Figure out how much concrete a slab, footing, or set of post holes needs — in cubic feet, cubic yards, and 40, 60, or 80 lb bags — plus an estimated ready-mix cost.
4 in is standard for patios, walkways, and driveways.
Concrete needed
1.23 cu yd
33.3 cubic feet
Premix bags needed
Order 5–10% extra for spillage, uneven subgrade, and over-excavation. Ready-mix delivery often carries a short-load fee under 1 cubic yard.
Every concrete estimate starts the same way: find the volume in cubic feet, then divide by 27 to get cubic yards (1 cubic yard = 27 cubic feet). The only thing that changes between a slab, a footing, and a post hole is the shape you measure.
Always order a little extra — 5 to 10% — to cover spillage, an uneven subgrade, and holes that end up wider than planned. Bag yields and the 27-cu-ft-per-yard figure here follow the published data from Quikrete and Sakrete.
Bagged premix wins for small jobs. An 80 lb bag yields about 0.60 cu ft, a 60 lb bag about 0.45 cu ft, and a 40 lb bag about 0.30 cu ft — so a full cubic yard is roughly 45 × 80 lb, 60 × 60 lb, or 90 × 40 lb bags. Once a job crosses about a half-yard, mixing that many bags by hand stops being worth it. Delivered ready-mix commonly runs about $125–$165 per cubic yard in 2026, but small orders under 1 cubic yard often add a short-load fee. Use the cost field in the calculator with your local quote to compare.
For a fence, size each hole to about three times the post width and one-third to one-half the post's above-ground height in depth. A common 10 in diameter, 24 in deep hole holds about 1.1 cu ft, so a run of posts adds up fast. Once you know the concrete, size the rails and pickets with the fence material calculator. Planning this as paid work? See how to start a handyman business and price the job with the job pricing calculator.
One cubic yard of concrete equals 27 cubic feet. Since an 80 lb bag of premix yields about 0.60 cu ft, a 60 lb bag about 0.45 cu ft, and a 40 lb bag about 0.30 cu ft, a full yard takes roughly 45 × 80 lb bags, 60 × 60 lb bags, or 90 × 40 lb bags. That is a lot of mixing, so anything over about a half-yard is usually cheaper and faster to order as ready-mix.
In 2026, delivered ready-mix concrete commonly runs about $125–$165 per cubic yard, before add-ons. Prices vary by region, mix strength (PSI), and fuel, and small orders under 1 cubic yard often carry a short-load or minimum-delivery fee of $50–$150. Enter your local price in the calculator to get a live cost estimate.
Material cost for ready-mix is typically $125–$165 per cubic yard delivered in 2026. Bagged premix works out higher per yard once you buy the ~45–90 bags a yard requires, but it wins for small jobs where a delivery minimum would apply. The calculator multiplies your cubic yards by whatever price per yard you enter.
An 80 lb bag of concrete premix yields about 0.60 cubic feet of set concrete. So for a 4 in thick slab it covers roughly 1.8 square feet, and it takes about 45 bags to fill one cubic yard. A 60 lb bag yields about 0.45 cu ft and a 40 lb bag about 0.30 cu ft.
Concrete per hole equals π × (radius in feet)² × depth in feet, where radius is half the hole diameter. For example, a 10 in diameter hole 24 in deep holds about 1.1 cu ft, so four of them need roughly 4.4 cu ft — about eight 80 lb bags. Set the diameter, depth, and post count in the calculator to size the whole job.
Estimate the concrete here, then run the job in Fieldtics — quoting, scheduling, and invoicing in one free app. The free tier covers unlimited clients, job scheduling, a customer CRM, and the mobile app with no credit card. The $29/mo Professional tier adds quotes, invoicing, online payments, and team scheduling.