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The in-situ (undisturbed) volume of soil to be cut, in m³.
This is the volume before excavation disturbs it — measured from the original ground survey.
The compacted volume needed to build up the fill areas, in m³.
This is the final, compacted design volume of the fill.
How the compacted fill volume compares with the bank volume it came from. Negative shrinks, positive bulks.
Common earth shrinks 10-15% when excavated and recompacted, because compaction packs the particles tighter than the ground had them. Rock and heavily over-consolidated clay do the opposite: broken up and placed back, they occupy MORE room than they did in situ, which is why earthworks tables publish swell factors alongside shrinkage ones. Take the figure from the geotechnical report for the material in question rather than from a general table.
Net earthwork balance
131 yd³
SURPLUS: approximately 131 yd³ of cut material will be left over after filling — plan for haul-off or on-site stockpiling.
- Cut volume as compacted fill
- 1,177.16 yd³
They open the calculator with your figures already in it
Slope Cut-and-Fill Earthwork Balance Calculator: 131 yd³ — shown in imperial, US market. The link sets both, so the result they see is the one on your screen.
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How this was calculated
Formula source(s)
- Standard earthwork balance: cut volume (bank/in-situ measure) converts to a smaller compacted fill volume via a shrinkage factor; comparing that to the required fill volume gives a net surplus (haul off-site) or deficit (import fill)
Inputs used
- Cut Volume (Bank Measure)
- 1000
- Required Fill Volume (Compacted)
- 800
- Shrinkage or Bulking (%)
- -10
Intermediate steps
- Cut volume as compacted fill
- 1,177.16 yd³
Confidence note: SURPLUS: approximately 131 yd³ of cut material will be left over after filling — plan for haul-off or on-site stockpiling.
What this calculation does not cover
- The balance assumes every cubic metre of cut becomes acceptable fill. Topsoil strip, root mat, made ground, soft spots and anything too wet or too contaminated to place yield spoil without yielding fill, and each also leaves a hole that has to be brought back up — so they hit the balance from both ends and neither effect is in this sum.
- The answer is in compacted measure. Neither muck away nor imported fill is transacted in that measure: convert through a swell factor to get the loose volume lorries actually carry, and through a bulk density to get the tonnage a weighbridge or tip charges on.
- One shrinkage figure is applied to the whole cut. It does not vary by stratum or by moisture content, and it does not move with the compaction specification — the same soil written to a higher percentage of a modified-effort maximum consumes more bank volume per unit placed. Drying, moisture conditioning and lime or cement treatment are not modelled at all.
- This is a volume balance, not a mass-haul plan. It carries no haul distances, phasing, sequencing, stockpile space or seasonal working windows, so a site that balances across the whole job can still need imported fill early and export later.
- This is not a geotechnical assessment or a design. It does not check settlement of the fill or of the ground beneath it, the stability or angle of the cut and fill slopes, or any temporary support the excavation needs — those come from the site investigation and the earthworks specification, and the extra fill that settlement consumes sits outside this calculation.
Estimated cost — your price
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 2026-09-02 · in the site-wide review of 2026-09-06 · v1.0.1
Regulatory standards & verification citations1
- Standard earthwork balance: cut volume (bank/in-situ measure) converts to a smaller compacted fill volume via a shrinkage factor; comparing that to the required fill volume gives a net surplus (haul off-site) or deficit (import fill)
Cite this page
Your workspace
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Tools and safety for this job
To excavate by machine. Generic types, no brands, no prices.
Protection this work requires
- Digging blind strikes gas, water and power every day: get the plans, scan with a cable avoidance tool, and hand-dig trial holes over anything you find.
Excavate by machine: Operating an excavator is a trained and, in most markets, formally certified activity, and hiring one does not include that training. Underground services must be traced before any machine dig. This list covers the tools, not the competence.
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Essential
Cable and pipe detector
Shovel and spade
Recommended
Spirit level
String line and pins
what each groundwork tool is for, and the spec that decides which to buy where one does.