Bagged or bulk soil: compare the whole order

Compare the same material first

Collect two quotes for soil products suited to the same job. A bag of potting mix and a truckload of topsoil are not equivalent simply because both are sold by volume. Note the product, volume unit, price, tax treatment and delivery charges.

Plot & Soil compares the numbers you enter. It does not fetch local prices or decide which soil product your garden needs. Empty price fields stay unknown rather than becoming a free purchase.

A worked example with illustrative prices

Suppose your measured target is 32 cubic feet. In this example, bags hold 2 cubic feet and cost $8 each. A bulk supplier quotes $60 per cubic yard plus $45 delivery, sold in half-yard increments with no additional minimum. These are example quotes, not current market prices.

32 ÷ 27 = 1.185… cubic yards → order 1.5 cubic yards

Account for the material left over

The bag order above supplies exactly 32 cubic feet. The bulk order supplies 40.5 cubic feet, leaving 8.5 cubic feet above the target. That extra soil may have value elsewhere, but it still costs money and needs somewhere to go.

A minimum order can matter more than the unit price. If the supplier requires at least 2 cubic yards, enter that minimum before comparing. Plot & Soil applies the minimum and then rounds upward to the supplier’s order increment.

Find the delivery fee where the result changes

At the example quotes, the rounded bulk material costs 1.5 × $60 = $90. The bag order costs $128. That leaves $38 for bulk delivery before the two displayed totals are equal. A delivery quote below $38 favours bulk; a quote above $38 favours bags, assuming there are no other charges.

This threshold belongs to this particular rounded order. Recalculate it whenever your volume, bag price, bulk minimum or order increment changes. Dividing the two unit prices alone misses the effect of a partially used final bag or an extra half-yard.

Delivery at equal cost = $128 − (1.5 × $60) = $38

Test the supplier’s minimum order

Keep the same 32-cubic-foot target, but change the minimum to 2 cubic yards. At $60 per yard plus $45 delivery, the bulk total becomes $165. The order supplies 54 cubic feet, leaving 22 cubic feet above the target. Bags still cost $128 under the original bag quote.

Ask how the minimum and increment work together. If the minimum is 2.1 cubic yards and orders must be multiples of 0.5 cubic yards, the planner orders 2.5. If a supplier allows a different rule, use their written quote to check the final total. A minimum charge is not always the same as a minimum quantity delivered.

Finish the comparison with your real conditions

The calculator includes the bulk delivery fee you enter. It excludes tax and any delivery charge for bagged products. Add those charges to your final purchase comparison. For example, adding $20 bag delivery to the $128 bag order makes it $148 before tax; the $135 bulk quote would then be $13 less. That extra bag delivery fee is an adjustment you make outside the calculator.

Ask for the product name, net volume unit, minimum delivered quantity, order step, delivery charge and any unloading or access conditions. Confirm whether the supplier quotes loose, settled or compacted volume. Keep these answers with the printed plan so that the cheapest displayed total is not mistaken for a complete supplier quote.

Changing the displayed currency does not convert prices. Enter every quote in the same currency. If you add a purchase allowance, the tool applies it before rounding both options. Empty prices remain unknown; entering 0 means the supplier has actually quoted a zero price.