Construction Calculator - Driveway and Sitework

Road Base Calculator

Estimate aggregate base tons for roads, pads, and compacted subbase layers.

Reviewed: August 26, 2026

Calculate Road Base

For the Road Base Calculator, enter length, width, depth, waste allowance, material density, and material price. It multiplies length, width, and installed depth, converts to cubic yards, applies allowance once, and converts volume to tons through the entered bulk density.

Gravel, river rock and sand arranged with measuring and installation tools

Formula used

Cubic yards = [length × width × (depth ÷ 12) ÷ 27] × (1 + waste ÷ 100); tons = cubic yards × density

Road Base Calculator measurement plan showing Length feet, Width feet, Depth inches

Worked road base example

Road Base Calculator example: 34.4 ft × 9.7 ft × (4 in ÷ 12) ÷ 27 = 4.12 yd³ before allowance. After 10% allowance, the order basis is 4.53 yd³, or 7.02 short tons at 1.55 tons/yd³.

Volume, density, and supplier units

Use the calculated volume to discuss truckloads and density with the quarry; layer placement and compaction should follow the project specification.

Field conditions that change tonnage

Moisture, gradation, loose-to-compacted change, soft spots, crown, and subgrade correction can alter delivered tons.

Questions specific to this calculation

Which bulk density belongs in the road base tons estimate?

Measure the compacted footprint and specified compacted depth, then use a supplier density for the exact gradation rather than solid-rock density.