Calculators

Converters

The cubic yard symbol is yd³ but you will also see cubic yards represented as cu yd. The same is true for cubic feet, also denoted as ft³ or cu ft.

How to Convert Cubic Yards to Cubic Feet

Multiply cubic yards by 27

Explanation

You can think of a cubic yard as a 3-foot cube made up of smaller 1-foot cubes. The smaller cubes are arranged so they're 3 cubes high × 3 across × 3 deep.

Multiplying 3 × 3 × 3 equals 27, so there are a total of 27 one-foot cubes in a cubic yard. This is the conversion factor. To convert cubic yards to cubic feet, multiply your cubic yards by 27 to get total cubic feet.

ft³ = yd³ × 27

As you might remember from doing math with fractions, multiplying by a number is the same as dividing by the inverse of that number. So another way to convert cubic yards to cubic feet is to divide cubic yards by the inverse of 27.

• Inverse of 27 = 1/27
• 1 ÷ 27 = 0.037037
• cubic yards ÷ 0.037037 = cubic feet

For the cubic yards → cubic feet conversion it is generally easier to remember to multiply cu yd by 27 to get cu ft.

This table shows the conversion factors to convert between cubic yards and cubic feet.

ft³ = yd³ × 27

Example: Convert 80 yd³ to ft³

Multiply 80 cubic yards by 27 to convert to cubic feet. This example shows how to divide and cancel units, arriving at an answer in cubic feet.

Once you understand how the units cancel, it's a quick conversion to multiply yd³ by 27 to get ft³.

80 yd³ × 27 ft³/yd³

Multiply through and cancel yd³ units

80 yd³ × 27 ft³/yd³ = 2160 ft³

= 2160 yd³

80 yd³ = 2160 ft³

So 80 cu yd is equal to 2160 cu ft.

If you need to convert cubic feet to cubic yards use the CalculatorSoup^® Cubic Feet to Cubic Yards Converter.

This image shows a cubic yard. You can see that it is made up of 27 cubic feet arranged in rows and columns 3 feet high by 3 feet wide and 3 feet deep.

Cubic Yard

A cubic yard is a unit of volume and has the symbol cu yd or yd³. The yard is a unit of length in the imperial system of units and United States customary units. One yard is equal to 3 feet, and when cubed becomes a cubic yard which is 27 cubic feet in volume.

Cubic Foot

A cubic foot is a unit of volume and has the symbol cu ft or ft³. Twenty cubic feet can be expressed as 20 ft³. The foot is a unit of length in the imperial system of units and United States customary units where there are 12 inches in 1 foot. One foot is a third of a yard, or 0.333333 yd. One cubic foot equals 0.037037 yd³.