Landscaping & Garden
Landscaping calculators - mulch, gravel and pavers with volumes, tonnage and base materials.
A yard project lives or dies on bulk material, and bulk material is sold by volume, not area. Mulch, gravel and topsoil come by the cubic yard or the bag, and the number that actually sets your order is depth - spread the same load 2 inches deep instead of 3 and it covers half again as much ground. Measure the bed, pick a depth, and let the volume do the ordering.
From there the job splits into surfaces and structures. Pavers and patios are priced by the square foot, decks by the board and the joist span, fences by the linear foot - and each has its own calculator here. Two things quietly decide whether the finished yard works: getting enough pavers in the first order, and pitching every hard surface to drain away from the house. Size the quantity first, then run it through the cost tools to price the whole build.
Guides
Frequently asked questions
How much mulch or gravel do I need?
Work it out by volume: length × width × depth in the same units, then convert to cubic yards (divide cubic feet by 27). Depth is what people underestimate - 2–3 inches suits a mulch bed, 3–4 inches a gravel path. Bagged mulch covers only a couple of square feet at 2 inches, so past about six bags, bulk by the cubic yard gets cheaper fast. The calculator shows both.
How many pavers do I need per area?
Divide the area you're paving by the face area of one paver, then add 5–10% for cuts, breakage and the odd replacement. A common 4 × 8 inch paver runs about 4.5 per square foot laid tight. Edges, curves and herringbone patterns cut more, so lean toward 10% on anything but a plain grid. Get the count right in one order - pavers bought later rarely match the dye lot.
What slope do I need for drainage?
Aim for a fall of about 2% - roughly 1/4 inch per foot - running away from the house and any structure. That's steep enough to shed water without pooling and gentle enough to walk on and furnish. Patios, paths and the ground beside a foundation all want this minimum pitch. The drainage-slope calculator turns your run length into the exact drop to build in.
Deck or patio - which costs more?
A patio is usually cheaper per square foot: it sits on graded ground over a gravel base, so material and labor are lower. A deck is a built structure - footings, framing, joists sized to span, boards and railing - so it costs more, but it suits sloped or uneven ground where a patio would need heavy fill. Price both here: the patio and paver cost tools against the deck cost and joist-span tools.