Gravel Driveway Calculator
Use this gravel driveway calculator to work out how much gravel your driveway needs: the area, cubic yards, tons, a suggested order and, if you add your supplier’s price, the cost. It works in US or metric units, and every assumption it makes is shown and can be changed.
Gravel driveway calculator
Results
Results appear here as you type.
How the gravel driveway calculator works
Suppliers sell gravel by the ton (or tonne) or by the cubic yard (or cubic metre), but you measure a driveway in feet or metres. The calculator turns your measurements into an order in six steps:
- Area: length × width.
- Depth: inches ÷ 12 gives feet; centimetres ÷ 100 gives metres.
- Volume: area × depth. In US units, cubic feet ÷ 27 gives cubic yards.
- Allowance: the volume is increased by the percentage you choose (10% by default), once.
- Weight: volume × the density of the material you pick.
- Order and cost: the suggested order is the weight rounded up to a whole ton or tonne. Cost is the exact quantity × your price, plus delivery if you enter it.
cubic yards = length (ft) × width (ft) × depth (in) ÷ 12 ÷ 27
tons = cubic yards × (1 + allowance % ÷ 100) × density (tons per yd³)
cubic metres = length (m) × width (m) × depth (cm) ÷ 100
tonnes = cubic metres × (1 + allowance % ÷ 100) × density (tonnes per m³)
Building a new drive with a base layer and a surface layer? Tick Two layers in the calculator to size both at once, each with its own material, depth and price. Every formula, unit factor and rounding rule is listed on the calculation methodology page.
Gravel for common driveway sizes
These tables use the calculator’s defaults: crushed stone at a planning density of 1.40 tons per cubic yard and a 10% allowance. Use them for a quick sense of scale, then put your own measurements and your supplier’s density into the calculator.
| Size (ft) | Area (ft²) | 4 in deep: yd³ | 4 in: tons | 6 in deep: yd³ | 6 in: tons |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 20 | 200 | 2.72 | 3.80 (order 4) | 4.07 | 5.70 (order 6) |
| 12 × 20 | 240 | 3.26 | 4.56 (order 5) | 4.89 | 6.84 (order 7) |
| 12 × 30 | 360 | 4.89 | 6.84 (order 7) | 7.33 | 10.27 (order 11) |
| 12 × 40 | 480 | 6.52 | 9.13 (order 10) | 9.78 | 13.69 (order 14) |
| 20 × 20 | 400 | 5.43 | 7.60 (order 8) | 8.15 | 11.41 (order 12) |
| 20 × 30 | 600 | 8.15 | 11.41 (order 12) | 12.22 | 17.11 (order 18) |
| 20 × 40 | 800 | 10.86 | 15.21 (order 16) | 16.30 | 22.81 (order 23) |
| 24 × 40 | 960 | 13.04 | 18.25 (order 19) | 19.56 | 27.38 (order 28) |
| 12 × 100 | 1,200 | 16.30 | 22.81 (order 23) | 24.44 | 34.22 (order 35) |
| Size (m) | Area (m²) | 10 cm deep: m³ | 10 cm: tonnes | 15 cm deep: m³ | 15 cm: tonnes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 × 6 | 18 | 1.98 | 3.29 (order 4) | 2.97 | 4.93 (order 5) |
| 3.5 × 9 | 31.5 | 3.47 | 5.76 (order 6) | 5.20 | 8.63 (order 9) |
| 3.5 × 12 | 42 | 4.62 | 7.67 (order 8) | 6.93 | 11.51 (order 12) |
| 6 × 6 | 36 | 3.96 | 6.58 (order 7) | 5.94 | 9.87 (order 10) |
| 6 × 9 | 54 | 5.94 | 9.87 (order 10) | 8.91 | 14.80 (order 15) |
| 6 × 12 | 72 | 7.92 | 13.16 (order 14) | 11.88 | 19.73 (order 20) |
| 3.5 × 30 | 105 | 11.55 | 19.19 (order 20) | 17.33 | 28.78 (order 29) |
How much gravel do I need for a driveway?
It depends on three numbers: length, width and depth. A 12 × 30 ft drive at 4 inches is 360 square feet and 4.44 cubic yards before any allowance. With 10% added that is 4.89 cubic yards, or 6.84 tons of crushed stone, so you would order 7 tons. For curves, turnarounds and other shapes, the guide on how much gravel you need shows how to measure and add up the parts.
How many tons of gravel do I need?
Multiply the cubic yards (with your allowance) by the material’s density. At the 1.40 tons per cubic yard planning value for crushed stone, 10 cubic yards is 14 tons. Denser material such as road base is often planned at 1.50 tons per cubic yard, so the same volume would be 15 tons. To convert a weight you already have, use the tons to cubic yards calculator, or see the tables in how many yards are in a ton of gravel.
Class 5, road base and other driveway stone
The material list sets a starting density for each type of driveway stone or rock. Pick Class 5 / road base / crusher run for a dense, compactable base (planned at 1.50 tons per cubic yard), Crushed stone (#57) for a clean surface layer (1.40), or one of the others. Names vary by region: Class 5 is the name some US states use for a road base mix, and your supplier may call a similar material dense grade aggregate, crusher run or road base. If your supplier gives you a density, type it into the density box and it overrides the preset. The types of gravel for driveways guide compares them.
Using it as a gravel road calculator
A private lane or farm road is worked out the same way as a driveway, just longer. A 12 ft wide, 100 ft long road at 4 inches needs about 22.81 tons of crushed stone with a 10% allowance. For a long road whose width changes, measure it in sections, run each one through the calculator and add the results. Long roads often need a separate base layer: the driveway base gravel calculator sizes it with landscape fabric.
How deep should a gravel driveway be?
The right depth depends on your soil, drainage, climate and the vehicles that will use the drive, so treat any general figure as a starting point to check with a local contractor. Common planning starting points are about 2 inches to top up a firm existing drive, 3 to 4 inches to resurface, and 6 inches or more in two layers for a new drive. The gravel driveway depth guide explains the layers and their limits, and the gravel depth calculator compares 2, 4, 6 and 8 inches side by side.
Why add an allowance?
Ordering the exact geometric volume usually leaves you short. Ground is rarely perfectly level, some stone is lost at the edges while spreading, and loose gravel settles when it is rolled or driven on. The calculator adds 10% by default. That is a planning choice, not a measured compaction rate, so change it if your supplier or contractor suggests a different figure. The allowance is applied once, to the volume, and carries through to the weight and cost.
What will the gravel cost?
This site does not publish gravel prices, because they change with region, haul distance and supplier. Enter the price your supplier quotes, per ton, tonne, cubic yard or cubic metre, and an optional delivery charge. The cost uses the exact quantity rather than the rounded-up order, and the results say so. For labour and other costs, use the gravel driveway cost calculator; the gravel driveway cost guide explains what goes into a quote.
Check these with your supplier before you order
- The density of the exact material they will deliver, and whether their prices are per ton or per cubic yard.
- How much one truck can carry to your address, and any minimum load or delivery charge.
- Whether they sell in whole tons, half tons or full loads.
- Whether wet weather will affect the weight on their scale.
More gravel calculators
Each tool does one job. The calculators page says when to use which.
- Gravel calculatorAny project, any stone: rectangles, circles and L-shapes in yards, tons and cost.
- Tons to cubic yards calculatorConvert tons to cubic yards or cubic yards to tons, by material.
- Pea gravel calculatorPaths, patios, play areas and borders, in tons, yards and bags.
- Gravel driveway cost calculatorMaterial, delivery and labour from your own prices.
- Gravel depth calculatorCompare 2, 4, 6 and 8 inch layers for your drive.
- Gravel cubic yard calculatorVolume only, with a coverage table per cubic yard.
- Driveway base gravel calculatorBase rock in tons plus the landscape fabric to order.
Driveway planning guides
Plain-English help with the decisions behind the numbers. All of them are listed on the guides page.
- How much gravel do I need?Measure straight, curved and irregular drives in five steps.
- How many yards in a ton of gravelTons per yard by material, with tables for 1 to 25 tons.
- Gravel driveway depthPlanning ranges for base and surface layers, and their limits.
- Gravel driveway costWhat you pay for and how to compare quotes.
- Types of gravel for drivewaysCrushed stone, Class 5, pea gravel, river rock and crushed concrete.
- How to calculate gravel for a drivewayThe formulas, with US and metric worked examples.
Gravel driveway calculator FAQ
How much gravel do I need for a 12 × 40 ft driveway?
At 4 inches deep it is 480 square feet and 5.93 cubic yards before any allowance. With a 10% allowance that is 6.52 cubic yards, or 9.13 tons of crushed stone at 1.40 tons per cubic yard, so you would order 10 tons. At 6 inches it is 13.69 tons, an order of 14 tons.
How do I calculate gravel for a driveway by hand?
Multiply length by width in feet, multiply by the depth in inches ÷ 12, and divide by 27 to get cubic yards. Add your allowance, then multiply by the density in tons per cubic yard. The calculation guide works through a full example in US and metric units.
Why does the calculator round the order up?
Most suppliers sell whole tons or tonnes, and rounding down could leave you short. The exact figure is shown next to the suggested order, and an exact whole number is never rounded up to the next ton.
Is the cost based on the rounded order?
No. The cost uses the exact quantity × your price, so it does not include the extra you get by rounding up. If your supplier charges for the full rounded amount, multiply the suggested order by your price instead.
Can I use metric units?
Yes. Choose Metric to work in metres, centimetres, cubic metres and tonnes. Switching converts the numbers you have already entered and tells you it did. Prices are left as they are, because a price per ton and a price per tonne are different amounts.
Does the calculator save my measurements?
No. Everything is calculated in your browser and nothing you type is sent to this site. The only thing remembered is your choice of US or metric units, stored in your own browser. See the privacy policy.