Gravel sizes chart
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A quarry ticket mixes two naming systems. ASTM D448 assigns the size numbers and the size ranges for coarse aggregate and screenings used on highways and bridges. Its public page states that scope, and that SI units are the standard. The sieve table is not on that page, so the bands below are not quoted from the paid PDF. They are the AASHTO M 43 table reprinted by the Maryland Department of the Environment, which also names ASTM C33 as the concrete-aggregate specification using the same numbers. Maryland’s guide adds the shape the number does not: crushed “stone” has fractured faces that knit, and rounded “gravel” does not. That is the pea gravel versus crushed stone comparison.
Clean size numbers
Each cell is percent by weight passing that sieve. Nominal size is the range in the first column. #4, #5, #6, #7, and the other combination sizes are on the same Maryland table and are left off so this chart stays the list in the heading.
| Size | Nominal | Passing band | Calculator |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1 | 3-1/2 to 1-1/2 in | 4 in 100; 3-1/2 in 90–100; 2-1/2 in 25–60; 1-1/2 in 0–15; 3/4 in 0–5 | None. This is not the 1 inch calculator. |
| No. 2 | 2-1/2 to 1-1/2 in | 3 in 100; 2-1/2 in 90–100; 2 in 35–70; 1-1/2 in 0–15; 3/4 in 0–5 | No. 2 calculator |
| No. 3 | 2 to 1 in | 2-1/2 in 100; 2 in 90–100; 1-1/2 in 35–70; 1 in 0–15; 1/2 in 0–5 | None on this site. |
| No. 57 | 1 in to No. 4 | 1-1/2 in 100; 1 in 95–100; 1/2 in 25–60; No. 4 0–10; No. 8 0–5 | #57 calculator |
| No. 8 | 3/8 in to No. 8 | 1/2 in 100; 3/8 in 85–100; No. 4 10–30; No. 8 0–10; No. 16 0–5 | None on this site. |
No. 1 and No. 2 are large open stone. No. 1, nominal 3-1/2 to 1-1/2 inch, is a poor driveway surface. No. 2, nominal 2-1/2 to 1-1/2 inch, is the large size this site calculates, on the No. 2 calculator. No. 3 is nominal 2 to 1 inch, and there is no No. 3 page. Do not send a No. 3 ticket to the 1 inch calculator or to No. 2 without checking the row.
No. 57 is the everyday clean stone. Maryland describes it as typically 3/8 inch to 1 inch, and the table’s nominal range is 1 inch down to the No. 4 sieve. The 0 to 5 percent limit on the No. 8 is what keeps it clean, which is why the French drain calculator starts on #57 or washed 3/4 and why that page rejects products that contain fines. Washed 3/4 shares the 1,600 kg/m³ start on the 3/4 inch calculator, but 3/4 is a top size and #57 is a graded band. Ask which one is on the ticket.
No. 8 is the small clean chip in the table, used as a chip-seal stone or a thin decorative chip. This site does not calculate it. No. 10 is not on that coarse table. Maryland describes stone dust and #10 screenings as crushed particles from about 1/4 inch down to dust, for structural fill or ice traction, and not as a filter. There is no #10 calculator. If the product you were sold is quarry dust, use the quarry dust calculator.
“1 inch” is a separate trap. Size No. 1 is the 3-1/2 to 1-1/2 inch row. Size No. 5 on the Maryland table is nominal 1 to 1/2 inch. The 1 inch gravel calculator is that smaller stone. The density chart says the size is near ASTM D448 No. 5, not No. 1.
Dense products that are not size numbers
304, 411, Class 5, and crusher run contain sand and silt on purpose, so the layer tightens under a roller. A yard that calls all of them “base” has not told you the gradation. The weight you haul is a different number, on the density chart.
| Name | What the spec actually is | Calculator |
|---|---|---|
| 304 | Ohio Item 304 aggregate base. 2013 CMS 703.17: 2 in 100, 1 in 70–100, 3/4 in 50–90, No. 4 30–60, No. 30 9–33, No. 200 0–15. Steel slag is 0–10 on the No. 200. Gravel in this item has to be crushed from material retained on the 1/2 inch sieve. | 304 calculator |
| 411 | Tennessee Mineral Aggregate Base, Type A, uses Grading D (Section 303.02, January 1, 2021). Table 903.05-2 Grading D: 1-1/2 in 100, 1 in 85–100, 3/4 in 60–95, 3/8 in 50–80, No. 4 40–65, No. 16 20–40, No. 100 9–18. Gravel or chert with clay widens the No. 16 band to 20–43 and the No. 100 band to 7–18. | 411 calculator |
| Class 5 | Minnesota spec 3138, from MnDOT’s 2012 Grading and Base training: 1 in 100, 3/4 in 90–100, 3/8 in 50–90, No. 4 35–80, No. 10 20–65, No. 40 10–35, No. 200 3.0–10.0. That is a 2012 training slide, not the 2025 spec book. | Class 5 calculator |
| Crusher run | A yard name, not a national size number. It is crushed stone that still contains the fines, which is why it is sold as a base that packs. Match it to 304, Grading D, or Class 5 only when the ticket names that spec. | Crusher run calculator |
Ohio 703.17 also limits Item 304 aggregate: Los Angeles wear 50 percent maximum, sodium sulfate loss 15 percent maximum, at least 90 percent fractured pieces, and a liquid limit of 25 with a plasticity index of 6 on the No. 40 fraction. A yard nickname is not that ticket. Tennessee Section 303.02 assigns Type A base to Grading D, which is the 411 page, and the table is sieves rather than a density. Layer limits for a home drive are the driveway depth guide, not this chart.
The Class 5 row is the 2012 MnDOT training slide for spec 3138, including 3.0 to 10.0 percent passing the No. 200. The department’s spec index says the 2025 book applies to most projects let on or after October 22, 2025, and that PDF did not open when this page was checked, so the percents stay labeled 2012. Confirm the band on the quote. Crusher run has no D448 row and no row in those state tables. It is crushed stone that was not washed down to #57, so it compacts and it is the wrong stone around a perforated pipe. The crushed stone calculator is the angular-stone tool at this site’s 1,700 kg/m³ planning start. The crusher run page uses that same family. Neither figure is a lab density.
Pea gravel is not an M 43 number. Maryland describes it as rounded particles of about 3/8 inch. It drains, and it rolls. It is not No. 8 and it is not crusher run. Quantity is the pea gravel calculator.
How to pick from the chart
A drain, or any layer that has to stay open, belongs on #57 or washed 3/4. An unpaved driving surface wants stone, sand, and plastic fines so it can crust, which is the FHWA description of surface gravel and not the description of #57. A base under asphalt or concrete is the dense product the road spec names: 304, Grading D, or Class 5. If the yard only stocks crusher run and #57, crusher run is the base and #57 is the drain. After the size is chosen, the density chart answers tons and the matching calculator answers yards. This chart does not.
Sources
- ASTM D448-12(2022), Standard Classification for Sizes of Aggregate for Road and Bridge Construction. Scope only. The sieve table is not on the public page.
- Maryland Department of the Environment, Guide to Common Construction Materials. Stone versus gravel, and the AASHTO M 43 size table used above, including the #10 screenings description.
- ODOT 2013 Construction and Material Specifications, 703.17, aggregate for Item 304.
- TDOT Standard Specifications, January 1, 2021, Section 303.02 and Table 903.05-2.
- MnDOT Grading and Base, 2012, Class 5 under spec 3138. Current edition pointer: MnDOT Standard Specifications index.
Frequently asked questions
Is 1 inch gravel the same as ASTM No. 1?
No. On Maryland’s reprint of AASHTO M 43, size No. 1 is nominal 3-1/2 to 1-1/2 inch. Size No. 5 is nominal 1 to 1/2 inch, and this site’s 1 inch calculator is that smaller stone. Ordering No. 1 for a path brings rock that is too large.
What size is #57 stone?
AASHTO M 43 size 57, as reprinted by Maryland, is nominal 1 inch to the No. 4 sieve. The row is 100 percent passing 1-1/2 inch, 95 to 100 percent passing 1 inch, 25 to 60 percent passing 1/2 inch, 0 to 10 percent passing the No. 4, and 0 to 5 percent passing the No. 8. That is clean stone with almost no dust. It drains. It does not pack the way 304 or Grading D does.
What is the difference between #57, 304, and 411?
#57 is an open size number. Ohio Item 304 and Tennessee Grading D are dense base gradations with fines that pass the No. 200 sieve. 411 on this site is the yard name for that Tennessee Type A base, Grading D in the January 1, 2021 spec. Use #57 when water has to move through the stone. Use 304, 411, or crusher run when the layer has to lock up under a driveway.
Does this site have a calculator for #3, #8, or #10?
No. #3, #8, and #10 screenings are described on this page from the published size tables, and there is no separate calculator for them. The closest tools are the No. 2 calculator for the large open stone, the 1 inch calculator for stone near No. 5, the #57 and 3/4 inch calculators for clean driveway and drain stone, and the crusher run calculator when the product still contains fines.
Is Class 5 an ASTM size?
No. Class 5 is Minnesota spec 3138, not an ASTM D448 number. The sieve row on this page is MnDOT’s 2012 training slide. The spec index points at a 2025 edition whose PDF did not open here, so confirm the current band with the quarry.
Where are the tons per yard?
On the gravel density chart. This page is sizes and uses. The chart labels which densities are a published table and which are planning defaults: #57 starts at 1,600 kg/m³, 304 at 1,920, crusher run and 411 at 1,700, and Class 5 at 2,400 because that page calls it the heavy end. Do not read a sieve table as a weight.
Can I use crusher run anywhere I would use #57?
Not if the job needs drainage. Crusher run is crushed stone that still contains the fines, so it tightens when it is compacted. #57 is held to a clean size band with almost nothing passing the No. 8. A French drain on this site calls for #57 or washed 3/4, and it tells you to leave crusher run, 304, and Class 5 for bases. A driveway base is the opposite choice.