How to Convert Cubic Feet to Cubic Yards

Reviewed by Joseph Meyer

Last Updated: October 28, 2024 Fact Checked

A cubic foot is a measurement of volume. A cubic foot has a length, width, and height of 1 foot. Similarly, a cubic yard is a measurement of volume that has a length, width, and height of 1 yard. These measurements are often used to calculate gravel, sand, and other materials that fill in a large area. Since feet and yards are both imperial units of measurement, converting between them is easy.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Using a Proportion

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1
Determine that you are making the correct conversion. In this method, you should know how many cubic feet you have, and want to find out how many cubic yards that value is equal to. Make sure you are working with cubic units (volume), and not square units (area).
- For example, you might want to convert 600 cubic feet to cubic yards.
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There are 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard. This means for every cubic yard, you have 27 cubic feet. You can show this by the proportion ${\frac {1yd^{{3}}}{27ft^{{3}}}}$ . ^{[1]
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3
Set up an equation. On the left side will be the unit proportion of cubic yards to cubic feet. On the right side will be a proportion representing the number yards you are trying to find. Create a fraction with an unknown number of yards in the numerator ( $x$ ), and the number of feet you are converting in the denominator.
- For example, if you want to know how many cubic yards are in 600 cubic feet, your equation will look like this: ${\frac {1yd^{{3}}}{27ft^{{3}}}}={\frac {x}{600ft^{{3}}}}$ .
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4
Isolate the variable. To do this, multiply each side of the equation by the number of cubic feet you are trying to convert. Multiply the number of cubic feet by the numerator of the unit proportion on the left side of the equation.
- For example:
  ${\frac {1yd^{{3}}}{27ft^{{3}}}}={\frac {x}{600ft^{{3}}}}$
  ${\frac {1yd^{{3}}}{27ft^{{3}}}}\times 600={\frac {x}{600ft^{{3}}}}\times 600$
  ${\frac {600yd^{{3}}}{27ft^{{3}}}}=x$
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5
Divide the number of cubic feet by 27. This will give you the equivalent number of cubic yards. Note that you can simplify this method by simply dividing the number of cubic feet you have by 27. ^{[2]
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- For example:
  ${\frac {600yd^{{3}}}{27ft^{{3}}}}=x$
  $22.2yd^{{3}}=x$
  So, 600 cubic feet is equal to 22.2 cubic yards.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Multiplying by the Conversion Rate

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For this method you should begin with cubic feet and end up with cubic yards. This method does not work for the opposite conversion (cubic yards to cubic feet). Make sure you are using cubic units and not square units, as the conversion rate will be different.
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For every 1 cubic yard, there are 27 cubic feet. This means that a cubic foot is ${\frac {1}{27}}$ of a cubic yard. To find the conversion rate, you calculate $1\div 27=.03703704$ . ^{[3]
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Research source}
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3
Multiply the number of cubic feet by the conversion rate. This will give you the number of cubic yards that are equivalent to the given number of cubic feet. Since feet are smaller than yards, you will end up with fewer yards than feet after converting.
- For example, if you want to convert 600 cubic feet to cubic yards, calculate $(600)(.03703704)=22.2$ . So, 600 cubic feet is equivalent to 22.2 cubic yards.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Converting Cubic Yards to Cubic Feet

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In this method you begin with cubic yards and end up with cubic feet. If you are working with square feet and square yards, this conversion method will not work.
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There are 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard. That means that the number of cubic feet will be 27 times more than the equivalent number of yards. ^{[4]
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Research source}
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3
Multiply the number of cubic yards by 27. This will give you the number of cubic feet equivalent to the given number of cubic yards. Since feet are smaller than yards, the number of feet will be greater than the number of yards. ^{[5]
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Research source}
- For example, if you wanted to convert 20 cubic yards to cubic feet, you would calculate $(20)(27)=540$ . So 20 cubic yards is equivalent to 540 cubic feet.

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How many yards of concrete in an area 8 feet x 5 feet x 5 inches deep?

Donagan

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First multiply 8 by 5 by 5/12 = 16.67 cubic feet. Then divide by 27 (or multiply by 0.037) to find cubic yards.

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How many yards in a cubic yard?

Donagan

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There is no such thing as "yards in a cubic yard." A cubic yard may be visualized, however, as a cube with each edge measuring one yard in length (although that's not the only shape a cubic yard could take; it could take virtually any shape).

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How many liquid gallons are in a cubic foot?

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There are 7.48052 gallons in a cubic foot. So to convert gallons to cubic feet, you would divide the number of gallons by 7.48052. To convert cubic feet to gallons, multiply the number of cubic feet by 7.48052.

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If you are being asked to use the metric system, you will need to convert cubic yards into cubic meters. To do this, divide the number of yards by 1.3080. ^{[6]
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Many construction websites have built-in calculators to help you judge how much concrete you need to order to fill your space.

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How to Convert Cubic Feet to Cubic Yards

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Using a Proportion

Multiplying by the Conversion Rate

Converting Cubic Yards to Cubic Feet

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