long × 1.5 ft wide × 12 inches deep
- 2 Trench volume: 30 × 1.5 × 1 = 45 cu ft
- 3 Subtract 4″ drain pipe: π × (2/12)² × 30 = -2.6 cu ft
- 4 Net volume: 42.4 cu ft × 1.10 waste = 46.6 cu ft = 1.7 cu yd
- 5 Weight (drainage gravel at 1.21 ton/yd): 2.1 tons
- 6 Recommendation: Order 1.7 cu yd drainage gravel (#57) bulk delivery
Frequently Asked Questions
How deep should gravel be for my project? +
How much does a cubic yard of gravel weigh? +
Bags or bulk — when should I buy loose gravel? +
Will pea gravel work for my driveway? +
How much extra gravel should I order? +
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