Compost Planning Guidelines

Want to add some compost to your yard, but need to know how much before you start shopping? Use our calculator to determine how much compost you need. It converts the area of your yard (length X width) and the depth of the compost needed (about ¼” deep across the area) into cubic yards of compost needed.

For your reference:

1 cubic ft of compost = 1 bag, typically.
13 bags = ½ cu yard of compost

Compost Calculator

Bags may also advertise a weight, usually about 36 pounds or a metric volume of 28 liters. Weight of compost varies if it bagged when drier, so measuring by volume is more accurate.

A general guideline is 10 bags will cover about 500 sq. ft., and 8 bags will cover 400 sq ft, which is also the likely number of bags you can easily place in a car trunk. Meanwhile, 13 bags = ½ cubic yard of compost, which is the minimum you can buy in bulk. This amount will cover 625 square feet of lawn at ¼” deep. If your lawn is about 1300-1400 sq. ft, you’ll need 1 cu yd.

Bagged prices of compost vary from about $4-$7. For turf, you don’t need to spend money on enriched blends. These can cost nearly $30 a bag and are meant for a raised bed garden, where enrichment is more needed and worthwhile.

To purchase in bulk, prices for a ½ yard to one yard are generally about $25 to $50, respectively, if you pick it up yourself. So if a ½ yard costs $25 in bulk, it is a much better bargain than 13 bags of compost, which will cost $52-$91 in bags - or more than double the bulk price!

Delivery of compost is usually a 1 yard minimum (if you only need ½ yd for your lawn, you can spread the rest over your landscaping or see if your neighbor will take the other half!). Prices for delivery vary more widely and start at around $120 for 1 yard and go up to over $300 if you order 7 yards (a full truck). That’s a lot of compost, but great for sharing with neighbors!