Sand calculator in cft, brass, tonnes and cubic yards
This sand calculator works out how much sand to order and what it weighs. Choose the job — filling a plinth or trench, a bedding layer under pavers, wall plaster, brickwork mortar or concrete — and enter the size. It gives the sand in cubic metres, cubic feet (cft), brass, tonnes, cubic yards and US tons, the number of truck or trolley loads, and the cost if you add a price.
For filling and paver bedding the sand is simply area × depth plus an allowance for compaction. For plaster, mortar and concrete it is the sand share of the mix, worked out by the same nominal-mix method as the cement calculator, so you also see the cement bags that go with it.
How to use the Sand Calculator
- Choose metric or imperial units and the job the sand is for.
- Enter the length and width with the depth or thickness, or the area. For filling and concrete you can type a known volume instead.
- Check the extra allowance: 10 % covers compaction and spillage on fill and bedding; plaster uses 20 % for uneven walls.
- For plaster, brickwork or concrete pick the mix ratio — the sand is that share of the dry volume.
- Set the sand density and how much one truck or trolley holds, add a price per m³, cft, brass or tonne if you like, and copy the summary.
Sand Calculator features
Five jobs
Filling, paver bedding, plaster, brick mortar and concrete, each with typical depths and mixes that you can change.
Indian and US units
m³, cft and brass for Indian suppliers; cubic yards, pounds and US tons for American ones; tonnes for everyone.
Weight from density
Volume × bulk density, 1,600 kg/m³ (100 lb/ft³) by default and editable for wet or coarse sand.
Truckloads and cost
Loads from a capacity in cft, brass, m³, yd³ or tonnes, and cost per any of those units.
Sand units: cft, brass, m³ and tonnes
A brass is 100 cubic feet, the unit sand and aggregate are sold in across much of India. Dry loose sand weighs roughly 1,450–1,700 kg/m³; damp sand bulks, so a cubic metre of it holds less sand — measure loads loosely and agree the unit with the supplier.
| Unit | Equals | Weight at 1,600 kg/m³ |
|---|---|---|
| 1 m³ | 35.31 cft · 1.308 yd³ · 0.353 brass | 1.6 t (3,527 lb) |
| 1 brass | 100 cft · 2.832 m³ | 4.53 t |
| 100 cft | 1 brass | 4.53 t |
| 1 yd³ | 27 ft³ · 0.765 m³ | 1.22 t (1.35 US tons) |
| 1 tonne | 0.625 m³ · 22.1 cft | — |
How much sand for plaster, brickwork and concrete
The mortar and concrete figures use dry-volume factors of 1.27 (plaster), 1.33 (masonry mortar) and 1.54 (concrete) — site conventions rather than code values, all editable. Paver bedding follows the nominal 1 in (25 mm) screeded layer shown in the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute’s construction tolerance guide; joint sand is small and covered by the allowance.
| Job | Typical sand |
|---|---|
| Concrete 1 : 2 : 4 (M15) | 0.44 m³ (15.5 cft) per m³ of concrete |
| Concrete 1 : 1.5 : 3 (M20) | 0.42 m³ (14.8 cft) per m³ |
| Plaster 12 mm, 1 : 6 | 0.0157 m³ per m² — about 5.1 cft per 100 sq ft |
| Brick wall 230 mm, 1 : 6 | 0.26 m³ (9.3 cft) per m³ of brickwork |
| Paver bedding 25 mm (1 in) | 0.0275 m³ per m² with 10 % extra |
Ordering tips
- River sand and manufactured sand (M-sand) are sold the same way; plaster sand is finer and is usually sieved.
- A tractor trolley or tipper is ordered by volume, so check what “one load” means locally before comparing prices.
- For gravel, crushed stone or topsoil use the gravel calculator or topsoil calculator; to work out the earth dug out first, the excavation calculator.
Sand Calculator FAQ
How do I convert cft to brass?
Divide by 100. 250 cft of sand is 2.5 brass. To go from m³ to brass divide by 2.832.
How many tonnes of sand are in 1 brass?
About 4.5 tonnes at 1,600 kg/m³ (100 cft = 2.83 m³). Wet sand can be heavier per cubic metre, dry fluffy sand lighter.
How much sand do I need for pavers?
A 25 mm (1 in) bedding layer needs about 0.0275 m³ per m² with 10 % extra — 0.55 m³ for 20 m², or roughly 0.3 cubic yards per 100 sq ft.
How much sand is needed for plastering 100 sq ft?
At 12 mm thick in 1 : 6 cement mortar, about 0.146 m³ — roughly 5.1 cft of sand — including 20 % for joints and uneven walls.
How many tons of sand are in a cubic yard?
About 1.35 US tons (1.22 tonnes) at 100 lb/ft³. Wet or coarse sand can reach 1.5 tons per yard.
Why does the result include extra sand?
Loose sand compacts when it is wetted and tamped, some is lost in handling, and walls and sub-bases are never perfectly flat. The percentage is yours to change.