Ordering gravel for a driveway, path, or drainage trench and not sure how many tons to ask for? This gravel calculator turns your length, width, and depth into the volume, weight, bags, and truck loads you need, so you order the right amount the first time instead of paying for a second delivery.

Pick a project type to load sensible starting dimensions, choose your material, and the numbers update as you type.

Why people use this tool

• No more guessing on gravel orders: get a weight in tons, not just a volume, since that’s how most suppliers actually sell and price gravel.
• Works with any material: pick from seven common gravel and stone types with realistic densities, or enter your own if your supplier gives you a spec sheet.
• Covers the common projects: driveway, trench, garden bed, and pathway presets load typical dimensions, or switch to custom for anything else.
• Bags and truck loads worked out for you: see exactly how many bags to buy or how many truck loads to schedule, based on your own bag size and truck capacity.
• Cost estimate included: enter your material and delivery rates and get a full breakdown next to the total.

How much gravel you actually need

Gravel volume is just length times width times depth, but getting the depth right matters more than people expect. A driveway base typically needs 10cm (4in) of gravel, a decorative garden bed needs far less, maybe 5cm (2in), and pipe bedding in a trench depends on the pipe size and local code. Skimp on depth and the gravel compacts down to nothing within a season; go too deep and you’re paying for material you didn’t need.

This calculator multiplies your length, width, and depth to get the raw volume, then adds your chosen wastage allowance, typically 5-10%, to cover spillage, uneven ground, and the extra material that always seems to disappear during spreading and compaction.

For example, a 10m x 3m driveway at 10cm deep works out to 3m³ before wastage. Add a 5% allowance and you’re ordering 3.15m³. In imperial, a 33ft x 10ft driveway at 4in deep comes out to roughly 4.1yd³, plus wastage.

Picking the right material and density

Not all gravel weighs the same. Crushed stone and river rock run around 1,600kg/m³ (100lb/ft³), pea gravel and decorative gravel are lighter and looser at 1,520-1,540kg/m³ (95-96lb/ft³), while dense materials like granite can push past 1,730kg/m³ (108lb/ft³). That difference matters because suppliers price and deliver by weight, not volume, so the same 3m³ driveway could need anywhere from 4.5 to 5.2 tons depending on what you choose.

The calculator includes seven common presets: crushed stone, pea gravel, river rock, limestone, granite, base gravel, and decorative gravel. If your supplier gives you a specific density figure that doesn’t match a preset, switch to custom and enter it directly in kg/m³ or lb/ft³.

Bags, truck loads, and ordering

Buying by the bag instead of bulk delivery? Set your bag size, commonly 25kg or 50lb, and the calculator divides your total weight by that figure and rounds up, since a partial bag still means buying a full one. For bulk orders, set your truck’s capacity in tons and the tool works out how many loads that translates to, rounding up the same way.

Both figures update live as you switch materials or adjust dimensions, so you can compare, say, ordering pea gravel in bags versus having crushed stone delivered by the truckload, before committing to either.

Estimating delivery cost

Toggle Estimate Cost and enter what you pay per ton of material and per truck load for delivery. The calculator multiplies your material price by the total weight and your delivery price by the number of loads, then shows a line-by-line breakdown next to the total, so you can see how much of the budget is material versus getting it to your site.

If you’re pouring a concrete slab or footing nearby, the Concrete Calculator handles cement, sand, and aggregate separately. Digging a trench or footing first, the Excavation Calculator works out how much soil comes out before the gravel goes in. For converting a supplier quote between units, try the Weight Converter or Volume Converter.

These figures are for planning purposes. Depth requirements for driveways, drainage, and pipe bedding vary by local code and soil conditions, so confirm specifications with a licensed contractor or supplier before ordering.