About this tool
The Asphalt Calculator estimates the tonnage of hot-mix asphalt needed to pave an area to a chosen thickness, along with the volume and, if you enter a price per ton, the cost. Give the area in square feet (or length × width), the compacted thickness in inches and the mix density; the default 145 lb/ft³ is typical for standard hot-mix asphalt. Everything is computed in your browser.
The volume is area × (thickness ÷ 12) to turn inches into feet, giving cubic feet. Weight in US tons is volume × density ÷ 2000, because a US ton is 2000 pounds and density is in pounds per cubic foot. The result also shows metric tonnes (tons × 0.907), the cubic-foot and cubic-yard volume, and cost = tons × price when a price is supplied.
For example, a 1000 sq ft lot at 4 inches of 145 lb/ft³ asphalt is 1000 × 4 ÷ 12 ≈ 333.3 cubic feet, or about 24.2 tons. Order a little extra for compaction and waste, and confirm the exact density with your asphalt supplier.