How Many Yards Are in a Ton of Gravel?
By Jhon W · Published 8 October 2026
One ton of gravel is about 0.54 cubic yards once it is compacted in place, and about 0.65 to 0.71 cubic yards loose in the truck. The figures come from the Washington State Department of Transportation Design Manual.
There is no single answer, because a ton measures weight and a cubic yard measures volume. The number of yards in a ton depends on how much one cubic yard of that gravel weighs.
Cubic yards in one ton, by gravel type
| Material | Tons per cubic yard | Cubic yards per ton |
|---|---|---|
| Gravel base or crushed stone surfacing, compacted | 1.85 | 0.54 |
| Ballast (coarse stone), compacted | 1.95 | 0.51 |
| Gravel that is nearly all sand, compacted | 1.70 | 0.59 |
| Crushed stone top course, loose in the truck | 1.43 | 0.70 |
| Crushed stone base course, loose in the truck | 1.48 | 0.68 |
| Ballast (coarse stone), loose in the truck | 1.55 | 0.65 |
| Permeable ballast | 1.40 | 0.71 |
The tons per cubic yard are from the Washington State DOT Design Manual (M 22-01, September 2024, Exhibit 620-1). They are dry weights; the manual notes that wet material weighs more. The last column is 1 divided by the tons per cubic yard.
The formula
Cubic yards = tons ÷ tons per cubic yard.
Tons = cubic yards × tons per cubic yard.
- 5 tons of compacted gravel: 5 ÷ 1.85 = 2.70 cubic yards.
- 10 tons of compacted gravel: 10 ÷ 1.85 = 5.41 cubic yards.
- 5 tons of crushed stone loose in the truck: 5 ÷ 1.43 = 3.50 cubic yards.
- 3 cubic yards of compacted gravel: 3 × 1.85 = 5.55 tons.
The tons to yards calculator does this conversion both ways for gravel, sand and asphalt, with the weights above or your supplier's own figure.
Loose or compacted: which figure to use
Use the loose figure when the yards describe gravel in a pile or in the truck, for example when you want to know how much space a load will take. Use the compacted figure when the yards come from the finished layer: the length, width and depth of a driveway or a base after it is rolled.
The same ton of crushed stone fills about 0.70 cubic yards in the truck and about 0.54 cubic yards once it is compacted. That gap is why a quarry's tons and a plan's yards often do not seem to match.
How much area one ton covers
At 1.85 tons per cubic yard, one ton is 0.54 cubic yards, which is 14.6 cubic feet.
| Depth | Area covered by 1 ton (compacted) |
|---|---|
| 2 inches | 87.6 sq ft |
| 3 inches | 58.4 sq ft |
| 4 inches | 43.8 sq ft |
| 6 inches | 29.2 sq ft |
Pea gravel, sand and other materials
For pea gravel, Anchorage Sand & Gravel lists its 3/8 inch pea gravel at about 1.3 tons per cubic yard as an estimated stockpile weight, which is about 0.77 cubic yards per ton. For river rock, decomposed granite and other products, ask your supplier for the tons per cubic yard.
A ton here is a short ton of 2,000 pounds. A metric tonne is 1,000 kilograms, about 2,204.6 pounds, so a tonne of gravel fills about 10% more space than a short ton.
Frequently asked questions
- How many yards are in a ton of gravel?
- About 0.54 cubic yards for gravel compacted in place at 1.85 tons per cubic yard, and about 0.65 to 0.71 cubic yards for gravel and crushed stone loose in the truck, using the Washington State DOT Design Manual's dry weights.
- How many yards is 5 tons of gravel?
- About 2.70 cubic yards of compacted gravel at 1.85 tons per cubic yard, or about 3.50 cubic yards of crushed stone loose in the truck at 1.43 tons per cubic yard.
- How many yards is 10 tons of gravel?
- About 5.41 cubic yards at 1.85 tons per cubic yard (compacted), or about 6.99 cubic yards at 1.43 tons per cubic yard (loose crushed stone).
- How many tons are in a yard of gravel?
- 1.85 tons for gravel base compacted in place, and 1.43 to 1.55 tons for crushed stone and ballast loose in the truck, according to the Washington State DOT Design Manual.
- Is a yard of gravel the same as a ton?
- No. A cubic yard is a volume and a ton is a weight. A cubic yard of gravel weighs more than a ton, so one ton fills less than one cubic yard.