How Much Is a Yard of Dirt? Cost and Weight for Fill and Topsoil
A cubic yard of dirt costs $5 to $25 for plain fill and $20 to $50 for screened topsoil in most US markets, plus a delivery fee of $50 to $150 that often costs more than the dirt. The same yard weighs 2,000 to 2,600 pounds depending on moisture and type, which is why your pickup can’t just go get it. The details, below.
Price per yard, by type
| Product | Per yard (material) | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Fill dirt | $5 – $25 | Subsoil, no organics; holds grade under structures |
| Screened topsoil | $20 – $50 | Sifted growing layer for lawns and beds |
| Garden blend / compost mix | $35 – $75 | Topsoil cut with compost for planting |
| Select / engineered fill | $15 – $40 | Spec’d material for pads and foundations |
Delivery is the equalizer: a $15 yard of fill with a $100 delivery fee is a $115 first yard. Order the whole job at once, because yard two through ten ride the same truck free.
What a yard of dirt weighs
Dry screened topsoil runs about 2,000 to 2,200 pounds a yard. Fill dirt runs 2,200, and damp clay can push past 2,600. Two practical consequences: a half-ton pickup is legally and mechanically done at about half a yard, and a 12-yard dump delivery is putting roughly 13 tons on your driveway, so point the driver at the street side of the curb if the slab matters.
How many yards you need
Length times width in feet, times depth in feet, divided by 27. A 20 by 20 low spot filled 6 inches deep is 7.4 yards; topping a 1,000-square-foot lawn with 2 inches of topsoil is 6.2. The calculators do this with waste and compaction built in:
Fill dirt calculator: yards, tons, truckloads →
Topsoil calculator: yards and bags for beds and lawns →
Fill or topsoil? Don’t swap them
Fill dirt has no organic matter, which sounds like a defect and is actually the point: nothing in it decomposes, so it compacts solid and stays where you put it. Topsoil is full of organic matter, which is why grass loves it and why it keeps settling for years if you bury it deep. The rule: fill for the bottom, topsoil for the top 4 to 6 inches, plants only in the topsoil.
The compaction catch on fill
Fill dirt loses 20 to 25% of its volume when compacted. If a hole needs 10 finished yards, order 12.5 loose. Skip that allowance and the “filled” hole reappears as a dip after the first heavy rain. The fill dirt calculator has a compaction toggle that does this arithmetic for you.
Buying smart
- Free fill exists. Excavators pay to dump clean dirt; local listings and “clean fill wanted” boards can zero out the material cost on big jobs. Inspect before accepting: no concrete, no debris, no stumps.
- Buy topsoil screened. Unscreened saves a few dollars and delivers rocks, roots, and clods you’ll rake out by hand.
- Ask what the yard’s “yard” is. Most loaders scoop an honest cubic yard, but a heaped bucket varies; a load that looks small probably is.
- For lawns, 2 inches of topsoil tilled into the existing grade beats 4 inches sitting on top of compacted clay.
How much does a yard of dirt cover?
One cubic yard spreads 324 square feet at 1 inch deep. Divide 324 by your depth in inches and that’s your coverage per yard:
| Spread depth | One yard covers | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| 1 in | 324 sq ft | Topdressing an existing lawn |
| 2 in | 162 sq ft | Prepping for seed or sod |
| 4 in | 81 sq ft | New beds, leveling low areas |
| 6 in | 54 sq ft | Raised beds, fill lifts |
How many yards of dirt do I need?
Length times width in feet, times depth in feet, divided by 27. A 30 by 15 foot lawn patch topped with 2 inches of soil: 30 x 15 x 0.167 = 75 cubic feet, which is 2.8 yards, so order 3. For fill that gets compacted, add 25% on top of that; the fill dirt calculator and topsoil calculator both do the whole chain with waste included.
Will a yard of dirt fit in a pickup truck?
Physically yes, legally and mechanically no. A yard of topsoil weighs about 2,200 pounds, and a half-ton pickup’s real payload is 1,000 to 1,500 pounds including you. The bed will hold the volume of a yard with room to spare, which is exactly how springs get flattened. Safe loads: half a yard of soil in a half-ton, a full yard in a heavy three-quarter-ton. Mulch is the exception, light enough to haul by the full yard in anything.
Quick answers
How much is a dump truck load of dirt? A tandem load of fill (10 to 14 yards) typically runs $150 to $400 delivered; the same load of screened topsoil runs $350 to $700. Per yard, big loads always beat small ones because delivery is the fixed cost.
How much does half a yard of dirt weigh? About 1,100 pounds for fill or dry topsoil, which is the practical ceiling for a half-ton pickup.
Is buying dirt in bags ever worth it? Only under about half a yard. Bagged topsoil runs $2 to $6 per 0.75 cubic foot bag, which is $70 to $200 per yard, several times the bulk price. Past a few bags, bulk delivery wins even with the fee.
What’s the cheapest way to fill a big low spot? Free clean fill from a local excavator, topped with a purchased layer of screened topsoil for the growing surface. Half the cost of doing the whole depth in topsoil, and the grass can’t tell the difference.