Massachusetts Gravel Calculator: Tons, Yards and Depth
Enter your project dimensions
A 12 x 30 ft boat pad built properly here takes close to 10 tons of stone. A 300-foot lane top-up takes nearly 26. Those two figures come from this gravel calculator, and the gap between them is mostly depth.
Depth is where Massachusetts ground has a say. The state building code sets frost depth at 48 inches everywhere, but the soil above that line behaves very differently from Worcester to Wellfleet.
Till, valley silt or Cape sand: setting the depth
Numbers first, then why.
| Ground | Where you find it | Depth habit for a driven surface |
|---|---|---|
| Stony till over dense lower till | Greater Boston suburbs, Worcester plateau, Berkshires and hilltowns | Full base, 3-4 in compacted, plus 2-3 in on top |
| Silty old lake-bed soil | Pioneer Valley floor | Full base, and watch for soft spots |
| Deep outwash sand | Cape Cod, the Islands, Plymouth and Carver | Full base for load; drainage is rarely the problem |
Till country. Dense lower till holds snowmelt near the surface. Water sits under the stone, freezes, lifts it, then thaws and leaves it soft. Late winter is when thin gravel breaks up. Don't shave the base.
Valley silt. Lake-bed silts in the Pioneer Valley are highly frost-susceptible. A drive over silt heaves and softens more than one over clean sand, so a skimpy base shows up fast.
Cape and southeast sand. Outwash sand drains quickly and is far less prone to frost heave. The base is still there to carry weight, not just to shed water. On the outer shore, storm tides are the bigger threat.
Base material. For the base layer, pick the crusher run / road base row and order processed gravel. MassDOT lists it under M1.03.1, processed gravel for subbase; that section number is how the material is specified locally, not a certification. Some yards call a similar blend dense grade.
Five inputs, then press calculate
Choose rectangle, circle, or multiple areas (up to five). Enter length and width in feet, or the diameter for a circle. Enter depth in inches; the tool accepts 0.25 to 24. Pick the material. Tick the 5% option if the stone will be compacted or driven on.
You get three numbers: cubic yards, tons and cubic feet. If you want them sent to you, Email my quote does that.
What the three results mean
Cubic feet is the raw volume: length x width x depth, with depth converted from inches to feet (divide by 12). Divide cubic feet by 27 and you have cubic yards. Multiply cubic yards by the material's weight and you have tons.
The weights the calculator uses:
- 1.50 tons per yard (about 3,000 lb): crusher run / road base, which covers processed gravel
- 1.40 tons per yard (about 2,800 lb): driveway or walkway gravel, pea gravel, and crushed stone such as #57 or 3/4"
- 1.35 tons per yard (about 2,700 lb): river rock
That's why switching materials at the same depth moves the ton figure but not the yards.
An RV pad, a hilltown lane and a pea stone path
Hypothetical jobs, worked out so you can check the tool.
RV or boat pad, 12 x 30 ft
Two layers, run as two calculations.
- Base, 4 in processed gravel: 360 sq ft x 4 ÷ 12 = 120 cu ft. 120 ÷ 27 = 4.44 cu yd. x 1.50 = 6.67 tons. With 5%: 7.0 tons.
- Top, 2 in driveway gravel: 360 x 2 ÷ 12 = 60 cu ft. 60 ÷ 27 = 2.22 cu yd. x 1.40 = 3.11 tons.
- Total: about 10.1 tons.
Long lane in the hilltowns
A 300 x 10 ft lane needs a 2-inch top-up, plus one 30 x 8 ft pull-off. Use multiple areas.
- Lane: 3,000 sq ft x 2 ÷ 12 = 500 cu ft = 18.52 cu yd = 25.93 tons.
- Pull-off: 240 sq ft x 2 ÷ 12 = 40 cu ft = 1.48 cu yd = 2.07 tons.
- Combined: 540 cu ft = 20.0 cu yd = 28.0 tons. With 5%: 21.0 cu yd, 29.4 tons.
Measure a lane that long with a wheel, in sections, checking the width every 50 feet or so.
Garden path, 40 x 3 ft
Three inches of pea stone.
- 120 sq ft x 3 ÷ 12 = 30 cu ft
- 30 ÷ 27 = 1.11 cu yd
- x 1.40 = 1.56 tons
Pea stone rolls underfoot, so keep it inside firm edging.
Pile space and rounding on a tight in-town lot
Extra. Tick the 5% on anything compacted. Untick it for loose stone in beds.
Rounding. Round up to a sensible figure. Coming up short on the top layer leaves a visible patch.
Dump space. Ten tons makes a real pile. On a narrow in-town lot, decide where it lands before you order: firm ground, clear overhead, and somewhere that won't block the only car space. The truck needs clear access to that spot.
Season. Base and paver work runs spring through late fall. Frozen ground won't compact, so winter is for measuring, not spreading.
Ordering processed gravel between thaw and freeze
Open the product page for the material you calculated, set the quantity and a delivery date, and check out. Delivery is arranged at checkout by ZIP code: the order is matched to a supplier in the network near that address, and an agent confirms the exact delivery address before the load goes out. If the job is base only, size a road base layer on its own, and the other material calculators cover the loam, sand and mulch on the same property. For a second opinion on layers or quantity, reach Massachusetts Rock Supply by call or text through the contact page.
Common questions
I ran pea stone and processed gravel at the same depth and got different tons. Which is right?
Both. Processed gravel is figured at about 3,000 lb a yard and pea stone at about 2,800, so the same volume weighs less as pea stone.
How do I use this for a trench instead of a flat area?
Enter trench length and width in feet and trench depth in inches. Past the 24-inch limit, split the depth into two runs and add them together.
Refreshing an old driveway versus building one from dirt: what depth goes in the box?
A refresh usually needs about 2 inches of surface gravel. A new build needs 3 to 4 inches of compacted base plus 2 to 3 inches of top stone, calculated as separate layers.
Once I have a number, where do I actually order?
Match the row you picked. The crusher run / road base row points to processed gravel. The driveway gravel row points to driveway gravel. Crushed stone points to 3/4 inch crushed stone or #57 stone.
How thick should gravel be for a driveway that just takes everyday cars?
Plan on 3 to 4 inches of compacted processed gravel under 2 to 3 inches of driveway gravel. On dense till that holds water, don't go thinner.
Related calculators
That tonnage ships free.
Driveway gravel, #57, crusher run: priced by the ton, delivered across Massachusetts.
