Cubic foot facts for kids

A cubic foot is a way to measure how much space something takes up, also known as its volume. Imagine a perfect box that is 1 foot long, 1 foot wide, and 1 foot tall. The amount of space inside that box is one cubic foot.

If all the sides were 1 foot in length, the amount of fluid that can be put in the box would be a cubic foot.

We often write a cubic foot as ft³. This measurement is commonly used in the United States, and sometimes in Canada and the United Kingdom.

What is Volume?

Volume tells us how much three-dimensional space an object or a substance occupies. Think of it as how much "stuff" can fit inside something. For example, the volume of a swimming pool tells you how much water it can hold. A cubic foot is one specific unit for measuring this space.

Why Do We Use Cubic Feet?

Cubic feet are useful for measuring many things. For instance, they are used to measure:

• The size of a refrigerator or freezer.
• How much space is in a moving truck.
• The amount of natural gas used in homes.
• How much soil is needed for a garden bed.

It helps people understand and compare the size of different objects or quantities in a standard way.

How Big is a Cubic Foot?

A cubic foot is about the size of a large microwave oven or a small bedside table. It's a fairly common unit, especially in countries that use the Imperial units system. For example, if you buy a bag of mulch for your garden, its volume might be listed in cubic feet.

Other Ways to Measure Volume

While the cubic foot is important, there are other ways to measure volume.

• The cubic yard is much larger, equal to 27 cubic feet.
• The cubic inch is much smaller.
• In many other parts of the world, people use metric system units like the cubic meter or liter. A cubic meter is much larger than a cubic foot.