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Tons · Cubic Yards · Truckloads · Delivered Cost

Gravel Calculator — Driveway, Road Base & Tonnage

Pick a spec from crusher run to riprap, set the compacted thickness, and get cubic yards, tonnage, truckloads, and a delivered cost estimate — built for driveways, road base, and drainage layers.

✓ 5 gravel specs⚖ Tons & yards both ways🧱 Compaction allowance💲 ZIP freight estimate

Input Parameters

Area input

✓ 40' 0" (480 in)

✓ 12' 0" (144 in)

Compacted thickness

in custom

Gravel Spec & Compaction

Fines lock together under compaction — the standard driveway and paver base.

+15%

Fines-bearing base shrinks 10–20% under the plate; clean stone settles 5–10%. Changing the spec resets a typical value.

Medium grading jobs, 30–60 cu yd.

Pricingoptional

$

Crusher run / #411 (road base): typically $20–$40/ton in most markets.

Unlocks a regional freight range.

Your Gravel Estimate

Tons to order

10.2

4" compacted · +15% compaction · Crusher run

Order volume

6.8 yd³

184 ft³ loose (5.9 yd³ flat)

Weight

10.2 t

1.5 t/yd³ loose

Truckloads

1

Tandem axle · 10.2 t/load

Coverage check

480 ft²

at 4" compacted

Material ($30/ton)$307
Delivery (1 load)—
Delivered total—

Enter a ZIP for a regional freight range.

Stone over soil, or soil under stone? This gravel calculator prices aggregate by the ton. If the project also needs earthwork — cutting the grade, backfilling, or capping with topsoil — the free dirt calculator on the Dirt Calculator homepage and its specialist tools on the Calculators hub cover the soil side of the same site plan.

Specifications

Gravel Specs Compared: #57, Crusher Run, Pea Gravel & More

Gravel is not one product — it is a family of graded stone, and the number printed on the spec (#57, #411) is a sieve size that decides what jobs it can do. Fines-bearing blends like crusher run lock into a hard, load-spreading mass; clean washed stone like #57 stays open and drains; rounded pea gravel looks soft and rolls under load; riprap is simply the biggest angular stone a quarry ships. Picking the wrong spec is the difference between a driveway that lasts twenty years and one that pumps mud through its own surface.

SpecStone sizeLoose weight$ / tonTypical uses
Crusher run / #411 (road base)1" minus with fines1.5 t/yd³$20–40Fines lock together under compaction — the standard driveway and paver base.
#57 washed gravel (¾")¾" clean, no fines1.4 t/yd³$25–45Drains freely — driveway tops, drainage layers, concrete aggregate.
Pea gravel (⅜")⅜" rounded1.35 t/yd³$30–55Decorative and walkable, but rounds roll — poor base material.
Stone dust / screeningsFines to ¼"1.55 t/yd³$25–45Sets like concrete when compacted — paver bedding and fine grading.
Riprap (4–12" stone)4–12" angular1.55 t/yd³$35–60Erosion control on slopes and outlets; placed, not compacted.

Densities are typical loose delivered values for 2026 planning — washed stone weighs less per yard than fines-bearing blends because of the open voids. Quarry batches vary; verify price and weight tickets on the first load.

Gravel and aggregate stockpiles at a quarry loading yardBase first, surface secondPhoto: Unsplash

Lift rule for thick builds

Base deeper than 6 inches compacts properly only in 3–4 inch lifts — spread, plate, repeat. Dumping 12 inches at once traps loose material at the bottom that ruts for years.

Thickness

Compaction & Thickness: Ordering for the Finished Grade

Why you order more than the hole needs

Gravel is quoted loose but lives compacted. Fines-bearing base material shrinks 10–20% the moment a plate compactor runs over it, and even clean stone re-nests 5–10% as it settles into the subgrade. Order the compacted depth without the allowance and the finished surface lands a half-inch to an inch under plan — usually noticed the first time a puddle forms. The calculator's compaction slider adds that percentage back, preset to a typical value for each specification: 15% for crusher run and stone dust, 10% for clean stone, 5% for riprap, which is placed rather than compacted.

Thickness by job, not by guess

A decorative border or dry walkway lives happily on 2 inches of clean stone over fabric. A garden path takes 3 inches. A residential driveway is the serious case: 4–6 inches of compacted base plus a 1–2 inch surface course, and more on soft ground — up to 8–12 inches of base in lifts where the subgrade is clay or has been dug up. Thickness is where gravel budgets are won and lost: doubling depth doubles the tonnage, so a 100-foot drive at 6 inches instead of 4 costs half again more — but a 3-inch drive on soft soil costs a re-do every spring.

JobCompacted thicknessRecommended spec
Decorative border / groundcover1–2"Pea gravel or #57 over fabric
Garden walkway2–3"#57 or pea gravel
Patio / paver base4" compactedCrusher run, topped with stone dust
Residential driveway4–6" + 1–2" surfaceCrusher run base, #57 surface
Soft-soil or frequently loaded drive8–12" in liftsCrusher run base, geotextile below
Erosion control / ditch liningAs specifiedRiprap, placed on filter fabric

Thickness guidance follows common residential construction practice; engineered installations (commercial drives, road shoulders) follow a site-specific pavement design.

Tonnage

Cubic Yards to Tons: The Gravel Weight Conversion

Gravel is sold by weight, measured by volume, and hauled by both — so the conversion is the skill that keeps quotes comparable. The chain is simple: area × depth in feet gives cubic feet; divide by 27 for cubic yards; multiply by the spec's tons-per-yard for tonnage. A 500 sq ft pad at 4 inches is 166.7 cubic feet, 6.17 cubic yards, and — in #57 at 1.40 t/yd³ — about 8.6 tons. Reverse it when a supplier quotes “$30 a ton”: divide tons by density to see the yardage equivalent, and compare it honestly against a “$45 a yard” quote from the yard down the road.

Area2" deep4" deep6" deep12" deep
200 sq ft (10×20)1.7 t3.5 t5.2 t10 t
500 sq ft (20×25)4.3 t8.6 t13 t26 t
1,000 sq ft (20×50)8.6 t17 t26 t52 t
2,000 sq ft (24×84)17 t35 t52 t104 t

Tons computed at 1.40 t/yd³ (typical #57 washed gravel) before any compaction allowance — base material at 1.5 t/yd³ runs about 7% heavier. Add the compaction percentage for the actual order.

Driveways

Driveway Layers: 2–4 Inches of Base, 1–2 Inches of Surface

A gravel driveway that survives is a system, not a dump. The base layer — 4–6 inches of compacted crusher run — carries the load: its fines knit into a mass that spreads a car's weight across the subgrade. The surface layer — 1–2 inches of #57 or pea gravel — is the sacrificial cap: clean stone that drains, sheds tires, and can be raked level in an afternoon. Building the whole drive out of #57 fails because the rounded-to-angular clean stone never locks; building it all of crusher run fails more slowly, as the fines surface, track, and hold water instead of shedding it.

Order the two layers as two line items. For a 1,000 sq ft drive, the base is 4 inches compacted with a 15% allowance — about 16 cubic yards of crusher run, 24 tons. The surface is 1.5 inches with a 10% allowance — about 5 cubic yards of #57, 7 tons. Total: roughly 31 tons, or one tri-axle plus change, priced base-first in the calculator by running it twice with each spec and adding the totals. Geotextile fabric under the base, edge restraints, and a crown of half an inch per foot for drainage are the three details that separate a driveway from a long, flat disappointment.

Layer 1 — subgrade

Fabric + shaped soil

Strip topsoil, crown the grade ~½" per foot for drainage, roll geotextile on soft ground.

Layer 2 — base

4–6" crusher run, compacted

Placed in lifts, plated to a dense finish. This layer is the driveway — everything else is dressing.

Layer 3 — surface

1–2" #57 or pea gravel

Drains and dresses. Rakeable forever — which is the point: maintenance touches this layer, not the base.

Cost Guide

Gravel Cost: Per Ton vs. Per Yard, Delivered

Aggregate pricing has two cost lines and one trap. The material line is $20–60 per ton depending on spec — crusher run cheapest, riprap dearest — or $30–85 per cubic yard converted. The freight line is $60–150 per load through the site's regional bands, and it is flat per truck, which is why a 30-ton driveway order spread over three loads pays freight three times. The trap is comparing a per-ton quote against a per-yard quote without converting: at 1.5 t/yd³, a “bargain” $28/ton is $42/yd — possibly worse than the $45/yd next door once freight and spec match.

Worked example — the default job here is a 40 × 12 ft section at 4 inches compacted in crusher run. Flat volume is 5.93 cubic yards; with a 15% compaction allowance the order is 6.8 loose yards, weighing 6.8 × 1.5 ≈ 10.2 tons. At $30/ton that is $306 of material; one tandem load at a typical $95–110 regional fee lands the delivered total near $400–415 — about $0.86 per square foot for a base that outlives the car parked on it.

Material line

$20–60 per ton

Crusher run $20–40, #57 $25–45, pea $30–55, riprap $35–60. Per-yard quotes convert by the spec's density.

Freight line

$60–150 per load

Regional band from your ZIP. Full-truck orders minimize it; a tri-axle carries ~16 yd or ~22 tons.

Spread labor line

$2–4 per ton

If a crew spreads and compacts for you — roughly $40–60/hr plus a plate compactor at $60–100/day DIY.

How to read a gravel quote

  • 1. Convert before comparing — $/ton ÷ t/yd³ = $/yd for the spec actually quoted, not a neighbor spec.
  • 2. Ask if the load is scale-tickets billed — some yards bill delivered weight including moisture on fines material.
  • 3. Ask the delivery truck size — a “load” can mean 5 yards or 16; the freight per yard hides in that gap.
  • 4. Ask if spreading is included — most aggregate quotes are dump-only; spreading is a separate trade.
FAQ

Gravel Questions, Answered With Numbers

Tons-to-yards conversions, specs, driveway layers, and delivered cost — each answer checkable against the calculator above.

How many tons are in a cubic yard of gravel?
Between about 1.35 and 1.55 short tons, depending on the spec: pea gravel and #57 run 1.35–1.40 tons per cubic yard, crusher run and road base about 1.5, and stone dust or riprap up to 1.55. Multiply your cubic yards by the spec's density to get tons — the calculator does it per specification, because a “yard” of dust weighs half a ton more than a yard of pea gravel.
How many cubic feet are in a yard of gravel?
Exactly 27 cubic feet — a cubic yard is a 3 ft × 3 ft × 3 ft cube, regardless of material. Order volume in cubic yards, but expect it quoted and billed in tons: most aggregate yards sell gravel by weight because moisture and compaction change volume but not weight. Divide your cubic-foot figure by 27, then multiply by the spec's tons-per-yard.
How many yards is 5 tons of gravel?
Divide tons by the density: 5 ÷ 1.40 ≈ 3.6 cubic yards of #57 gravel, or 5 ÷ 1.5 ≈ 3.3 cubic yards of crusher run. Spread at 4 inches compacted, 3.6 yards covers about 195 square feet — a one-car parking pad — while 5 tons of the same stone at 2 inches covers nearly 390 square feet of decorative path.
How much does a yard of road base weigh?
Crusher run and Class-type road base weigh roughly 1.5 tons (3,000 lb) per loose cubic yard. The fines content is why: packed between the angular stones, they close the air gaps that make clean stone lighter. After compaction the finished base is even denser, which is exactly why the calculator's compaction allowance adds 15% to the ordered volume.
How much gravel do I need for a 100-foot driveway?
A 10-ft-wide, 100-ft driveway is 1,000 square feet. At 4 inches of compacted crusher run with a 15% compaction allowance, order about 21.4 cubic yards — roughly 32 tons, or two tandem loads. Most lasting driveways use two layers: 4–6 inches of compacted base plus a 1–2 inch #57 surface, which brings a typical two-layer total to 26–33 tons for the same footprint.
How deep should a gravel driveway be?
Four to six inches of compacted material is the residential standard, built as layers: a 4–6 inch compacted base of crusher run for strength, plus a 1–2 inch surface of #57 or pea gravel for looks and drainage. Deep soft-soil driveways may need 8–12 inches of base placed in 4-inch lifts. A single thin dump rarely survives — under-built driveways rut within the first winter.
How much does a ton of gravel cover?
One ton is about 0.71 cubic yards of #57 (19 cubic feet), which spreads over roughly 115 square feet at 2 inches deep, 57 square feet at 4 inches, or 38 square feet at 6. Work it backwards when suppliers quote per ton: area × depth ÷ 324 gives yards, then × density gives tons — or let the calculator flip between the two pricing modes for you.
What is the difference between #57 and crusher run?
#57 is washed, uniform ¾-inch stone with the fines removed — it drains freely and stays loose, which makes it the right surface and drainage layer but a weak base on its own. Crusher run (#411) is the same family of stone down to ¼-inch fines; the fines compact into a near-concrete mass that carries vehicles. Driveways use both: crusher run beneath, #57 on top.
How much does a gravel driveway cost?
Material alone runs roughly $1–2.50 per square foot for a 4–6 inch two-layer build in most markets — a 1,000 sq ft driveway lands near $500–800 in stone at 2026 bands of $20–45 per ton. Delivery adds $60–150 per load. Hiring excavation, grading, and compaction pushes installed costs to $3–10 per square foot depending on site prep. This calculator prices the material and freight; grading labor is site-specific.
Do I need landscape fabric under gravel?
For decorative beds and paths, yes — a woven geotextile stops the stone from sinking into the soil and blocks weeds for years. Under a load-bearing driveway, most builders skip fabric but rely on 4+ inches of compacted crusher run, which forms its own separation layer; on soft or muddy subgrade, a stabilization fabric under the base genuinely strengthens the drive. Match the fabric decision to the load, not the look.
How much gravel fits in a pickup truck?
By volume, a heaped half-ton bed takes about 2.5 cubic yards — but by weight that is 3.5+ tons of gravel, roughly triple the truck's payload. Realistically load 1–1.5 cubic yards per trip (1.5–2 tons), which is why a 10-yard driveway order becomes 7+ pickup trips versus one tandem delivery. For anything past 3 tons, the delivered load is cheaper than your time and suspension.
Does gravel need compaction before I order?
Compaction decides the allowance, not the order itself. Fines-bearing specs (crusher run, stone dust) shrink 10–20% when compacted, so order that much extra to finish at your planned grade. Clean stone like #57 and pea gravel barely compacts but settles 5–10% into the subgrade as stones re-nest. Riprap is placed, not compacted — order its measured volume and no more.

Data & sources: the 27 cu ft per cubic yard conversion and the truck capacity table (pickup 2.5 · single 10 · tandem 14 · tri-axle 16 cu yd heaped) come from the site calculation engine. Spec densities (1.35–1.55 t/yd³) and compaction presets (5–15%) are typical loose-delivered planning values for common aggregate grades.

Planning estimates to verify locally: per-ton and per-yard pricing, freight, spread-labor rates, and quarry batch weights — all vary by region and vendor and are labeled as typical 2026 ranges, not quotes. Weight tickets on the first load are the real calibration.

Author: Dirt Calculator editorial team · Last updated: October 26, 2026. This page is a planning aid; it does not replace a pavement design, a geotechnical report, or your supplier's written quote.

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