Asphalt Calculator
Enter the length, width and thickness of your driveway or path. You'll get tons of hot-mix asphalt, the way plants and pavers price it, plus the gravel base that goes underneath.
- Tested formulas
- Feet or metric
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2 What to buy
Updates as you type| Asphalt (hot mix) | 11 US tons · 9.98 metric tonnes |
|---|---|
| Weight used | 110 lb per square yard per inch of thickness |
| One ton covers | about 55 sq ft at this thickness |
| Gravel base (compacted volume) | 11.11 yd³ · about 15.6 tons at 1.4 tons per yard, before extra for compaction |
Asphalt is sold by the ton, and the weight per square yard changes a little with the mix. Ask your supplier or paver which figure they use and enter it above.
The base is compacted in layers, so it takes more loose stone than its finished depth. Ask your supplier how much extra to order for their stone.
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Quick answer
A 50 × 12 ft driveway (66.7 square yards) paved 3 inches thick needs about 11 tons of asphalt. The formula is square yards × inches × 110 lb ÷ 2,000. At 3 inches, one ton covers about 55 sq ft.
Asphalt for common driveway sizes
| Driveway | 2" thick | 2½" thick | 3" thick | 4" thick |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 × 10 ft | 2.4 t | 3.1 t | 3.7 t | 4.9 t |
| 30 × 10 ft | 3.7 t | 4.6 t | 5.5 t | 7.3 t |
| 40 × 12 ft | 5.9 t | 7.3 t | 8.8 t | 11.7 t |
| 50 × 12 ft | 7.3 t | 9.2 t | 11 t | 14.7 t |
| 60 × 12 ft | 8.8 t | 11 t | 13.2 t | 17.6 t |
| 20 × 20 ft | 4.9 t | 6.1 t | 7.3 t | 9.8 t |
| 24 × 24 ft | 7 t | 8.8 t | 10.6 t | 14.1 t |
US tons at 110 lb per square yard per inch. Use the calculator above for your exact size.
How to calculate tons of asphalt
Asphalt is sold by weight, so the job is turning area and thickness into tons. State highway departments do it in three steps:
- Find the area in square yards: length × width in feet, divided by 9.
- Multiply by the compacted thickness in inches.
- Multiply by the weight of one square yard one inch thick, about 110 lb, then divide by 2,000 for tons.
For a 50 × 12 ft driveway at 3 inches: 600 ÷ 9 = 66.7 square yards, × 3 × 110 = 22,000 lb, which is 11 tons.
Where the 110 comes from
Compacted hot-mix asphalt weighs about 145 lb per cubic foot. Nebraska's Department of Transportation lists its Superpave mixes at 145 to 148 lb per cubic foot. A square yard one inch thick is 0.75 cubic feet, so it weighs about 109 to 111 lb. Tennessee's DOT uses 106 to 115 lb depending on the mix. If your paver quotes a different figure, enter it in the calculator.
How thick should an asphalt driveway be?
Wisconsin DOT's standard detail for residential driveways calls for 2 to 3 inches of asphalt over 6 inches of dense-graded base, with a deeper base on clay soil. It also notes that the final thickness depends on how the driveway will be used and what it carries, so heavier use needs a thicker design. Your paver sets the final thickness.
| Thickness | Tons per 100 sq ft | One ton covers |
|---|---|---|
| 2" | 1.22 | 82 sq ft |
| 2.5" | 1.53 | 65 sq ft |
| 3" | 1.83 | 55 sq ft |
| 4" | 2.44 | 41 sq ft |
The gravel base
Under the asphalt goes a compacted layer of dense-graded stone, sometimes called crusher run or road base. The calculator shows its finished volume at your chosen depth and a weight at 1.4 tons per cubic yard, a typical figure for gravel. Compaction packs the stone down, so you'll need more loose stone than that. Your supplier can say how much extra their stone needs. For a gravel-only driveway, use the gravel calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How many tons of asphalt do I need for 1,000 sq ft?
At 2 inches thick, about 12.2 tons; at 3 inches, about 18.3 tons. That is 1,000 ÷ 9 square yards × inches × 110 lb ÷ 2,000.
How many square feet does a ton of asphalt cover?
About 82 sq ft at 2 inches thick, 55 sq ft at 3 inches and 41 sq ft at 4 inches, at 110 lb per square yard per inch.
How thick should an asphalt driveway be?
Wisconsin DOT's residential driveway standard uses 2 to 3 inches of asphalt over 6 inches of dense-graded base, with more base on clay soil. Heavier use calls for a thicker design.
How much does a cubic yard of asphalt weigh?
About 3,900 lb, nearly 2 tons, at 145 lb per cubic foot for compacted hot mix (Nebraska DOT lists 145 to 148).
Last reviewed 2026-10-25. See how we calculate for our sources and assumptions.