How we calculate
Every number on this site comes from a short chain of steps. Here they are, in order.
1. Area
Typed shapes use standard geometry: rectangles, circles, triangles from three sides (Heron's formula), L-shapes, and rings. Satellite outlines are measured on the curved earth with Turf.js. Areas are added together and cut-outs subtracted. If cut-outs are larger than the area, the result is zero with a warning.
2. Volume
Area in square feet x depth in feet = cubic feet. Divide by 27 for cubic yards.
3. Adjustments
- Compaction: materials that pack down (crusher run, screenings, decomposed granite, paver base, compacted fill) are multiplied by a compaction factor, typically 1.15 to 1.2, so the finished depth matches what you measured.
- Settling: loose topsoil gets 10 percent extra because it settles after watering.
- Waste: a user-editable allowance, 5 percent by default, for spills, low spots, and what stays in the truck.
4. The Order Plan
Bags are rounded up to whole bags of each size. Bulk is rounded up to the supplier's increment (usually half a yard) and raised to the delivery minimum if the job is smaller. Weights are shown as a range (low, typical, high) because moisture changes them.
5. Bags versus bulk
Bags cost the bag price times the number of bags. Bulk costs the ordered yards times the price per yard, plus delivery. The break-even is the quantity where bulk stops costing more, worked out from your prices. The labor comparison counts bags to lift and wheelbarrow trips (about 4 cu ft a load for light material and 2.5 cu ft for heavy material).
6. The Haul Check
We compare the load's typical weight with your payload, and its volume with your bed level-full (inside length x width x side height, minus about 10 percent for wheel wells). Whichever ratio is higher sets the limit. Within 10 percent of either limit is “tight”; past it is “over”, with the number of trips and the amount per trip. Until you enter your own payload, we use the low end of the typical range for your vehicle type.
7. Excavation
Soil dug out of the ground takes up more room than it did in place. We multiply the in-place volume by a swell factor of 1.25 (editable, commonly 1.2 to 1.3), based on Caterpillar's earthwork tables and common estimating practice.
8. ZIP code guidance
Your ZIP is looked up in a local copy of the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone ZIP data (PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University). The grass region combines the zone with your state, because zone alone is not enough. This is our own interpretation, not the official USDA map.
Prices and price reports
Every default price is an example, labeled as one. If you choose to share what you paid, we store the material, the price, and the first three digits of your ZIP. Local medians are shown only after at least 5 real reports exist for an area. We never add sample or made-up reports.
Limits
These are planning estimates. Real weights vary by supplier and moisture; real payload is on your door-jamb sticker; real frost depth is in your local building code. When it matters, confirm with your supplier. Questions or corrections: hello@haulonce.com. See the material weights chart for every value we use.