Dirt & Earthwork Calculator
Estimate excavation volume, loose hauled material, machine bucket loads, and dump truck or trailer loads.
Job inputs
Enter the excavation size, your machine bucket capacity, and the truck or trailer capacity.
Pricing an excavation or hauling job?
Use the quantity here, then add equipment time, operator labor, trucking, fuel, disposal, overhead and margin in Nails & Numbers contractor tools.
Explore contractor toolsEstimate dirt yards, bucket loads and truck loads
Earthwork involves more than measuring a hole. This calculator starts with bank volume from the excavation dimensions, then applies your swell assumption to estimate loose hauled material. It also uses the bucket and truck capacities you enter to estimate load counts.
Bank and loose volume
Length × width × depth ÷ 27 = bank cubic yards. Loose volume is bank volume multiplied by your entered swell factor.
Bucket and truck loads
Effective bucket and truck capacities are adjusted by the fill percentages you enter. Estimated loads are rounded up because a partial final load is still a load.
Volume is not legal payload
A truck may reach its weight limit before it reaches its rated body volume. Soil type, rock content and moisture can change weight substantially. Verify payload, axle and road limits before hauling.
Common dirt and excavation questions
What is soil swell?
Swell is the increase in material volume after soil is excavated and loosened. The amount varies by material and job conditions.
Why use a bucket fill percentage?
Machine buckets are not always filled to their rated struck or heaped capacity on every pass. The fill assumption lets the estimate reflect actual operation more closely.
Does this calculator estimate truck weight?
No. Truck-load estimates are volume based. Weight and legal payload must be checked separately.