How Many Bags of Mulch in a Yard?
Short answer: one cubic yard of mulch equals 13.5 bags of 2 cu ft, 18 bags of 1.5 cu ft, or 9 bags of 3 cu ft. A cubic yard is 27 cubic feet, so just divide 27 by the bag size.
For your own beds, the mulch calculator works out the cubic yards and bags from the size and depth.
Bags per cubic yard
| Bag size | Bags per cubic yard |
|---|---|
| 1.5 cu ft | 18 |
| 2 cu ft | 13.5 |
| 3 cu ft | 9 |
How far a yard and a bag go
| Depth | 1 cubic yard | 2 cu ft bag | 1.5 cu ft bag |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 in | 162 sq ft | 12 sq ft | 9 sq ft |
| 3 in | 108 sq ft | 8 sq ft | 6 sq ft |
| 4 in | 81 sq ft | 6 sq ft | 4.5 sq ft |
How many bags do I need?
- Area: length × width of the bed in feet. A 20 × 5 ft bed is 100 sq ft.
- Volume: area × depth in feet. At 3 inches (0.25 ft): 100 × 0.25 = 25 cu ft.
- Bags: 25 ÷ 2 = 12.5, so 13 bags of 2 cu ft. In cubic yards: 25 ÷ 27 = 0.93.
How deep to spread it
University of Illinois Extension recommends 2 to 4 inches, and University of Vermont Extension advises no more than 4 inches. Deeper mulch can mat down, keep water and air from roots, and harm trees if it’s piled against the trunk. Keep a gap of a few inches around trunks and stems.
Bags or bulk?
Bags are tidy and easy for a bed or two. For more than about a cubic yard (13 or 14 bags of 2 cu ft), bulk mulch by the yard is usually much cheaper, and many landscape yards deliver.
Common questions
How many bags of mulch do I need for a 10 × 10 area?
At 3 inches deep: 25 cu ft, so 13 bags of 2 cu ft or 17 bags of 1.5 cu ft.
Is a yard of mulch a lot?
One cubic yard covers about 108 sq ft at 3 inches: roughly a 10 × 11 ft bed.