Fill Dirt in Butte County, CA

Hello Gravel connects you with local suppliers around Chico, Oroville and Paradise that sell fill-dirt by the ton or by the cubic yard. Pricing depends on material quality, delivery distance and minimum load (we require 3 tons minimum); typical quotes are given as a delivered price per ton or a delivered price per cubic yard — request a zip-code quote on our site for exact pricing.

Delivery costs vary based on distance, site access, and truck size, but in Butte County customers typically see delivered fill-dirt pricing that combines material and haul in a range that can vary widely. Hello Gravel often shows transparent delivered pricing at checkout or you can get an itemized quote — check your zip code for the most accurate per-ton or per-yard rate.

Loose fill-dirt commonly reduces in volume when compacted; expect roughly a 10-25% decrease from loose to compacted volume depending on soil type and moisture. In parts of Butte County with clay or fine-grained alluvial soils, settlement can be on the higher side, so contractors commonly place fill in 4-8" lifts and compact to target densities to limit later settlement.

Large fills or earthwork often trigger permits and approvals from Butte County Planning or the Building Division, and thresholds depend on parcel size, slope and volume moved. Before scheduling big deliveries, contact the county or your contractor to confirm if a grading permit, erosion control plan, or other approvals are required.

For driveways, use fill-dirt only as a compacted subgrade; a structural surface layer of crushed rock or aggregate base (AB) on top is recommended. In Butte County’s wet season, a combination of compacted clean fill for grade and 4-6" of AB/crushed rock for the driving surface gives the best balance of drainage and load-bearing performance.

Plain fill-dirt can hold water and soften during rainy months, so relying on it alone for a surface is not advised. Improve drainage by sloping the site away from structures, installing a gravel/AB surface or drainage swales, and using geotextile fabric under road base in wetter low-lying areas of the county.

Use 1 cubic yard = 27 cubic feet and expect about 1.3 to 1.5 tons per cubic yard for typical fill-dirt. For example, 1,000 sq ft at 6" depth is about 18.5 cubic yards, roughly 24-28 tons; 500 sq ft at 4" is about 6.2 cubic yards, roughly 8-9 tons. Contact our calculator or sales team with your exact dimensions and site notes for a tailored estimate.

Choose fill-dirt when you need to raise grade, fill low spots, or create subgrade under a structural layer; do not use fill-dirt as the wearing surface for driveways. For load-bearing surfaces and foundations in Butte County, use compacted aggregate base or crushed rock on top of properly compacted fill to ensure drainage and long-term stability.

Contractor rates vary with equipment, access and job size; small jobs often run on an hourly or per-day basis while larger jobs may be priced per cubic yard. As a rough guide, expect labor and equipment for spreading/compacting to fall in ranges where smaller tasks may cost a few hundred dollars and larger sites can run into the high hundreds or low thousands; get local bids for exact pricing.

Fill-dirt used as subgrade can last many years if properly placed, compacted and covered with a structural surface, but untreated fill-dirt as a surface will rut and require frequent maintenance. For heavy vehicle traffic in Butte County, use a compacted aggregate base or crushed rock surface, maintain positive drainage, and plan for occasional regrading and additional rock where ruts or washboarding form.