Material calculator

Crushed Limestone calculator

Enter your area and depth to get crushed limestone in tons, cubic yards, bulk bags and delivered cost. Crushed Limestone is placed at about 100 lb per cubic foot, or 1.35 tons per cubic yard.

Your project

inches

Crushed Limestone for driveways, farm lanes and compacted base is typically placed 4" deep.

Crews typically order 5-10% extra to cover compaction, spillage and uneven subgrade.

$/ton

Crushed Limestone required

8.4

US tons (incl. 5% waste)

Area
480 sq ft
Volume
6.22 cu yd
Volume (cubic feet)
168
Tons per cubic yard
1.35
Bulk bags (1 ton each)
9
Dump truck loads
1
Delivered material cost
$361

Limestone fines cement together when wet and compacted, giving a harder surface than granite at the cost of dust.

How much crushed limestone do you need?

Volume first, weight second. Multiply area in square feet by depth in feet, divide by 27 for cubic yards, then multiply by 1.35 to convert to tons — that is the placed density of crushed limestone at roughly 100 lb per cubic foot.

For driveways, farm lanes and compacted base, 4 inches is the standard depth. Going shallower to save on material is a false economy: thin layers rut, migrate and expose the subgrade within a season.

Limestone fines cement together when wet and compacted, giving a harder surface than granite at the cost of dust.

Ordering and delivery

Yards sell crushed limestone by the ton but stockpile it by the yard, so quote both numbers when you call. A standard tandem dump truck carries about 15 tons; anything under a ton usually comes in bulk bags at a significant premium per ton.

Delivered pricing runs $25 – $60 per ton depending on haul distance from the quarry. Freight, not the stone itself, is usually the larger half of that number.

Crushed Limestone coverage per ton

At 100 lb per cubic foot placed.

DepthCoverage per tonTons per 100 sq ftCu yd per 100 sq ft
1"240 sq ft0.420.31
2"120 sq ft0.830.62
3"80 sq ft1.250.93
4"60 sq ft1.671.23
6"40 sq ft2.51.85
12"20 sq ft53.7

Frequently asked questions

+How many tons of crushed limestone are in a cubic yard?

About 1.35 tons. Crushed Limestone weighs roughly 100 lb per cubic foot placed, and a cubic yard is 27 cubic feet, so 27 × 100 ÷ 2,000 = 1.35 tons.

+How much area does a ton of crushed limestone cover?

At 4 inches deep, one ton covers about 60 square feet. At 2 inches it covers roughly 120 square feet.

+How deep should crushed limestone be laid?

4 inches is standard for driveways, farm lanes and compacted base. Over soft or clay subgrade, add 2 inches and place a woven geotextile separator so the stone does not disappear into the soil.

+Should I order extra?

Yes — 5 to 10%. Spread depth is never perfectly uniform, the subgrade has low spots, and coming up half a ton short means paying a second delivery fee that often exceeds the value of the material.

+What does crushed limestone cost?

Delivered, $25 – $60 per ton in most US markets, versus $25 – $80 per ton across aggregates generally. Picking it up yourself saves the haul but rarely more than a few dollars a ton once fuel is counted.

+Do I need landscape fabric underneath?

Under decorative stone, yes — it slows weed growth and keeps the stone out of the soil. Under a compacted structural base, use a woven geotextile separator rather than a light weed fabric, which will tear during compaction.