Crushed Stone Calculator
Call three quarries and you'll get quotes on #57, crusher run, and 3/4 clean, all of them 'gravel' and none of them weighing the same. Density is the difference between ordering right and coming up half a ton short. Pick the stone you're actually buying, enter length, width, and depth, and you'll get tons at that stone's real weight, plus cubic yards, bag counts, and how many dump truck loads it adds up to.
"Gravel" is five products wearing one name
At the quarry counter, gravel splits into grades with numbers, and picking the wrong number is the most common self-inflicted wound in driveway building. Clean stone drains, stone-with-fines compacts. Every job wants one or the other, and almost no job wants both in the same layer. Pick your stone in the dropdown and the tonnage adjusts to that grade's real density instead of a one-size average.
The grades, decoded
| Grade | What it is | Density (t/yd) | Job |
|---|---|---|---|
| #57 limestone | Clean 3/4 - 1 in, no fines | 1.45 | Drainage, under slabs, driveway base |
| Crushed granite | Clean, angular, harder stone | 1.5 | Base and surface where limestone's soft |
| Crusher run (#411, ABC, road bond) | 3/4 in down to dust | 1.55 | Driveway top course, packs near-solid |
| #8 chip | Clean 3/8 in | 1.4 | Paver bedding option, top dressing |
Names vary by region: crusher run also answers to ABC, dense grade, QP, and road bond depending on which state's quarry you're calling. The size-plus-dust description is what to confirm on the phone.
The two-layer driveway, worked
The build that lasts: 4 inches of #57 down first for drainage, 3 inches of crusher run on top for the running surface. A 12 by 50 driveway (600 square feet): the #57 layer is 7.4 yards, 10.7 tons; the crusher run is 5.6 yards, 8.6 tons. Order them as separate drops a few days apart so you can compact the base before the top goes on. Two deliveries costs one extra fee and saves the whole surface from pumping mud in year two.
Tons, yards, and the truck
Quarries sell by the ton off a scale; your volume math produces yards. The bridge is density, which is the whole reason this tool has a stone dropdown. For hauling: a half-ton pickup legally carries about half a ton of stone (one scoop is usually 1 to 1.5 tons, more than most springs should take), a single-axle dump carries 5 to 7 tons, and a tandem 10 to 15. Past two pickup trips, delivery costs less than your shocks. The tons-per-yard guide goes deeper on the conversion.
Order checks
- Under concrete, use clean #57, never crusher run. Fines pump up into a pour and inspectors know to look.
- In French drains, washed stone only. Dust kills drains; the French drain calculator sizes the washed rock properly.
- Compact crusher run damp, in 2-to-3-inch lifts. It locks up close to concrete-hard when it's layered right.
- Ask the quarry for the delivered price at your tonnage. Per-ton prices drop at 10, 15, and 20-ton breaks, and sometimes the next break is cheaper total.
Common questions
Number 57 is clean 3/4-inch stone with no fines, so it drains, which is why it goes in French drains and under slabs. Crusher run is stone plus dust that compacts nearly solid, which is why it tops driveways. Drainage or hardness, pick per job.
1.4 to 1.55 depending on type. Clean stone sits lighter, crusher run heavier. The dropdown above applies the right figure so your ton order matches your volume.
A two-layer build wants about 4 inches of #57 as base and 2 to 3 inches of crusher run on top. For a 12 by 50 driveway that's roughly 11 tons of base and 7 of top. Run each layer through the tool separately.
Four inches of #57 is the standard under slabs. It drains, it screeds level, and it doesn't pump fines up into the pour. Skip crusher run under concrete unless your engineer says otherwise.
Estimates for planning. Verify against your supplier's units and your local building codes before ordering or building. For anything structural, follow your engineer or local code.