Pouring a flight of steps
The calculator is set to four steps with a 7 in rise and 11 in tread, 48 in wide, with a 36 in landing at the top: Quikrete’s usual width for home steps and its smallest landing. Change the number of steps, the rise and the tread to your plan, and the width to your door and path.
The calculator treats the steps as solid concrete down to the ground the bottom step stands on. Each step counts as a block from the ground up to its own tread, so the bottom step is one riser high, the second two risers, and so on. The top block is the landing, as deep as you enter it. If your steps sit against a porch or a wall, the landing is the part between the top riser and the wall.
Planning the rise and tread
Quikrete’s project sheet gives a chart of riser heights with the tread depths that suit them, from a 4 in rise with an 18 in tread to a 7½ in rise with a 10 in tread. Wide treads suit a short rise, it says, because they allow a natural stride. Divide the total height from the ground to the landing by the number of steps to get the rise, and keep every step the same.
The sheet also pitches the steps forward about ¼ in per foot so water runs off, and sets a ½ in expansion joint where the steps meet the house. Neither changes the volume much.
The table below has the volume for Quikrete’s riser and tread pairs from two to five steps.
Concrete for steps, by riser and tread
Quikrete's riser and tread pairs, 48 in wide with a 36 in top landing. Each cell: the volume, then the 80 lb bags with 10% extra.
| Steps | 2 steps | 3 steps | 4 steps | 5 steps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.5 in rise, 18 in tread | 11.2 ft³ · 21 | 20.2 ft³ · 38 | 31.5 ft³ · 58 | 45 ft³ · 83 |
| 5.5 in rise, 16 in tread | 13.4 ft³ · 25 | 23.8 ft³ · 44 | 36.7 ft³ · 68 | 51.9 ft³ · 96 |
| 6.5 in rise, 14 in tread | 15.5 ft³ · 29 | 27.1 ft³ · 50 | 41.2 ft³ · 76 | 57.8 ft³ · 106 |
| 7.5 in rise, 10 in tread | 17.1 ft³ · 32 | 28.7 ft³ · 53 | 42.5 ft³ · 78 | 58.3 ft³ · 107 |
Riser and tread chart, widths and landing from Quikrete's Concrete Steps and Ramps project sheet, checked October 2026.