Raised bed soil calculator
Find out how much soil you need to fill your raised beds, how to split it into a mix, and roughly what it will cost.
Soil mix
Equal parts by volume, from Mel Bartholomew's All New Square Foot Gardening. Light and weed-free, but vermiculite and peat add cost.
Total soil
32 cu ft
1.19 cubic yards
Bags needed
24
1.5 cu ft bags
Estimated cost
—
add a bag price above
Your Mel's Mix (square foot gardening) shopping list
Blended compost
10.7 cu ft · 0.4 yd³
8 bags
Peat moss or coco coir
10.7 cu ft · 0.4 yd³
8 bags
Coarse vermiculite
10.7 cu ft · 0.4 yd³
8 bags
New soil settles. Buy 10–20% extra or plan to top up after the first season. For large beds, bulk soil by the cubic yard is usually cheaper than bags.
Beds filled? Plan what goes in them
Smart Garden Planner tracks each bed's plantings, dates and harvests in pounds and ounces.
Amounts are estimates for rectangular beds. Bag sizes and prices vary by brand and store.