20 × 10 ft bed, 3 in of mulch
50 cubic feet, 1.85 cubic yards, 25 bags of 2 cu ft, about 0.74 tons.
Mulch and gravel calculator
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The bed is a rectangle with an even depth. Weights are typical dry values in US tons per cubic yard: mulch 0.4, topsoil 1.1, sand 1.35 and gravel 1.4. Wet material is heavier, so check with your supplier.
Material
Units
ft or m
ft or m
Enter the price per cubic yard (optional).
Mulch needed
1.85 cubic yards
50.0 cubic feet, or 1.42 m³. That is about 25 bags of 2 cu ft and weighs about 0.74 tons.
- Cubic feet
- 50.0
- Cubic metres
- 1.42
- 2 cu ft bags
- 25
- Weight
- 0.74 tons
Mulch for this area at other depths
| Depth | Cubic yards | 2 cu ft bags | Tons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 in (3 cm) | 0.62 | 9 | 0.25 |
| 2 in (5 cm) | 1.23 | 17 | 0.49 |
| 3 in (8 cm) | 1.85 | 25 | 0.74 |
| 4 in (10 cm) | 2.47 | 34 | 0.99 |
| 6 in (15 cm) | 3.70 | 50 | 1.48 |
Ordering mulch and gravel by the yard
Landscape suppliers sell by the cubic yard, garden centres sell bags, and the bed you measured is in feet. Working out the volume first ties them all together: length times width times depth, with the depth turned from inches into feet.
A bed 20 ft long and 10 ft wide covered 3 inches deep holds 20 × 10 × 0.25 = 50 cubic feet. Dividing by 27 gives 1.85 cubic yards. In 2 cu ft bags, that is 25 bags. The table under the result shows the same bed at 1 to 6 inches, which helps when you are deciding how deep to go.
Weight matters if you are carrying it in a car or a trailer. Mulch is light, around 0.4 tons a yard, but gravel is about 1.4 tons a yard. The same 1.85 yards of gravel weighs about 2.6 tons, far more than a small pickup should carry.
Order a little extra. Mulch settles, edges are never perfectly straight, and a second delivery costs more than a spare few bags.
Sources
What this calculator does not account for
- Weights per yard vary with moisture and stone size.
- Mulch settles, so order a little extra.
How this is calculated
Formula: Volume of a bed
cubic yards =length (ft) × width (ft) × depth (in) ÷ 12 ÷ 27What the symbols mean
- ÷ 12Turns the depth in inches into feet.
- ÷ 27There are 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard.
Good to know
- Tons = cubic yards × the material's weight per cubic yard.
- Bags = cubic feet ÷ 2 for the common 2 cu ft bag.
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Worked examples
Each example is worked out by the same code as the calculator above.
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<iframe src="/embed/mulch-gravel-calculator" title="Mulch calculator" width="100%" height="720" style="border:0;max-width:42rem" loading="lazy"></iframe>Questions
How much mulch do I need for a 10 × 20 ft bed?
At 3 inches deep, about 1.85 cubic yards, or 25 bags of 2 cu ft.
How deep should mulch be?
2 to 3 inches for most beds. Deeper than 4 inches can starve roots of air.
How many bags of mulch are in a yard?
13.5 bags of 2 cu ft make one cubic yard.
How much does a yard of gravel weigh?
About 1.4 US tons, or roughly 2,800 lb. It varies with the stone size and moisture.
Is it cheaper to buy mulch in bulk or bags?
Bulk is usually cheaper above about 2 cubic yards, but there may be a delivery fee.