Yards to Tons: Gravel, Sand, Topsoil, and Mulch
A cubic yard of bulk landscaping material weighs a different amount depending entirely on what the material is — gravel, sand, and topsoil are all sold and delivered by the ton despite the underlying project being a volume calculation, while mulch is usually sold and priced by the cubic yard instead. Multiply cubic yards by the material's density (tons per cubic yard) to convert between the two. If you need the full area × depth × density calculation for your own project, the gravel, sand, topsoil, and mulchcalculators do that directly from your area and depth. This page is a quick density reference across all four materials side by side, plus a ready-made conversion table so you don't have to do the multiplication by hand.
Density reference: tons per cubic yard by material
Density varies within each material mostly by moisture content and, for gravel, by how angular or compacted the stone is — a dry, loose pile weighs less per cubic yard than the same material wet and compacted. The typical figure in the table below is this platform's own default for gravel and sand (used on those calculators' density fields) and a conservative, dry-material default for topsoil and mulch, both independently cross-checked against a published material-weight reference.
| Material | Typical range (tons/yd³) | Default used here (tons/yd³) | What moves it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gravel / crushed stone | 1.1–1.9 | 1.4 | denser, angular crushed stone toward the high end; pea gravel toward the low end |
| Sand | 1.3–1.5 | 1.35 | dry loose sand toward the low end; wet compacted sand toward the high end |
| Topsoil | 1.05–1.5 | 1.05 | dry screened loam toward the low end; wet, clay-heavy soil toward the high end |
| Mulch (wood/bark) | 0.2–0.5 | 0.3 | dry bark and wood chips toward the low end; wet, freshly-ground mulch toward the high end |
Gravel and sand density defaults: Braen Stone technical guidance; topsoil and mulch weight-per-cubic-yard ranges: Cubic Yard Estimator, Cubic Yard Weight Chart. The gravel and sand figures match the sourced defaults already used on this platform's own gravel and sandcalculators; topsoil and mulch have no separate tons-per-yard field on this platform's own calculators (topsoil is modeled by depth and settling percentage, mulch by volume only, since mulch is conventionally priced by the yard rather than the ton), so those two figures come from the independent cross-check source above rather than an internal data value.
Cubic yards to tons: 1-20 yd³ by material
Using the default density from the table above, here is what common bulk-order quantities weigh out to for each material. If your supplier quotes a different density for their specific product (common for gravel, where stone type varies a lot), multiply your own cubic-yard quantity by their number instead — these columns are a starting estimate, not a substitute for your supplier's spec sheet.
| Cubic yards | Gravel (tons) | Sand (tons) | Topsoil (tons) | Mulch (tons) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 yd³ | 1.4 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 0.30 |
| 2 yd³ | 2.8 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 0.60 |
| 3 yd³ | 4.2 | 4.1 | 3.2 | 0.90 |
| 5 yd³ | 7.0 | 6.8 | 5.3 | 1.50 |
| 7 yd³ | 9.8 | 9.5 | 7.4 | 2.10 |
| 10 yd³ | 14.0 | 13.5 | 10.5 | 3.00 |
| 12 yd³ | 16.8 | 16.2 | 12.6 | 3.60 |
| 15 yd³ | 21.0 | 20.3 | 15.8 | 4.50 |
| 20 yd³ | 28.0 | 27.0 | 21.0 | 6.00 |
Reading a row across shows why the same delivery truck can carry very different volumes of each material: at 10 cubic yards, gravel already weighs 14.0 tons — close to what many standard dump trucks haul in a single load — while the same 10 cubic yards of mulch weighs only 3.0tons, light enough that truck volume, not weight, becomes the limiting factor for a mulch delivery. This is also why gravel, sand, and topsoil suppliers price and schedule deliveries by the ton (the truck's weight limit is what matters) while mulch suppliers price by the yard (the truck's bed volume is what fills up first).
Why the same material can weigh differently on two different days
Moisture is the single biggest swing factor within any one material. A pile of sand or topsoil left uncovered after rain can weigh noticeably more per cubic yard than the same pile a week later once it's dried out — sand can gain roughly 20% in weight from dry to saturated, and topsoil a similar or larger swing depending on clay content. This matters specifically when a supplier prices by the ton: ordering right after a rainy stretch can mean paying for water weight that delivers less usable dry volume than the same tonnage would on a dry week. If your yard offers pricing by the cubic yard instead of by the ton, that sidesteps the moisture question entirely, since volume doesn't change with water content the way weight does.
Bulk delivery versus bagged material
Every figure above assumes bulk delivery, priced and hauled by the ton (or, for mulch, by the yard) from a quarry, landscape yard, or aggregate supplier. Bagged material at a home-improvement store is priced per bag, and the crossover point where bulk delivery becomes cheaper than bags is different for each material, largely because of density. Gravel and sand are heavy enough that even a modest quantity — often well under a single cubic yard — already justifies comparing bulk delivery pricing, since a pallet of 50 lb bags adds up in both cost and lifting effort fast. Mulch, being far lighter, can stay in bagged-bale territory for a larger bed before bulk delivery clearly wins on price, though the labor of carrying dozens of bags versus wheelbarrowing a delivered pile is worth weighing too, independent of the sticker price. Use this page's conversion table to estimate the delivered tonnage, then compare that supplier's bulk quote against the same volume in bagged units before ordering either way.
Converting the other direction: tons to cubic yards
The same density figure runs the calculation in reverse: divide tons by the material's tons-per-cubic-yard figure to get cubic yards. If a supplier quotes you 8 tons of gravel at the default 1.4 tons/yd³ density, that's 8 ÷ 1.4 ≈ 5.7cubic yards — useful for checking a delivered load against the volume your project actually measured out to, or for comparing a per-ton quote against a per-yard quote from a different supplier on an apples-to-apples basis. Because density varies within a range rather than being a fixed constant, treat a reverse conversion like this as an estimate too, not an exact check, unless you know the supplier's tested density for that specific load.
A mixed-material project example
A paver patio project might need 2 cubic yards of gravel base, 0.5 cubic yards of bedding sand, and 3 cubic yards of topsoil for the surrounding beds — three different materials from one job. Converting each separately: gravel at 1.4 tons/yd³ gives 2 × 1.4 = 2.8 tons; sand at 1.35 tons/yd³ gives 0.5 × 1.35 = 0.68 tons; topsoil at 1.05 tons/yd³ gives 3 × 1.05 = 3.2tons. Adding raw tonnages across materials doesn't simplify the order — each material still needs its own line on the delivery ticket, since gravel, sand, and topsoil aren't interchangeable by weight any more than they are by function. Use the per-material calculators linked below to get the volume figures in the first place, then this page's density table to convert each one to the tonnage your supplier will actually invoice.