How many 80 lb bags of concrete in a yard?
It takes 45 bags of 80 lb concrete mix to make one cubic yard. A yard is 27 cubic feet and each 80 lb bag yields about 0.6 cubic feet, so 27 ÷ 0.6 = 45. Those bags weigh 3,600 pounds.
How to work it out
- One 80 lb bag makes 0.6 cu ft, so 27 cu ft per cu yd ÷ 0.6 cu ft = 45 bags per cubic yard
- 27 cu ft ÷ 0.6 cu ft = 45 → 45 bags
- Spread 4 in thick: 27 cu ft ÷ 0.333 ft = 81 sq ft
Forty-five is the number to remember. It comes straight from the yield on the bag: Quikrete’s data sheet gives its 80 lb Concrete Mix about 0.60 cubic feet, and a cubic yard is 27 cubic feet.
Adjust for your project
More options: Thick · Extra
- Bags of this size per cubic yard
- 45 bags
- Yield of one bag
- ≈ 0.6 cu ft (17 L)
- Area covered at the thickness above
- 81 sq ft
- Weight of the bags
- 3,600 lb (2 tons)
- Full pallets (Quikrete pallet size)
- 1 pallet of 42 + 3 bags
80 lb bags for common volumes
| Concrete volume | Bags of mix | Weight of the bags | Area covered at the thickness above |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.25 cu yd | 12 bags | 960 lb | 20.3 sq ft |
| 0.5 cu yd | 23 bags | 1,840 lb | 40.5 sq ft |
| 1 cu yd | 45 bags | 3,600 lb | 81 sq ft |
| 1.5 cu yd | 68 bags | 5,440 lb | 122 sq ft |
| 2 cu yd | 90 bags | 7,200 lb | 162 sq ft |
| 3 cu yd | 135 bags | 10,800 lb | 243 sq ft |
What 45 bags looks like
A yard of concrete pours an 81 sq ft slab 4 in thick — a 9 × 9 ft pad — or about eight 12 in tube forms 4 ft deep. In bags, it is a little over one Quikrete pallet (42 bags) plus three more, 3,600 lb of dry mix and somewhere between 34 and 51 gallons of water at the data sheet’s 6–9 pints per bag.
For a real pour, add your waste allowance before you buy. With 10% extra a yard becomes 49.5, so 50 bags; with 5%, 48. Bags that aren’t opened can usually go back, while running short mid-pour leaves a weak joint.
Is a yard of bags worth it?
Forty-five bags is roughly where hand-mixing stops being reasonable for one or two people. With a rented drum mixer at two or three bags a batch, that is fifteen to twenty-three batches, each one lifted, poured and shoveled. If a truck can reach the site, compare a short load of ready-mix with the bags vs ready-mix calculator. If you’d rather lift less per bag, how many 60 lb bags of concrete in a yard runs the same yard in the lighter size, and how many bags of concrete on a pallet covers buying it by the pallet.
Different size? Use the full Concrete Bags per Yard Calculator.
What you’ll need
- Portable electric concrete mixerPremium price
A small drum mixer turns a long day of hand-mixing into batches of two or three 80 lb bags. Check the drum size against the bag count you need.
See options on Amazon (opens in a new tab) - Contractor wheelbarrowMid-range price
A 6 cu ft steel or poly tray with a pneumatic tire moves concrete from the mixer to the forms. Never load it to the brim with wet concrete.
See options on Amazon (opens in a new tab) - Mortar hoeBudget price
The holes in the blade pull water through dry mix, so bagged concrete and mortar mix evenly without dry pockets.
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As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Links to products are affiliate links — they cost you nothing extra and help keep these calculators free.
Frequently asked questions
How many 80 lb bags of concrete for 2 yards?
90 bags for 2 cubic yards, before any extra for waste.
How many 80 lb bags of concrete for half a yard?
About 23 bags (22.5 rounded up) for half a cubic yard, or 13.5 cubic feet.
How many 80 lb bags in a yard with 10% extra?
50 bags — one cubic yard plus 10% for spillage and an uneven base.
Other common sizes
- How many 60 lb bags of concrete in a yard — 60 bags of 60 lb per cubic yard
- How much does an 80 lb bag of concrete cover — 0.6 cu ft: 1.8 sq ft at 4 in thick
- How many bags of concrete on a pallet — 42 bags of 80 lb (56 of 60 lb, 80 of 40 lb), Quikrete
Sources
- Quikrete Concrete Mix (No. 1101) data sheet (opens in a new tab) — Yields: 40 lb ≈ 0.30, 50 lb ≈ 0.375, 60 lb ≈ 0.45, 80 lb ≈ 0.60, 90 lb ≈ 0.675 cu ft; unit weight ≈ 140 lb/cu ft; for pours 2 in thick or more; 6–9 pints of water per 80 lb bag; control joints every 6–8 ft; cure 5 days at 70 °F or above, 7 days at 50–70 °F; protect from freezing for 48 hours.
- Quikrete Fast-Setting Concrete Mix (No. 1004) data sheet (opens in a new tab) — 50 lb ≈ 0.375 cu ft, 60 lb ≈ 0.45 cu ft, 25 kg ≈ 11.6 L, 30 kg ≈ 14 L; sets in 20–40 minutes; post holes 3× the post width and ⅓ of the post length deep; wait 4 hours before loading a post.
- Quikrete 5000 Concrete Mix (No. 1007) data sheet (opens in a new tab) — 60 lb ≈ 0.45, 80 lb ≈ 0.60 cu ft; ≈ 140 lb/cu ft; 1,500 psi at 1 day, 2,500 at 3, 3,500 at 7 and 5,000 at 28 days; 2 in minimum thickness.
- Sakrete High-Strength Concrete Mix technical data sheet (opens in a new tab) — Yields: 40 lb 0.30, 60 lb 0.45, 80 lb 0.6, 90 lb 0.66 cu ft; 25 kg 0.41, 30 kg 0.50 cu ft.
- Quikrete Concrete Mix (No. 1101) — product page with pallet quantities (opens in a new tab) — 40 lb bags 80 per pallet; 60 lb bags 56 per pallet; 80 lb bags 42 per pallet.
- NIST Handbook 44, Appendix C — General Tables of Units of Measurement (opens in a new tab) — 1 cubic yard = 27 cubic feet; 1 cubic foot = 1,728 cubic inches.