Asphalt Tonnage Calculator

How many tons of asphalt do I need?

This asphalt tonnage calculator turns an area and a thickness into tons of hot mix: square feet × (inches ÷ 12) gives cubic feet, × 145 lb gives pounds, and ÷ 2,000 gives tons. It defaults to a 2 inch layer, which suits overlays and resurfacing, where a fresh course goes on top of pavement that is already there.

Tick the waste box to add 10%. The cost line multiplies tons by the price per ton you enter.

Why tonnage, not cubic yards

Asphalt plants weigh every truck on a scale and bill by the ton. Paving bids, though, are often written per square yard. Tonnage is the bridge between the two: once you know the tons a job needs, you can check whether a per-yard price matches what the plant charges per ton.

The 145 lb per cubic foot density is a typical compacted value for dense-graded hot mix. A cubic yard of compacted asphalt is 27 × 145 = 3,915 lb, or about 1.96 tons.

Worked examples

1. Overlay strip: 50 ft × 10 ft at 2 in, $120 per ton

• Area: 50 × 10 = 500 sq ft
• Cubic feet: 500 × (2 ÷ 12) = 83.3 ft³
• Pounds: 83.3 × 145 = 12,083 lb
• Tons: 6.04 tons, $725.00
• With 10% extra: 6.65 tons, $797.50

2. Lane resurfacing: 60 ft × 10 ft at 1.5 in, $120 per ton

• Area: 600 sq ft
• Cubic feet: 600 × 0.125 = 75 ft³
• Tons: 75 × 145 ÷ 2,000 = 5.44 tons
• With 10% extra: 5.98 tons, $717.75

3. Parking-lot patch: 24 ft × 24 ft at 2 in

• Cubic feet: 576 × 0.167 = 96 ft³
• Tons: 6.96 tons, or 7.66 tons with the waste box ticked

Tons per 1,000 square feet

Compacted thickness	Tons per 1,000 sq ft	Sq yd per ton
1 in	6.04	18.4
1.5 in	9.06	12.3
2 in	12.08	9.2
2.5 in	15.10	7.4
3 in	18.13	6.1
4 in	24.17	4.6

Use this table for a quick sanity check on a bid. A 2 inch overlay on 5,000 sq ft should land near 5 × 12.08 = 60.4 tons before waste.

Counting truckloads

Divide your tons by the load size your hauler gives you and round up. A 60 ton job with 14 ton loads is 60 ÷ 14 = 4.3, so plan for 5 trucks. The paving crew wants loads to arrive steadily, so schedule them close together.

How to measure an overlay or patch

• Overlay: measure the full surface you are covering. Include aprons and turnouts as separate rectangles.
• Patch: measure the saw-cut outline, not the visible crack. Crews usually cut back to solid pavement, which is often 1 ft beyond the damage on each side.
• Depth: enter the compacted thickness. On an overlay, the new course also has to match curbs, drains, and garage slabs, so check those heights first.
• Uneven surfaces: ruts and dips need extra mix to level. Add a leveling allowance on top of the 10% box if the old pavement is badly worn.

Common mistakes

• Skipping the tack coat. A new layer bonds poorly to old asphalt without a sprayed tack coat. Estimate it with the tack coat calculator.
• Ordering hot mix for tiny repairs. Under about half a ton, bagged cold patch is usually more practical, since plants often have minimum loads.
• Overlaying failed pavement. Alligator cracking and soft spots usually mean the base has failed. A new top layer will crack in the same pattern within a few seasons.
• Forgetting loose-to-compacted loss. Crews spread mix about a quarter thicker than the finished depth. The tonnage is the same, but don’t measure a fresh, unrolled mat and think it was overbuilt.

For whole-driveway jobs, use the asphalt calculator. For resurfacing that sits on an existing surface, the asphalt overlay calculator is set up for thin courses.