Soil for a 2 × 8 ft bed at each depth
Whole bags are rounded up. The bed’s wall height is not the soil depth: measure the depth you plan to fill.
Bags of
| Soil depth | Cubic feet | Cubic yards | Bags of ¾ ft³ | Bags of 1 ft³ | Bags of 1.5 ft³ | Bags of 2 ft³ | Bags of 3 ft³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 in | 8 | 0.3 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| 8 in | 10.67 | 0.4 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 4 |
| 10 in | 13.33 | 0.49 | 18 | 14 | 9 | 7 | 5 |
| 12 in | 16 | 0.59 | 22 | 16 | 11 | 8 | 6 |
| 18 in | 24 | 0.89 | 32 | 24 | 16 | 12 | 8 |
| 24 in | 32 | 1.19 | 43 | 32 | 22 | 16 | 11 |
Measure inside the walls
The table uses the full 2 × 8 ft. If that is the outside size of a wooden bed built from boards 1½ inches thick, the growing space inside is 21 × 93 inches. At 12 inches deep that holds 13.56 cubic feet, 15% less than the table. Metal and composite walls are thinner, but corner posts and braces still take space, so measure between the inner walls before you order.
Building it from 2 × 6 boards? The 2 × 8 ft bed plan has the cut list and the steps for this outside size: filled 10 inches deep, it takes 8 bags.
Beds sold at 2 × 8 ft
These are the beds we list in this size. A maker’s stated capacity often differs from the table because the inside is smaller than the advertised size or the maker assumes a different fill depth.
- Vego 17" Tall 9-in-1 Modular Metal Raised Garden Bed16 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 23 cubic feet.
- Vego Classic Elevated Garden Bed11 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 32 in tall overall, 12 in planting depth. The maker states 15.01 cubic feet.
- Birdies Large Modular Raised Bed23 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 33.8 cubic feet.
- Frame It All GardenBLOX 2 × 8 ft Raised Bed, 5.5 in tall5 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 5.5 in walls. The maker states 7.33 cubic feet.
- Frame It All GardenBLOX 2 × 8 ft Raised Bed, 11 in tall10 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 11 in walls. The maker states 14.66 cubic feet.
- Frame It All GardenBLOX 2 × 8 ft Raised Bed, 16.5 in tall15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 16.5 in walls. The maker states 21.99 cubic feet.
- Frame It All GardenBLOX 2 × 8 ft Raised Bed, 22 in tall20 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 22 in walls. The maker states 29.32 cubic feet.
- Garden In Minutes 17-in-1 Metal Raised Bed16 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 23 cubic feet.
- Vego 26" Tall Woodgrain Metal Raised Bed22 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 26 in walls. The maker states 32.7 cubic feet.
- Vego 17" Tall Modern Metal Raised Garden Beds15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 22.5 cubic feet.
- Birdies Jumbo Modular Raised Bed, 15 in tall13 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 15 in walls. The maker states 19.2 cubic feet.
- Birdies Jumbo Modular Raised Bed, 29 in tall26 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 38.4 cubic feet.
- Epic Large Modular Metal Raised Bed, 15 in tall14 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 15 in walls. The maker states 20 cubic feet.
- Epic Large Modular Metal Raised Bed, 29 in tall26 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in walls. The maker states 38.7 cubic feet.
- Vegega 17" Tall 9-in-1 Metal Raised Garden Bed15 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 17 in walls. The maker states 21.75 cubic feet.
- Vegega 32" Tall 9-in-1 Metal Raised Garden Bed28 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 32 in walls. The maker states 40.9 cubic feet.
- Veikous Cedar Elevated Garden Bed 2 × 8 ft7 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 30.2 in tall overall. The maker states 9.8 cubic feet.
- Gardenary 12" Tall Cedar Raised Garden Beds12 in walls. The maker does not state a soil capacity.
- Gardenary 18" Tall Cedar Raised Garden Beds18 in walls. The maker does not state a soil capacity.
- Gardenary 24" Tall Cedar Raised Garden Beds24 in walls. The maker does not state a soil capacity.
- Land Guard Oval Metal Raised Garden Beds, 12 in tall9 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 12 in walls. The maker estimates 13 cubic feet.
- Land Guard Oval Metal Raised Garden Beds, 24 in tall18 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the estimated capacity. 24 in walls. The maker estimates 26 cubic feet.
- Greenes Fence Premium Cedar Raised Beds, 7 in tall7 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 7 in walls. The maker states 9.3 cubic feet.
- Greenes Fence Premium Cedar Raised Beds, 10.5 in tall10 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 10.5 in walls. The maker states 14 cubic feet.
- Greenes Fence Premium Cedar Raised Beds, 14 in tall13 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 14 in walls. The maker states 18.7 cubic feet.
- Greenes Fence Classic Cedar Raised Beds10 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 10.5 in walls. The maker states 14 cubic feet.
- Gardener’s Supply Self-Watering Elevated Cedar Planter Boxes8 bags of 1.5 ft³ for the stated capacity. 29 in tall overall, 10 in planting depth. The maker states 12 cubic feet.
What to plant in a 2 × 8 ft bed
Four planting layouts drawn to scaleA 2 × 8 ft bed holds 16 heads of lettuce, 256 carrots or 4 trellised tomatoes at Colorado State University Extension’s spacings. See a salad bed, tomatoes and peppers, and roots and onions with every plant counted.Work out your own bed
Open these measurements in the soil calculator to change the depth, add more beds or split the fill into a mix. To compare the cost of bags with a bulk delivery for 0.59 cubic yards, use the bagged vs bulk soil calculator.