Calculate cubic feet, cubic yards, gallons, and liters from length, width, and height
Cubic footage measures the volume of a three-dimensional space. You calculate it by multiplying length, width, and height together. The result tells you how much space is inside a box, room, container, or any rectangular area. If you know the dimensions in feet, the output is in cubic feet (ft³). One cubic yard equals 27 cubic feet, which is the standard unit for ordering concrete, mulch, gravel, and fill dirt.
There are several common situations where calculating cubic footage saves time and money. If you are ordering concrete for a patio or driveway, suppliers sell by the cubic yard. Knowing your exact volume prevents over-ordering (wasting money) or under-ordering (delaying your project). The same applies to fill dirt, topsoil, mulch, and gravel. Landscaping and construction projects almost always require volume estimates.
Shipping and freight companies charge based on dimensional weight, which depends on cubic footage. If you are shipping a large package or loading a container, you need to know the total volume to get accurate shipping quotes. Moving companies also use cubic footage to estimate how much truck space your belongings will require and to calculate your moving costs.
When renting a storage unit, the listed size (for example, 10x10x8) gives you cubic footage. A 10x10x8 unit offers 800 cubic feet of space. Comparing cubic footage across different unit sizes helps you pick the right one without paying for space you do not need. For moving, estimate the cubic footage of your furniture and boxes, then match that total to the right truck size. Most moving trucks range from 150 cubic feet (small van) to over 1,600 cubic feet (26-foot truck).
One cubic foot equals approximately 7.48 gallons, 28.32 liters, or 0.037 cubic yards. These conversions are useful for water volume calculations (aquariums, pools, tanks), as well as for ordering materials sold by the gallon or liter. This calculator handles all of those conversions automatically so you do not need to remember the formulas.
Always measure in the same units. If your tape measure shows feet and inches, enter both values in the fields above and the calculator will combine them for you. For irregularly shaped spaces, break the area into smaller rectangles, calculate each one separately, and add the results together. When ordering materials like concrete, add 5 to 10 percent extra to account for spillage and uneven surfaces.
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