Sand Calculator: Cubic Yards, Tons and Bags of Sand

How to use the sand calculator

1. Pick the use. “Sandbox / play sand” starts at 6 in deep, “Leveling bed” at 1 in and “Compacted fill or base” at 4 in. Picking a use only sets a starting depth, and you can change it.
2. Enter the shape. Use a rectangle, a circle (round sandboxes and fire-pit pads) or the area in square feet if you have already added up an irregular space.
3. Enter the depth. For fill, this is the depth after compaction, and the calculator works out how much extra loose sand that takes.
4. Wet or dry. Sand in a yard pile is usually damp. Turn on “wet” to see the heavier delivered weight. The volume doesn’t change.

The main result is the loose volume to order, shown in cubic yards and cubic feet. You also get the weight and the number of 0.5 cu ft (50 lb) bags.

How much sand do I need? The formula

The weights come from a regional planning commission’s material chart (TRORC, Vermont), which lists dry sand at 2,750 lb and wet sand at 3,300 lb per cubic yard. Compacted sand is denser still. WSDOT’s estimating tables say the compacted weight of base material approaches 3,400 lb per cubic yard (1.70 tons) when it is essentially all sand. 3,400 ÷ 2,750 is about 1.24, so every cubic yard of compacted sand fill takes about 1.24 loose yards from the pile. The calculator uses that ratio when you pick fill.

Bagged sand is lighter to handle but much more expensive per yard. QUIKRETE’s 50 lb bags of play sand hold about ½ cu ft, which works out to 54 bags per cubic yard.

Worked examples

6 × 6 ft sandbox, 6 in deep

36 sq ft × 6 ÷ 12 = 18 cu ft, or 0.67 cubic yards. That is 36 bags of 0.5 cu ft, and QUIKRETE’s own play-box chart gives the same 36 bags for a 6 × 6 box at 6 in. With 5% extra it is 38 bags, a little under a ton of dry sand.

Round sandbox, 8 ft across, 6 in deep

Area = π × 4² = 50.3 sq ft. Volume = 25.1 cu ft, or 0.93 cubic yards, which is 51 bags. At almost a cubic yard, one scoop of bulk play sand from a landscape yard is usually cheaper than 51 bags. Ask whether it is washed play sand, though.

Leveling bed under a 10 × 10 ft area, 1 in

100 sq ft × 1 ÷ 12 = 8.3 cu ft, about 0.31 cubic yards or 17 bags. If this bed is going under a paver patio, use the paver calculator instead. It counts the pavers, the compacted gravel base, this bedding sand and the joint sand together.

Compacted sand fill, 20 × 10 ft, 4 in

200 × 4 ÷ 12 = 66.7 cu ft = 2.47 compacted cubic yards. × 1.24 = 3.05 loose yards to order, about 4.2 tons dry. Compact it in thin layers, dampening each one, so it actually reaches that density.

Which sand for which job

• Play sand is washed, dried and screened fine. QUIKRETE sells it for play boxes, building and molding, and use under swing sets. Dampening it makes it pack better and keeps the dust down.
• Concrete or all-purpose sand is coarser, meeting ASTM C33. QUIKRETE’s all-purpose sand is sold for use in concrete, as underlayment for brick pavers and for traction on ice. Concrete sand is also the right bedding sand under pavers.
• Fill sand is the cheapest bulk grade. It is used to raise grade, backfill around pipes or under slabs, or build a pad. It may contain fines, which is fine for fill but not for play.
• Masonry sand is fine and uniform, made for mortar. It is a poor choice for a paver bed.

Need stone instead of sand for a base or a driveway? The gravel calculator covers crushed stone, pea gravel and base by the ton. For planting beds, use the topsoil calculator.

Sand under swings and play equipment

Sand is one of the loose-fill surfaces listed in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Handbook. For loose fill that hasn’t been impact-tested, the handbook’s table gives sand a minimum of 12 in when installed and 9 in once compressed, which it rates as protecting falls from up to 4 ft. That is less than the same depth of pea gravel (5 ft) or wood chips (10 ft). The handbook also notes that loose fill compresses at least 25% with use and weather, which is why the installed depth is deeper. It says never to let loose fill drop below 9 in.

For a backyard swing set on a 20 × 16 ft area at 12 in installed, that is 320 cu ft, or 11.9 cubic yards, about 16 tons of dry sand. At that depth you need a border to hold the sand in. If the equipment is taller than 4 ft, the handbook’s table points to other materials.

Sources & assumptions

How this calculator gets its numbers. Full method: our methodology.

• Volume = area × depth; 27 cu ft = 1 cubic yard. Circles use π × radius².
• Loose weights: dry sand 2,750 lb per cubic yard (1.375 tons), wet sand 3,300 lb (1.65 tons). Your supplier's figure is better.
• Compacted fill: compacted sand is taken as about 3,400 lb per cubic yard, so the loose volume to order is the compacted volume × 3,400 ÷ 2,750 ≈ 1.24.
• Bags hold about 0.5 cu ft (50 lb). Bag counts are rounded up. The default 5% extra is a CalcTheJob allowance for spillage and uneven ground.
• Playground depths are quoted from the CPSC handbook for non-impact-tested sand; this calculator does not certify a safety surface.

Sources

1. Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission (Vermont), Material Weight: Pounds per Cubic Yard. Dry sand 2,750 lb/yd³; wet sand 3,300 lb/yd³.
2. Washington State Department of Transportation, Design Manual M 22-01, Chapter 620, Exhibit 620-1 (Unit Dry Weight – Gravel Base and Surfacing). Gravel base compacted weight 3,400–3,800 lb/cy; the factor approaches 3,400 lb/cy (1.70 T/cy) for material that is essentially all sand.
3. QUIKRETE, Play Sand (No. 1113) tear pad with play-box calculator. 50 lb bag contains approx. ½ cu ft; for play boxes and under swing sets; bags needed by box size and depth (e.g. 6 × 6 ft at 6 in = 36 bags).
4. QUIKRETE, Sand & Gravel Products data sheet. All-Purpose Sand meets ASTM C33 and is sold for concrete, underlayment for brick pavers and traction; Premium Play Sand is washed and screened for sandboxes.
5. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Public Playground Safety Handbook (2025). Table 2: sand 12 in installed / 9 in compressed protects to a 4 ft critical height; loose fill compresses at least 25%; never maintain less than 9 in.

Last reviewed October 25, 2026. Product figures vary by brand; the label on what you buy wins.