Sets density and the coverage advice below.
Overrides the depth field when set.
Area 1
Advanced options
Paver bedding is never compacted before laying.
Spillage, edge loss and supplier rounding.
Use your supplier’s figure. 0 = use the type default.
This sand calculator works out cubic yards, tons and bags for six sand types — and accounts for moisture, which changes both the weight and, counterintuitively, the volume you actually receive.
The short answer
Sand volume is area × depth ÷ 27 for cubic yards. A dry cubic yard weighs about 2,700 lb — 1.35 tons, and a 50 lb bag holds 0.5 ft³, so 54 bags make a yard.
Moisture matters twice over: damp sand is about 11% heavier per cubic yard, and it also takes up more space than the same sand dry.
On this page
How to use this sand calculator
Pick your sand type, set the moisture toggle, and enter the area. Four shapes:
- Area — rectangular patios, pads, sandboxes and courts
- Circle — above-ground pool bases and round beds
- Trench — pipe bedding, measured as a run with width and depth
- Known volume — you already have yards, feet or metres
The Application dropdown sets the depth for you — 1 inch for paver bedding, 2 for a pool base, 10 for a sandbox — or leave it on “use my depth” to enter your own.
The moisture toggle changes the density used for weight and truck loads. Bulk sand is almost always delivered damp, which is why that’s the default.
The sand formula
Cubic yards = Length (ft) × Width (ft) × Depth (ft) ÷ 27
Tons = Cubic yards × density ÷ 2,000
Or the shortcut: (Area in ft² × Depth in inches) ÷ 324 = cubic yards
Worked example — 12 × 10 ft paver bedding at 1 inch
Which sand for which job
Sand types are not interchangeable, and using the wrong one causes most sand-related failures.
| Type | Spec | Use for | Don’t use for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concrete sand | ASTM C33 | Paver bedding, mixing concrete, pipe bedding | Sandboxes — grains are sharp |
| Mason sand | ASTM C144 | Mortar, stucco, grout, block laying | Paver bedding — too fine, it displaces |
| Play sand | Washed, screened | Sandboxes, play areas | Anything structural — too fine and rounded |
| Fill sand | Ungraded | Bulk filling, raising grade, backfill | Anything needing drainage or stability — contains silt |
| Manufactured sand | Crushed rock | Concrete, where natural sand is scarce | Applications needing rounded grain |
| Pool filter sand | Graded silica | Sand filter media, pool bases | Filters need the exact grade specified |
Play sand under pavers. It’s fine, rounded and holds water. Under load it displaces sideways and the pavers rut. Paver bedding needs coarse angular ASTM C33 concrete sand — the sharp grains interlock.
Concrete sand in a sandbox. It’s sharp, unwashed and not screened for the contaminants play sand is tested for. Use washed play sand for anything children will handle.
Weight and moisture
| Sand type | Dry | Damp | Wet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concrete sand | 2,700 lb/yd³ | 3,000 | 3,240 |
| Mason sand | 2,600 | 2,890 | 3,120 |
| Play sand | 2,600 | 2,890 | 3,120 |
| Fill sand | 2,700 | 3,000 | 3,240 |
| Manufactured sand | 2,800 | 3,110 | 3,360 |
| Per cubic foot: 100 lb dry, 111 damp, 120 wet for concrete sand. | |||
Between dry and wet the difference is 20% — on a 5 yard order, that’s about 1.4 tons. If your supplier prices by weight and you calculated by volume, that gap comes straight out of your budget.
Bulking — sand does the opposite of what you expect
Almost every bulk material compacts when it gets wet. Sand doesn’t. It expands.
At around 4 to 6% moisture, thin films of water form around each grain and surface tension holds them apart. The grains can no longer nest tightly, and the same quantity of sand occupies 20 to 30% more volume than it does bone dry. Fine sand bulks more than coarse. Push the moisture higher still — fully saturated — and the films collapse, the grains close up, and the volume drops back to roughly where it started.
Bulk sand is delivered damp, which means it is delivered bulked. A cubic yard on the truck contains noticeably less actual sand than a cubic yard of the same material dry.
Once it’s spread and dries out — or gets rained on and saturates — it settles. People who order sand by volume in damp weather and then measure their finished depth are often surprised to come up short, and assume they miscalculated. They didn’t; the sand shrank.
The practical fix: for anything where depth matters, order by weight rather than volume and ask the supplier what moisture content their tons-per-yard figure assumes. For small jobs, just add a margin.
This is also why concrete batching by volume is unreliable and why plants batch by weight. A bucket of damp sand contains substantially less sand than a bucket of dry sand, which throws the mix ratio off in the direction of too little fine aggregate.
Depth by application
| Application | Depth | yd³ per 100 ft² | 50 lb bags per 100 ft² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paver bedding | 1 in | 0.31 | 17 |
| Above-ground pool base | 2 in | 0.62 | 34 |
| Riding arena surface | 3 in | 0.93 | 50 |
| Pipe bedding | 4–6 in | 1.23–1.85 | 67–100 |
| Sandbox | 8–12 in | 2.47–3.70 | 133–200 |
| Volleyball court | 12 in | 3.70 | 200 |
Paver bedding is the one to get exactly right. ICPI specifies 1 inch and no more — a thicker bed displaces under load and the pavers rut. See the paver base calculator for the full assembly.
How much does a yard of sand cover?
| Depth | Per cubic yard | Per 50 lb bag |
|---|---|---|
| 1 inch | 324 ft² | 6.0 ft² |
| 2 inches | 162 ft² | 3.0 ft² |
| 3 inches | 108 ft² | 2.0 ft² |
| 4 inches | 81 ft² | 1.5 ft² |
| 6 inches | 54 ft² | 1.0 ft² |
| 12 inches | 27 ft² | 0.5 ft² |
Sandbox quantities
Sandboxes are the most common sand project and the one people most underestimate. At a proper 10 inch play depth:
| Sandbox | Volume | Weight | 50 lb bags |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 × 4 ft | 0.49 yd³ | 0.71 tons | 27 |
| 6 × 6 ft | 1.11 yd³ | 1.60 tons | 60 |
| 8 × 8 ft | 1.98 yd³ | 2.85 tons | 107 |
| 10 × 10 ft | 3.09 yd³ | 4.45 tons | 167 |
An 8 × 8 sandbox needs over a hundred bags. That’s the point where hauling bagged sand stops making sense — and where people discover the project is considerably bigger than it looked.
Use washed play sand, and give the box a drainage layer or drilled holes underneath. Sand that stays wet grows mould and stays cold.
Bags or bulk?
Under 0.5 yd³
Buy bags
27 bags or fewer. Bulk suppliers have delivery minimums of 3–5 tons, so a small bulk order costs more in fees than the sand is worth.
0.5 – 2 yd³
Compare both
27 to 108 bags. Check whether your supplier will do a partial load, and weigh the delivery fee against the trips.
Over 2 yd³
Order bulk
Bulk runs $25–$65 per yard against $150–$250 bagged. Above 108 bags the handling alone justifies delivery.
A half-ton pickup rated for about 1,250 lb can legally carry roughly 0.4 cubic yards of damp sand. That’s under half a bed. Filling the bed puts you at several times the rated load, which is unsafe and damages suspension and brakes. This is a delivery job above about half a yard.
Sand ordering mistakes to avoid
- Using play sand under pavers. Too fine and rounded — it displaces and the pavers rut.
- Using concrete sand in a sandbox. Sharp grains and not screened for play safety.
- Ignoring moisture when ordering by weight. Wet sand is 20% heavier for the same coverage.
- Not allowing for bulking. Damp sand ordered by volume shrinks as it dries or saturates.
- Fill sand where drainage matters. It contains silt and holds water.
- Bedding sand deeper than 1 inch. The single most common paver failure.
- Filling a pickup by volume. Payload runs out at under half a yard.
Frequently asked questions
How much sand do I need?
Multiply area in square feet by depth in inches and divide by 324 for cubic yards. A 12 × 10 ft paver bedding layer at 1 inch is 0.37 cubic yards, or about 22 bags at 50 lb each including waste.
How much does a yard of sand weigh?
About 2,700 lb — 1.35 tons — for dry concrete sand. Damp sand runs around 3,000 lb and fully wet sand up to 3,240 lb. Mason and play sand are slightly lighter at 2,600 lb dry.
How many bags of sand in a cubic yard?
54 bags of the standard 50 lb / 0.5 cubic foot retail size. For larger bags it’s 36 at 0.75 ft³ and 27 at 1 ft³. A cubic yard is 27 cubic feet, so divide 27 by the bag volume.
Why does damp sand take up more space than dry sand?
It’s called bulking. At around 4–6% moisture, water films form around each grain and surface tension holds them apart, so they can’t nest tightly. The same sand occupies 20–30% more volume. Fully saturate it and the films collapse and the volume drops back. It’s why bulk sand delivered damp seems to shrink once spread and dried.
What kind of sand goes under pavers?
Coarse washed concrete sand to ASTM C33, at exactly 1 inch deep. The angular grains interlock and resist displacement. Never use play sand or mason sand — both are too fine and rounded, and they migrate under load causing the pavers to rut and settle.
How much sand for a sandbox?
At a 10 inch play depth, a 4 × 4 ft box needs 0.49 cubic yards (27 bags), a 6 × 6 needs 1.11 yd³ (60 bags), and an 8 × 8 needs 1.98 yd³ (107 bags). Use washed play sand, and provide drainage underneath so it doesn’t stay wet.
How much area does a yard of sand cover?
324 square feet at 1 inch deep, 162 at 2 inches, 81 at 4 inches and 27 at 12 inches. A single 50 lb bag covers about 6 square feet at 1 inch.
What’s the difference between mason sand and concrete sand?
Mason sand (ASTM C144) is finer and more uniform, made for mortar and stucco where it needs to work smoothly. Concrete sand (ASTM C33) is coarser and well graded, made for concrete mixes and paver bedding where the grains need to interlock and drain. They’re not interchangeable.
Can I put sand in a pickup truck?
Only a little. A half-ton pickup rated for about 1,250 lb payload can carry roughly 0.4 cubic yards of damp sand — under half a bed. Filling the bed puts you well over the rated load. Above about half a yard, have it delivered.
Is it cheaper to buy sand in bags or bulk?
Bulk runs roughly $25–$65 per cubic yard against $150–$250 for the bagged equivalent. But bulk suppliers usually have a 3–5 ton delivery minimum, so bags win below about half a cubic yard — around 27 bags.
How deep should sand be under an above-ground pool?
About 2 inches of levelled, compacted sand over a properly graded base. Level is more important than depth — a pool wall on uneven ground stresses the frame. Many manufacturers now recommend a pad or foam base over the sand rather than sand alone, so check your pool’s instructions.
Can I use this sand calculator in metric?
Dimensions are entered in feet and inches, but results include cubic metres and kilograms alongside yards and tons. The Known volume mode also accepts cubic metres directly.
Standards and sources
- ASTM C33 — Concrete aggregates, the specification for bedding and concrete sand
- ASTM C144 — Aggregate for masonry mortar
- ICPI Tech Spec 2 — bedding sand specification and depth for interlocking pavements
- Densities are supplier mid-range figures; bulking behaviour is standard soil mechanics and varies with grain size
- Bag volumes reflect standard US retail packaging at 0.5 ft³ per 50 lb bag
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How this sand calculator works out its numbers
Volume uses standard geometric formulas normalised to feet, then divided by 27 for cubic yards, with compaction and waste applied on top. Weight uses the dry density for your selected sand type multiplied by a moisture factor — 1.00 dry, 1.11 damp and 1.20 wet, which corresponds to 100, 111 and 120 lb per cubic foot for concrete sand. You can override the density entirely with your supplier’s own figure.
Bag counts divide total cubic feet by the bag volume and round up. Pickup trips apply a 1,250 lb payload limit, which is what actually constrains a half-ton truck long before the bed fills.
Bulking is flagged rather than calculated. The expansion depends on grain size distribution and exact moisture content, and neither is knowable from a calculator input. The figure given — 20 to 30% at 4 to 6% moisture — is the standard range for medium sand; fine sand bulks more, coarse sand less. Where finished depth matters, order by weight and ask your supplier what moisture their density assumes.