About the Bean Bag Filling Calculator
This calculator estimates how much loose filling a bean bag chair needs based on its width and height. It treats the filled bag as a cylinder — a standard simplification used by many bean bag and cushion refill suppliers, since actual bag shapes vary by design and are difficult to model exactly.
The formula
Full volume (cubic feet) = π × (width / 2)² × height ÷ 1728, with width and height entered in inches. That figure is the bag's maximum capacity if it were packed edge to edge. Multiply by your target fill level — typically 80-90% — to get the actual volume of filling to add, since bean bags are intentionally left a little underfilled so the beads can shift and mold to your body instead of sitting rock-hard.
Converting volume to bags and weight
Cubic feet convert to liters at 1 ft³ ≈ 28.3168 L. Refill beads are commonly sold in bags sized around 100 liters (roughly 3.5 cubic feet), so dividing your liter total by 100 and rounding up gives a practical number of bags to buy. Weight depends on the filling material: light EPS polystyrene beads run about 0.5 lb per cubic foot, while denser shredded-foam blends run 1.5-2 lb per cubic foot — pick the option closest to what you're using.
How to measure your bean bag
- Measure width across the widest part of the bag while it's reasonably full, not collapsed flat.
- Measure height from the floor to the top of the bag in that same filled state.
- If you're refilling an existing bag, measure the empty cover you're stuffing (or a similar bag at the size you want), not the current underfilled shape.