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How much soil for a 3x3 raised bed?

Filling a 3 × 3 ft raised bed 12 inches deep takes 9 cubic feet of soil: 0.33 cubic yards, or 6 bags of 1.5 cubic feet. Every extra inch of depth adds 0.75 cubic feet.

3 × 3 ft bed, filled 12 inches deep

9cubic feet at 12 in
0.33cubic yards
6bags of 1.5 ft³
+0.75ft³ per extra inch

Soil depth, inches

A 3 × 3 ft bed filled 12 inches deep, drawn across its 36-inch width. 12 in of soil 36 in inside width
Open these measurements in the soil calculator

Soil for a 3 × 3 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 depthCubic feetCubic yardsBags of ¾ ft³Bags of 1 ft³Bags of 1.5 ft³Bags of 2 ft³Bags of 3 ft³
6 in4.50.1765332
8 in60.2286432
10 in7.50.28108543
12 in90.33129653
18 in13.50.51814975
24 in180.6724181296

Measure inside the walls

The table uses the full 3 × 3 ft. If that is the outside size of a wooden bed built from boards 1½ inches thick, the growing space inside is 33 × 33 inches. At 12 inches deep that holds 7.56 cubic feet, 16% 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.

Inside 33 × 33 inOutside 36 × 36 in · boards 1½ in thick

Beds sold at 3 × 3 ft

These beds in our catalogue are sold at 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.

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 0.33 cubic yards, use the bagged vs bulk soil calculator.

Other bed sizes