Clay Soil Cubic Yards to Tons Calculator

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Imperial · sales tax

Clay Soil volume (yd³)

The volume of clay soil in cubic yards.

About 1.5 short tons per cubic yard for clay; heavier than loam and highly sensitive to moisture.

Approximate weight

15 short tons

High confidence

About 1.5 short tons per cubic yard for clay; heavier than loam and highly sensitive to moisture. A planning figure, not a specification. Confirm the density with your supplier before ordering by weight.

Conversion factor applied: 1.5 short tons per yd³

Then change the inputs to see how far the answer moves.

Show calculation logic

How this was calculated

Formula source(s)

Typical bulk density used here: approximately 1.5 short tons per cubic yard
Density varies with moisture, grading and composition — the supplier's ticket weight governs

Inputs used

Clay Soil volume (yd³): 10

Intermediate steps

Conversion factor applied: 1.5 short tons per yd³

Final result15 short tons

Confidence note: About 1.5 short tons per cubic yard for clay; heavier than loam and highly sensitive to moisture. A planning figure, not a specification. Confirm the density with your supplier before ordering by weight.

What this calculation does not cover

Say which volume you measured. Clay in the ground and the same clay loose in a spoil heap are two different volumes of one material, and this page applies a single planning density to whichever number it is given — so the hole and the heap return different tonnages for the same dig. Settle which of the two you are working from before a load or a charge is planned on the answer.
An excavation is rarely all clay. Topsoil at the surface, a stone band, old fill or a softer horizon at the base each carry their own weight per cubic yard, and putting the whole excavation volume through one clay density weighs all of it as clay. Split the volume by layer where the difference is large enough to change a load count.
Treat this as a planning tonnage, not the figure a charge is settled on. Where haulage or disposal is priced by weight the weighbridge ticket governs; where it is sold as a fixed weight allowance per load, this is the number to test that allowance against. For excavated clay the rate per ton also turns on how the material is classified, which no density conversion can tell you.

Estimated cost — your price

Price per short ton ($)

This site holds no price list for this material — local prices vary too much to publish honestly. Enter your supplier's price and the result is costed with it.

Computed in your browser — nothing you enter is uploaded. Presented in US customary units and US trade terminology. Where a formula follows a published standard, that standard and its edition are cited beside it on this page; where none governs, the page says so. Local amendments override model codes — verify against the code in force where you build.

Sources checked 2026-08-26 · in the site-wide review of 2026-09-06 · v1.0.0

Regulatory standards & verification citations2

Typical bulk density used here: approximately 1.5 short tons per cubic yard
Density varies with moisture, grading and composition — the supplier's ticket weight governs

Cite this page

Your workspace

Most jobs need more than one number. Add the calculators you need next and they open right here, underneath this one — your figures stay on screen and nothing is lost to a page change.

Clay is the excavated material most likely to complicate a job, and its weight per cubic yard is high enough to matter for haulage. What makes clay difficult is not density but behaviour: it holds water, shrinks and swells with the seasons, and becomes unworkable when wet. Excavated clay also bulks substantially, so the spoil from a trench occupies noticeably more space than the hole it came from — which is why disposal volumes routinely exceed the excavation figure.

Now that you have the number

These guides cover the work this quantity is for — the first ones run this calculator inside the section that raises the question.

Excavating and Containing Japanese Knotweed on a Siteuses this calculator

A knotweed dig is measured from inspection pits, not off a drawing — and land, not price, decides between a lined cell, a cap and a licensed gate.

Getting Excavated Spoil Off a Small Siteuses this calculator

A rear extension makes four kinds of spoil, not one heap — and each carries its own density, its own vehicle and its own answer on contamination.

Setting Foundation Depth Near Trees on Shrinkable Clayuses this calculator

On shrinkable clay the tree sets the dig, not the load — how species, distance and plasticity index become a trench depth, and what goes on its faces.

Clay Soil volume (yd³)	Approximate weight (short tons)
1	1.5
2	3
5	7.5
10	15
20	30
50	75
100	150

Clay Soil volume (yd³)

Approximate weight (short tons)

1.5

7.5

100

150

Frequently asked questions

Why does clay cause foundation problems?

Because it shrinks as it dries and swells as it wets, and that seasonal movement acts on whatever sits in or on it. It is why foundation depths in clay areas are greater and why nearby trees are a recognised complication.

Can I reuse excavated clay as backfill?

Rarely a good idea around structures or drainage. It compacts poorly, holds water against what it surrounds, and continues moving seasonally. Granular fill is specified instead for good reason.

Why is clay so hard to dig when dry?

Because it sets extremely hard as it loses moisture, and equally becomes a sticky mass when saturated. There is a relatively narrow moisture window in which clay works easily.