Excavation Calculator
Box volume for a trench or pad: length times width times depth, then multiplied by 1 plus waste or swell percent. Output is ft³, yd³, and m³. Optional tons if you type density. Estimate only, not a cut-and-fill design.
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How to estimate excavation volume
- Enter length, width, and depth of the trench or pad. Each dimension must be greater than 0.
- Pick a unit for each edge. Depth can stay in feet while a pour page might keep depth in inches.
- Enter waste or swell from 0 to 50 percent. Swell is extra haul volume after the dirt leaves the hole.
- Optional: type density in lb/ft³ for tons. Confirm with a surveyor. This is not cut-and-fill design.
Excavation box volume
Trench or pad with optional swell, not a digital terrain model
| In-place volume | L × W × D after converting each edge to feet |
|---|---|
| Waste / swell | Multiply by 1 + percent / 100, 0 to 50% |
| Cubic yard | 27 cubic feet |
| Tons | ft³ × density (lb/ft³) / 2000 when density is set |
| Default sketch | 20 ft by 3 ft by 4 ft trench |
| Advice | Estimate only. Not cut-and-fill design or code approval. |
What this excavation page estimates
The hole is a rectangular box. That matches a straight trench or a simple pad, not a battered pit or a contour cut. Swell percent enlarges the hauled volume after soil loosens. Bank volume without swell is the same box at 0%. Pour volume for a slab is the concrete calculator, which can include bags. This page does not size shoring.
How trench volume is computed
Each edge converts to feet (inches / 12, yards × 3, meters / 0.3048, centimeters / 30.48). Volume ft³ = length × width × depth × (1 + waste/100). Cubic yards divide by 27. Cubic meters multiply ft³ by 0.028316846592. Optional tons = ft³ × density / 2000. Waste stays from 0 to 50.
Bank, swell, and related pours
Bank cubic yards are in-place dirt. Loose cubic yards after swell are what a truck sees. Shrink when compacting fill is a different percent you would apply as a negative only by lowering waste, which this form does not allow below 0. A DTM cut-and-fill from two surfaces needs survey software.
Use cases
A utility trench takeoff, a rectangular footing hole, or a homework box. Not a slope-stability check and not a permit.
Limits
Box geometry only. No benches, no batter, no water table. Not structural design or code approval. CZNull does not receive the sizes.