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How Much Does Topsoil Cost per Yard?

National reference bands for fill, screened, premium, and bagged soil, plus how to compare a delivered ticket to the calculator.

Updated August 25, 2026

The bands this site publishes

These bands follow Angi (2026): about $10–$55 per cubic yard by type, screened loam $18–$26, delivery often $50–$150 per trip. Lawn Love cites about $10–$50 per yard bulk. This site’s $15–$25 screened default is the overlap, not a bid. Premium compost and “super loam” sit higher on Angi’s table. Bulk of 10 or more yards can be cheaper when a yard wants to move a pile — still confirm locally.

Delivery is a separate line, often $50–150 depending on distance, truck type, and whether they can dump where you point. The calculator’s default cost is material only. If you have a delivered ticket, use total-price mode and let the tool show the implied price per yard.

ProductTypical material priceNotes
Fill dirt$10–20 / yd³This site; Angi low end of $10–$55 span
Screened topsoil$15–25 / yd³Overlap of Angi screened loam $18–$26
Premium / compost blend$25–45 / yd³Higher Angi “super loam” / blend rows
Organic garden mix$30–60 / yd³Upper Angi specialty rows
Bagged topsoilOften $80–140 / yd³ equivalentIllustrative bag-aisle math, not a survey

What moves a quote

Distance from the pile is the first lever. A cheap yard 40 minutes away can lose to a closer yard after two hours of truck time. Moisture is the second. You buy yards, but the truck is limited by weight; a wet week can mean a lighter-looking load for the same ticket yards, or a weight-limited short load if they sell by the ton.

Screen size and contamination matter. A $16 yard that is full of rocks is not cheaper than an $22 yard that rakes clean. Ask to see the pile. If you are ordering 12.3 yards for a 1,000 square-foot, 4-inch lawn, you will be looking at that pile for a day. It is worth a visit.

Per ton versus per yard

If a quote is $30 per ton and you need 12.3 yards, the weight at this site’s 1.35 tons-per-yard moist planning factor (not NRCS oven-dry bulk density) is about 16.6 tons, so the material is about $498. If you treated $30 per ton as $30 per yard, you would be off by thousands of pounds and a few hundred dollars. The cubic-yards-in-a-ton guide exists because this mix-up is common.

A fair way to compare two yards

Write down product name, yards, delivery fee, dump location constraints, and whether tax is included. Convert everything to delivered dollars per finished yard. A $18 yard with $120 delivery on a 6-yard order is $38 per yard delivered. A $26 yard with $40 delivery on the same 6 yards is $32.60 delivered. The “expensive” pile won.

Put either ticket total into the calculator and read the implied unit price. That is the number to keep in a note on your phone when the next yard quotes you.

Regional pages

Texas, California, and Florida have their own notes on this site because climate and haul distances change the story more than a single national band can. Use those pages for context, then call two local yards with the same yardage from the calculator.

Minimum loads and the 2-yard trap

Many yards will not roll a truck for 2 yards, or they will charge the 5-yard minimum. A 4×8 bed at 8 inches is 0.8 yards — bags or a trailer you tow yourself. A 500 square-foot lawn at 4 inches is 6.2 yards — usually enough to clear a minimum. If you are at 3 yards, ask about combining with a neighbor or accepting the minimum and using the extra on a bed.

The calculator will not know the yard’s minimum. Type their delivered total in total-price mode after they quote it. If the implied per-yard number looks violent, you are paying a minimum, not a market price.

Sources

Numbers on this page are planning figures. Follow the link for the original table or standard. Full list: Sources.

  1. Angi. What Is the Cost of Topsoil? [2026 Data]. National homeowner bands: about $10–$55/yd³ by type; screened loam $18–$26; delivery often $50–$150/trip.
  2. Lawn Love. How Much Does Topsoil Cost in 2026?. Bulk topsoil commonly cited at about $10–$50 per cubic yard, plus delivery.
  3. USDA NRCS. Web Soil Survey. Official U.S. soil map for a specific parcel — use this instead of a state-wide price guess.
  4. University of Texas Bureau of Economic Geology. Texas Blackland Prairie soils map notes. Blackland Prairie: clayey, high shrink-swell soils (Houston Black, Heiden, and related series).
  5. University of Florida IFAS Extension. How to Use the Web Soil Survey (SL530/SS745). Florida example soils in WSS are often fine sands (e.g. Seffner, Zolfo).
  6. NIST. Handbook 44, Appendix C — General Tables of Units of Measurement. 1 cubic yard = 27 cubic feet. Coverage identity: 27 × 12 = 324 sq ft at 1 inch.
  7. Penn State Extension. Lawn Establishment. Minimum 4–6 inches (firmed) of quality topsoil to establish turf; blend into subsoil.
  8. University of Illinois Extension. Preparing Lawn Soil and Site. Aim for six inches or more of well-prepared soil before seed or sod.
  9. University of Nebraska–Lincoln Extension. Establishing Lawns From Sod. Replace topsoil to a minimum of about 4 inches after rough grade; sod often cut 0.25–0.5 in thick.
  10. University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. Establishing a Lawn From Sod (FSA-2042). About 19 cubic yards of topsoil make a 6-inch layer over 1,000 sq ft; sample the upper 4–6 inches.

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