How asphalt is ordered
Hot-mix asphalt is ordered by the ton, and the tons come from the volume the pavement fills once it has been rolled: its area times its compacted thickness. The mix leaves the truck loose and is compacted to the thickness on the plans, so the thickness you enter is the finished one.
We weigh it at 145 lb a cubic foot, the figure the Iowa Department of Transportation gives its designers for estimating hot mix; the Federal Highway Administration’s table has 145.2. In metric that is 2,323 kg a cubic metre. A plant knows the weight of its own mix: ask, then press “Use my own figure”.
Worked example. A driveway 20 × 12 ft, 3 in thick once compacted.
- Area: 20 ft × 12 ft = 240 sq ft
- Volume: 240 sq ft × 0.25 ft = 60 cu ft (2.22 cubic yards)
- Weight: 60 cu ft × 145 lb = 8,700 lb = 4.35 tons
- With 5% extra: 4.57 tons. A plant loads by the tenth of a ton, so order 4.6.
In metric, 50 m² at 5 cm is 2.50 m³, or 5.81 tonnes.
Thickness
The thickness is not ours to choose. It comes from your contractor or your plans, and it depends on the ground, on the base under the pavement and on what will drive over it. A pavement is often laid in more than one lift: the example in Asphalt magazine is a road with 2.5 in of an intermediate mix under 1.5 in of surface mix. Enter each lift as an area of its own, or the total thickness once.
The stone base under the asphalt is a separate order, also by the ton. The link under the result opens the gravel and stone calculator on the same area, with “Compacted base” ticked.
The quick rule
Pavers estimate with a rule of thumb: 110 lb of mix for each square yard, for each inch of thickness. The driveway above is 26.67 sq yd, so 26.67 × 3 × 110 = 8,800 lb, or 4.4 tons, within 2% of the figure from the density. The calculator shows this cross-check under “How this was calculated”.
The rule is off when the mix is. A mix made with a heavy or a light stone weighs more or less than the usual one, and the article that gives the rule says as much of specialty mixes. With your plant’s density typed in, trust the density.
Patching with cold mix
A pothole or a trench is not a job for a truck of hot mix. Cold patch comes in bags and is tamped in place. Choose “In bags” and the calculator counts bags of 0.6 cu ft: that is what Quikrete’s data sheet gives for a 60 lb bag once compacted, or 7.2 sq ft at 1 in. A patch 3 × 3 ft and 2 in deep is 1.5 cu ft, or 3 bags.
That data sheet asks for 1 to 3 in of depth, laid and compacted an inch at a time, and limits a repair to about 3 × 3 ft. Other products have other figures: read the bag you buy.
Questions about asphalt
How many tons of asphalt for a driveway?
Area in square feet × thickness in feet × 145 lb, divided by 2,000. A 20 × 12 ft driveway at 3 in compacted is 4.35 tons, and 4.6 to order with 5% extra.
How much does a yard of asphalt weigh?
About 3,915 lb, or 1.96 tons, for a cubic yard compacted in place.
How many square feet does a ton of asphalt cover?
83 sq ft at 2 in compacted, 55 sq ft at 3 in and 41 sq ft at 4 in.
Should I order extra?
The calculator opens with 5% on top, for the edges, an uneven base and what stays in the truck and the paver. Choose “No extra” to see the bare figure, or 10% for a job with many edges.
Sources
- Iowa Department of Transportation, Design Manual 1B-4: Densities for Use in Estimating Quantities. Hot mix asphalt: 145 lb per cubic foot. Class A crushed stone and rolled stone base: 140 lb per cubic foot (revision of 21 May 2026). Read on .
- Federal Highway Administration, Central Federal Lands, Application Rates and Weights for Estimating Purposes. Aggregate base: 139.0 lb per cubic foot. Hot asphalt mix: 145.2 lb per cubic foot. Concrete: 155.0 lb per cubic foot. Read on .
- Quikrete, Blacktop Patch (No. 1701-60), data sheet. A 60 lb bag yields approximately 0.6 cu ft compacted and covers about 7.2 sq ft at 1 in thick. Apply 1 to 3 in deep, in lifts of 1 in. Read on .
- Asphalt magazine (Asphalt Institute), Five handy rules of thumb for successful asphalt pavement construction. The typical spread rate for asphalt mixtures is 110 lb per square yard per inch of thickness. Read on .
Updated . How we calculate. Found a mistake? Tell us.