How much does a cubic yard of gravel weigh?
Short answer: between about 2,430 and 2,781 lb, or 1.22 to 1.39 US tons, for the stone in the table below. Crushed stone #57 (3/4 in, clean) comes to about 2,700 lb (1.35 tons) per cubic yard at 100 lb per cubic foot. The exact figure depends on the rock, how much fine material is mixed in and how wet the pile is, which is why the question has a range for an answer and why suppliers sell stone by the ton and quote their own conversion.
Density table
| Material | lb per cu ft | lb per cu yd | US tons per cu yd | kg per m³ | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pea gravel (3/8 in) | 93 | 2,511 | 1.26 | 1,490 | Derived from bagged weights: Vigoro lists 48 lb and Pavestone 45 lb per 0.5 cu ft bag (96 and 90 lb/ft³); the midpoint, 93 lb/ft³ (about 1.25 tons per cubic yard), is stored. Quikrete All-Purpose Gravel (3/8 in top size) comes in 50 lb bags with no stated yield, so its bag count uses this density. |
| Crushed stone #57 (3/4 in, clean) | 100 | 2,700 | 1.35 | 1,602 | FHWA (HRT-15-034, Table 7) measured AASHTO No. 57 at 95.4 lb/ft³ minimum (loose, funnel-placed) and 108.7 lb/ft³ maximum (vibrated). Stone arrives loose, so 100 lb/ft³ (1.35 tons per cubic yard) is stored; it will weigh and settle toward the high end once compacted. |
| Crusher run / road base (3/4 in minus) | 103 | 2,781 | 1.39 | 1,650 | Bagged paver base is the closest off-the-shelf analog: Quikrete HardScapes Paver Base is 50 lb per 0.5 cu ft (100 lb/ft³), Sakrete Paver Base yields 0.5 cu ft per 50 lb bag (100 lb/ft³; Sakrete describes it as a bedding sand) and Home Depot lists Pavestone Paver Base at 52.86 lb per 0.5 cu ft (106 lb/ft³). The midpoint, 103 lb/ft³ (about 1.4 tons per cubic yard loose), is stored. It compacts, so order by loose volume and compact in lifts. |
| Decomposed granite (1/4 in minus) | 90 | 2,430 | 1.22 | 1,442 | Derived from bagged weights that disagree: Classic Stone lists 42 lb and EarthEssentials by Quikrete 48 lb per 0.5 cu ft bag (84 and 96 lb/ft³); the midpoint, 90 lb/ft³ (about 1.2 tons per cubic yard loose), is stored. It compacts noticeably when installed. |
| River rock (1-3 in) | 92 | 2,484 | 1.24 | 1,474 | Derived from bagged weights that disagree: Vigoro river pebbles list 50 lb and Oldcastle 0.5-3 in decorative rock 42 lb per 0.5 cu ft bag (100 and 84 lb/ft³); the midpoint, 92 lb/ft³ (about 1.25 tons per cubic yard), is stored. Larger, rounder stone packs looser. |
| Paver base (compacted 3/4 in minus aggregate) | 103 | 2,781 | 1.39 | 1,650 | Same material and sources as crusher run: Quikrete HardScapes Paver Base 50 lb per 0.5 cu ft (100 lb/ft³), Sakrete Paver Base 50 lb = 0.5 cu ft (100 lb/ft³), Pavestone Paver Base 52.86 lb per 0.5 cu ft (106 lb/ft³); midpoint 103 lb/ft³ stored. Figures are for loose material as bought. |
These are bulk densities: the weight of a cubic foot of the loose material, air gaps included, which is what fills a truck or a trench. A solid piece of the same rock is much denser; a large share of a pile of clean, single-size crushed stone is air, which is also why it drains so well.
Why the weight varies
- The rock. Quarries sell what is under them. Limestone, granite, trap rock (basalt) and quartzite have different solid densities, and a "#57 stone" in one state is a different rock from a #57 stone in another. The size number describes the gradation, not the material.
- Fines. Clean, washed stone of one size has large air gaps. Crusher run, dense-graded base and other "minus" products carry sand and dust that fill the gaps, so they weigh more per yard. The same is true after compaction: a yard of loose base weighs less than a yard of compacted base, because the compacted yard holds more stone.
- Moisture. A pile that has been rained on can carry several percent of its weight as water. For a supplier selling by the ton, wet stone means fewer cubic feet per ton; for you, it means the tons on the ticket are a little more than the dry weight of what you spread.
- Shape and rock type. Rounded river gravel packs differently from angular crushed stone, and lightweight aggregates such as lava rock and expanded shale are a different class altogether, far lighter than ordinary stone; neither is in the table, so take their weight from the supplier.
The practical consequence is that any density table, including this one, is a planning figure. When a supplier gives you a tons-per-yard number for their own stone, use theirs; when they do not, the table gets you within the range the waste allowance already covers.
Converting yards to tons
tons = cubic yards x 27 x (lb per cubic foot) ÷ 2,000
For example, 5 cubic yards of crushed stone #57 is 5 x 27 = 135 cubic feet; at 100 lb per cubic foot that is 13,500 lb, or 6.75 tons (6.12 tonnes). Going the other way, one ton is 2,000 ÷ 100 = 20.0 cubic feet, or 0.74 cubic yards. The gravel calculator does both conversions for every stone in the table and shows tons next to yards.
How much a ton covers
A ton of crushed stone #57 is 20.0 cubic feet. Spread to a depth, it covers:
| Depth | Sq ft per ton | Tons for 100 sq ft | Tons for 500 sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 in | 120 | 0.83 | 4.17 |
| 3 in | 80 | 1.25 | 6.25 |
| 4 in | 60 | 1.67 | 8.33 |
| 6 in | 40 | 2.50 | 12.50 |
Denser stone covers less per ton; base stone that will be compacted needs about 10 percent more.
What that means for hauling
A cubic yard is a modest pile, about 3 ft high and 6 ft across when dumped, and a full-size pickup bed holds two of them level with the sides. The weight is the problem. A single yard of stone is over a ton, and most half-ton pickups are rated for well under that once the driver is in the cab; the payload figure is on the sticker inside the driver's door. Overloading a truck with stone is hard on the suspension and brakes and is how tailgates get bent. For a few bags, drive. For yards, have it delivered or use a trailer rated for the load, and remember that the supplier's truck has the same constraint: a truck that carries ten yards of mulch carries five or six of stone.
Sources
Every density in the table traces to one of these. Figures from other calculator sites are not used, because they tend to copy one another.
- Home Depot listing: Vigoro 0.5 cu. ft. Bagged Pea Gravel Pebble Landscape Rock 54255 (48 lb) (read 2026-10-05)
- Pavestone 0.5 cu. ft. Pea Gravel, 45 lb (Do it Best listing) (read 2026-10-05)
- QUIKRETE Sand & Gravel Products data sheet (All-Purpose Sand 1152, All-Purpose Gravel 1151, Premium Play Sand 1113; bag sizes only, no yields) (read 2026-10-05)
- Utah State University Extension, Water-Wise Landscaping: Mulch (organic 3-4 in, inorganic 2-3 in) (read 2026-10-05)
- U.S. CPSC Public Playground Safety Handbook (Pub. 325), Section 2.4 loose-fill surfacing (read 2026-10-05)
- FHWA-HRT-15-034, Strength Characterization of Open-Graded Aggregates, Chapter 3 (Table 7) (read 2026-10-05)
- Lowe's listing: QUIKRETE HardScapes Paver Base, 0.5 cu ft, 50 lb (read 2026-10-05)
- Sakrete Paver Base technical data sheet (described by Sakrete as a bedding sand; 50 lb bag yields about 0.5 cu ft) (read 2026-10-05)
- Home Depot listing: Pavestone 0.5 cu. ft. Paver Base 98001 (listed product weight 52.86 lb) (read 2026-10-05)
- CMHA (formerly ICPI) PAV-TEC-002, Construction of Interlocking Concrete Pavements (read 2026-10-05)
- Lowe's listing: Classic Stone 0.5-cu ft 42-lb Brown Crushed Stone R1DCG14A (decomposed granite, under 1/2 in) (read 2026-10-05)
- Lowe's listing: EarthEssentials by Quikrete 0.5-cu ft Crushed Stone (decomposed granite, under 1/2 in), 48 lb (read 2026-10-05)
- Kafka Granite, How Much Aggregate Do I Need for My Pathway? (read 2026-10-05)
- Home Depot listing: Vigoro 0.5 cu. ft. Bagged River Pebble Landscape Rock 54250V (50 lb) (read 2026-10-05)
- Lowe's listing: Oldcastle 0.5-cu ft 42-lb Gray Decorative Rock (0.5-3 in) 40206011 (read 2026-10-05)
Related
- Gravel calculator, with tons and yards for every stone in the table
- Cubic yard calculator, for the conversion on its own
- How the estimates are calculated