"How much gravel do I need?" is the first question on almost every call we get from Benton, Bryant, and the rest of Saline County, and the one most people get wrong. Order short and you pay a second delivery fee for a half-empty truck. Order long and you have a pile with no place to go. This guide covers the feet-to-tons math, how deep to go, which crushed limestone to pick, and what a gravel driveway costs delivered in Arkansas. If you would rather skip the arithmetic, our gravel calculator does it for you.
The formula: feet to cubic yards to tons of gravel per yard
Gravel is sold by the ton, but you measure in feet, so there are two conversions: area to cubic yards, then cubic yards to tons.
Cubic yards × 1.4 = tons of crushed limestone
Convert inches to feet before you multiply: 4 inches is 0.333 feet and 3 inches is 0.25 feet. The 1.4 figure is the tons of gravel per yard for crushed limestone like SB2 and 57 stone. Topsoil runs closer to 1 ton per yard and wet material higher, so the calculator uses each material's real density. We round up to the nearest half ton, because coming up short is the expensive mistake.
How deep should a gravel driveway be?
It depends on whether you are topping off an existing drive or building a new one.
- Topping an existing driveway: 3 inches. Enough to fill ruts and give you a fresh, packed surface.
- New driveway on firm ground: 4 to 6 inches of SB2, compacted. Go toward 6 for trucks or a camper.
- New driveway on soft red clay or a wet spot: 2 to 3 inches of larger stone first (B stone or C-ballast), then 4 inches of SB2. The big rock locks into the clay so the base does not sink the first wet winter.
If the driveway sinks or washes every spring, the problem is drainage, not depth. That is a grading and culvert job, and you can book a free estimate instead of throwing more rock at it.
SB2 vs crushed limestone: which rock for which job
People ask for "crushed limestone" and then ask what SB2 is, so here is the short version. SB2, also called Class 7 base, is crushed limestone with the fines still in it, the stone dust and small pieces that let it pack into a hard, almost paved surface. It is the right pick for the driveway. The other products on our materials page are also limestone, screened to different sizes:
- 57 stone: clean, roughly one-inch limestone with no fines. It drains instead of packing, so it is for French drains, culverts, and top dressing.
- 67 stone: a slightly smaller clean stone for a tighter finish.
- Screenings: the fines alone. Good under pavers or as a smooth walkway top.
- B stone and C-ballast: big rock for stabilizing soft ground under a driveway or pad.
- Rip rap: the largest stone, for ditches, creek banks, and erosion.
Unsure? For a driveway, order SB2. For moving water, order 57 stone or rip rap.
A worked example: a 60-by-12 driveway in Bryant
Say you have a single-car driveway in Bryant, 60 feet long and 12 feet wide, and you want to rebuild it at 4 inches. The math: 60 × 12 × 0.333 = 240 cubic feet, ÷ 27 = 8.9 cubic yards, × 1.4 = 12.4 tons, rounded up to 12.5 tons of SB2. We haul in 9-ton dump-truck loads, so that is two loads. A 3-inch top-up on the same driveway is 6.7 cubic yards, about 9.5 tons, one load plus a little. Most people take one 9-ton load and go a hair thinner at the far end, and we will say so rather than sell you a second truck.
What a gravel driveway costs in Saline County
Gravel driveway cost in Arkansas comes down to three lines: material, delivery, and spreading. Material is priced per ton, tax included, and the calculator shows your total the moment you enter your tons. Delivery is $100 per truck load within 15 miles of our Bryant yard, then $2.50 per mile of round-trip driving beyond that, figured from your address when you order. Tailgate spreading, where we lay the rock in a line as we drive instead of dumping one pile, adds $25 per load and saves you an afternoon with a rake. For the Bryant example, that is two loads of SB2, two delivery fees, and $50 for spreading. No fuel surcharges, no hidden fees.
Gravel delivery in Benton, Bryant, and the rest of Saline County
Ordering takes about two minutes. Pick your material, enter your tons or let the calculator fill them in, choose a delivery day, and enter your address. The price is on screen before you commit, and a confirmation hits your email immediately. On delivery day we email you when the truck is loaded and again when it is on the way, with a fifteen-minute arrival window. We deliver across Benton, Bryant, Alexander, Haskell, Bauxite, and the rest of Saline County, and into the Little Rock metro when the miles make sense.
Frequently asked questions
How many tons of gravel are in a cubic yard?
About 1.4 tons for crushed limestone like SB2 or 57 stone. Topsoil runs closer to 1 ton per yard, and wet red clay can run heavier. Our calculator uses each material's real density so you do not have to remember any of this.
How many square feet does a ton of gravel cover?
Roughly 55 to 60 square feet at 4 inches deep, or 75 to 80 square feet at 3 inches. A 9-ton truck load covers about 500 square feet at 4 inches, a 12-foot-wide driveway just over 40 feet long.
Do I need a base layer under SB2?
On firm, well-drained ground, no. Four to six inches of compacted SB2 is the base. On soft red clay or a spot that stays wet, put down 2 to 3 inches of larger stone like B stone or C-ballast first so the SB2 has something solid to lock into.
Can you spread the gravel, or just dump it in a pile?
Both. Pick the tailgate spread option when you order and we lay the material in a line as we drive, which is perfect for driveways and saves hours of raking. It adds $25 per truck load. If you need it graded and compacted, book a free estimate for driveway repair.
Ready to order? Run your numbers in the gravel calculator, then order delivery online and pick your day. Rather talk it through? Call (501) 557-8116.
This site, and the online calculator and ordering tools on it, were built by Sundae Software Solutions in Benton, Arkansas. Their write-up on how the ordering system works is at sundaesolutions.com.