Measure rooms, lots and containers in whatever units you have and get square feet, square yards, acres, cubic feet, cubic yards, gallons and metric equivalents.
Area, length and volume: which one do you need?
Most materials are priced by one of three measurements. Work out which one your supplier uses before you measure.
| Measurement | Used for | Calculator |
|---|---|---|
| Square feet | Flooring, tile, paint, sod, roofing, decking | Square footage |
| Square yards | Carpet, artificial turf, some paving bids | Square yard |
| Linear feet | Trim, fencing, edging, lumber, gutters | Linear feet |
| Cubic yards | Concrete, gravel, soil, mulch | Cubic yard |
| Cubic feet | Bagged products, storage, small fills | Cubic feet |
| Tons | Stone, sand and aggregate from a quarry | Cubic yards to tons |
Quick conversions
- 1 square yard = 9 square feet
- 1 cubic yard = 27 cubic feet
- A 10 × 10 ft area at 3 in deep = 25 cubic feet, about 0.93 cubic yards
- Depth in inches ÷ 12 = depth in feet
For a step-by-step walkthrough with examples, read how to calculate cubic yards.
Measuring irregular spaces
Break an L-shaped room or curved bed into rectangles, triangles and circles, calculate each one, and add them together. A circle’s area is 3.14 × radius²; a triangle’s is half the base times the height. Add 5–10% for cuts and waste on flooring and 10% on bulk materials.