How to use the yard of concrete cost calculator
- 1
Get a real quote
Contact a supplier with your mix requirement, your quantity, your location, and your date. A quote for your job is the only price worth budgeting against, and it is usually quick to obtain.
- 2
Separate the material rate from the fees
Ask what the per-cubic-yard rate is and what additional charges apply. Fixed charges behave differently from the material rate and need to be handled separately.
- 3
Work out your volume in cubic yards
Use your own take-off or the concrete calculator. Bring the figure in cubic yards, since that is the unit the quote is in.
- 4
Enter the numbers above
Put your cubic yards, your quoted rate, and each fee into the calculator to get the material subtotal, the fees, and the delivered total.
- 5
Check the effective rate per yard
Divide the total by the volume to see what you are really paying per cubic yard once fees are included. That is the number to compare between suppliers.
Formula
Delivered total = (cubic yards x your quoted rate) + delivery + other fees
The effective rate per cubic yard is the delivered total divided by the cubic yards, which is always higher than the quoted rate when fixed fees apply.
Worked example
Comparing the effective rate on 1, 5, and 10 cubic yards at a quoted $165 per cubic yard with a $95 delivery fee
- 1One cubic yard: 1 x $165 = $165, plus $95 = $260, an effective $260 per cubic yard.
- 2Five cubic yards: 5 x $165 = $825, plus $95 = $920, an effective $184 per cubic yard.
- 3Ten cubic yards: 10 x $165 = $1,650, plus $95 = $1,745, an effective $174.50 per cubic yard.
- 4The quoted rate never changed. Only the share of the fixed fee did.
The same quoted price produces effective rates from $260 down to $174.50 per cubic yard depending on volume. The $165 and $95 figures are entered for this example, not published rates.
Worked examples
What one cubic yard of concrete actually covers
Spreading exactly one cubic yard at different thicknesses
- 1One cubic yard is 27 cubic feet.
- 2At 4 inches: 27 / (4/12) = 81 square feet.
- 3At 6 inches: 27 / (6/12) = 54 square feet.
- 4At 2 inches: 27 / (2/12) = 162 square feet.
The same cubic yard covers 162 square feet at 2 inches and only 27 square feet at 12 inches. Coverage is entirely a function of thickness.
What a yard of concrete means
When a supplier or a contractor says a yard of concrete, they mean a cubic yard: a volume equal to a cube three feet on each side. That is exactly 27 cubic feet, and exactly 46,656 cubic inches. It is a volume, not a weight and not an area.
The confusion that sometimes arises is with square yards. A square yard is an area of nine square feet, and it has no fixed relationship to a cubic yard because the link between them is the thickness. One cubic yard spread an inch thick covers 324 square feet; spread a foot thick it covers 27.
This is why coverage questions cannot be answered without a thickness. One cubic yard covers 81 square feet at 4 inches, 54 square feet at 6 inches, and 27 square feet at 12 inches. If you want the arithmetic behind that, see how to calculate cubic yards.
What makes the price vary
Mix design is the largest single factor under your control. Different specified strengths, different aggregates, and additives such as fiber, accelerators, or air entrainment all change what goes into the truck and therefore what it costs. A quote is only meaningful against a stated mix.
Quantity matters through the fees rather than the material rate. Suppliers commonly apply charges related to small loads, and a fixed delivery charge is spread across whatever volume you order, so the effective rate per yard falls as the order grows even when the quoted rate does not move.
Location and timing account for much of the rest. Concrete has a limited working time, so it cannot travel far, which makes distance from the batch plant a real constraint rather than just a freight cost. Demand is seasonal in most regions, and scheduling outside normal hours often carries its own charge.
None of these are things a calculator can predict, which is why the fields above are empty until you fill them in.
How to calculate a project cost from a quoted rate
Start with the volume in cubic yards, since that is the unit the quote uses. Multiply by the quoted rate to get the material subtotal, then add each fixed charge separately.
Keep the fees separate rather than folding them into an average. The worked example above shows why: with an identical quoted rate of $165 and an identical $95 fee, the effective cost ranged from $260 per cubic yard on a single yard down to $174.50 on ten. Averaging hides that.
Then divide the delivered total by the volume to get your effective rate. That figure, not the headline quote, is what should be compared between suppliers, and it is the one to carry into a wider project budget.
Ready-mix and bagged concrete in cost terms
The two supply routes have different cost structures, which is why neither is universally cheaper. This compares how the money behaves, not which you should choose.
| Factor | Ready-mix | Bagged |
|---|---|---|
| Priced by | The cubic yard | The bag, converted through the bag yield |
| Fixed charges | Usually a delivery fee, sometimes others | Usually none, or a delivery charge on a large order |
| Effect of volume | Effective rate per yard falls as the order grows | Rate per bag is roughly flat, so cost scales linearly |
| Labor | Arrives mixed and is placed directly | Mixing is your time and effort, which grows with the count |
| Where it tends to suit | Larger pours where the fee is spread thin | Small pours where a delivery fee would dominate |
Common mistakes
How concrete budgets go wrong:
- Budgeting from a price found online rather than a quote for your mix, quantity, and location.
- Comparing quoted per-yard rates without including each supplier's fees.
- Confusing a cubic yard with a square yard.
- Asking what a yard covers without specifying a thickness.
- Assuming the effective rate on a large order applies to a small one.
- Treating the concrete material total as the project budget, leaving out formwork, reinforcement, base, labor, and finishing.
- Getting a quote for one mix and ordering another.
What a cubic yard of concrete covers by thickness
Coverage in square feet for a given volume at a given thickness. The first row answers how far one cubic yard goes.
| Cubic yards | 2 in | 3 in | 4 in | 5 in | 6 in | 8 in | 12 in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 162 sq ft | 108 sq ft | 81 sq ft | 64.8 sq ft | 54 sq ft | 40.5 sq ft | 27 sq ft |
| 2 | 324 sq ft | 216 sq ft | 162 sq ft | 129.6 sq ft | 108 sq ft | 81 sq ft | 54 sq ft |
| 3 | 486 sq ft | 324 sq ft | 243 sq ft | 194.4 sq ft | 162 sq ft | 121.5 sq ft | 81 sq ft |
| 5 | 810 sq ft | 540 sq ft | 405 sq ft | 324 sq ft | 270 sq ft | 202.5 sq ft | 135 sq ft |
Material subtotal arithmetic by entered price and volume
A multiplication grid showing what a given volume costs at a given rate. These prices are arithmetic examples spanning a range, not market rates or published averages. Use your own quoted price, and add fees on top.
| Price you enter | 1 cu yd | 2 cu yd | 5 cu yd | 10 cu yd | 15 cu yd | 20 cu yd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $120 per cu yd | $120 | $240 | $600 | $1,200 | $1,800 | $2,400 |
| $140 per cu yd | $140 | $280 | $700 | $1,400 | $2,100 | $2,800 |
| $160 per cu yd | $160 | $320 | $800 | $1,600 | $2,400 | $3,200 |
| $180 per cu yd | $180 | $360 | $900 | $1,800 | $2,700 | $3,600 |
| $200 per cu yd | $200 | $400 | $1,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 | $4,000 |
Frequently asked questions
- How much is a yard of concrete?
- It depends on your supplier, the mix, the quantity, and the fees that apply, so YardCalc does not publish a figure. Concrete is batched locally and priced locally, and a national average would be wrong for most specific jobs. Get a quote for your mix and quantity, then enter it above.
- How many cubic feet are in a yard of concrete?
- Exactly 27. A cubic yard is a cube three feet on each side, so 3 x 3 x 3 equals 27 cubic feet. It also equals exactly 46,656 cubic inches.
- How much area does a yard of concrete cover?
- It depends on the thickness. One cubic yard covers 162 square feet at 2 inches, 108 at 3 inches, 81 at 4 inches, 54 at 6 inches, and 27 at 12 inches.
- Why does concrete cost more per yard on a small order?
- Because fixed charges do not shrink with the order. A delivery fee spread across one cubic yard adds its full value to that yard, while the same fee across ten yards adds a tenth as much each. The quoted rate can be identical and the effective rate very different.
- Is a cubic yard the same as a square yard?
- No. A cubic yard is a volume of 27 cubic feet. A square yard is an area of nine square feet. They are related only through a thickness, which is why coverage questions always need one.
- What should I ask a supplier for?
- Ask for the rate per cubic yard for your specified mix at your quantity and location, then ask what additional charges apply and how partial loads are handled. Those answers are what the fields above are designed to take.
This page publishes no concrete price. The calculator multiplies a volume you supply by a rate you supply and adds fees you supply, and the tables are labeled arithmetic examples rather than market data. Concrete calculations estimate material quantity from geometry and user-entered values. Confirm mix design, thickness, reinforcement, code requirements, bag yield, delivery, and final order quantity with the appropriate supplier or professional.
Results are planning estimates. Last reviewed 2026-07-28.