How much does a pickup truck load of firewood cost? (And how much wood that really is)
A pickup load is the most common way firewood changes hands and the least defined. Here is how much wood a bed actually holds, what people charge for one around the DMV, and how to turn any truck-load quote into a number you can compare.
Our drivers deliver in pickups, so I know exactly what a bed holds. I also know that when a stranger on a classified site says "truck load, $200," the two of you may be picturing very different amounts of wood. This guide puts a number on it.
Short answer
A full-size pickup bed, level with the sides, holds about a third of a cord of split firewood, roughly 40 cubic feet. Sellers around Virginia, DC, Maryland, and North Carolina charge $150 to $350 for one, usually with no promise about dryness. Our 4x8 stack is the same third of a cord, kiln-dried, delivered, and stacked, for $360 (Mixed) or $420 (Oak) plus delivery.
How much wood a truck bed holds
| Bed | Level with sides | Heaped |
|---|---|---|
| Compact (5 ft) | About a quarter cord or less | A quarter cord |
| Full-size short (5.5 to 6.5 ft) | About a third of a cord | Close to a half |
| Full-size long (8 ft) | Just under a half cord | A half cord, with sideboards |
| Any pickup | Never a full cord. A cord of oak weighs around two tons. | |
Those are stacked numbers. Wood thrown loose into a bed takes up a third more space than the same wood stacked, so a loose heap that looks like a half cord is often a third once you stack it. If the seller will not let you see it stacked, assume loose.
What a truck load costs around here
From Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and roadside signs across Northern Virginia, DC, and the Maryland suburbs, "truck load" prices this season run roughly $150 to $350. The spread is the wood: a load of oak split last year and kept under a roof is worth the top of that range; a load of mixed rounds cut in August is not worth the bottom. The seller usually cannot tell you which you are getting, and most buyers cannot tell by looking.
For comparison, we sell by the stack with the dimensions printed: a 4x8 ft stack of 16 inch splits is one third of a cord (a full-size bed, level), kiln-dried, $360 for Mixed Hardwoods or $420 for 100% Oak, with $25 to $60 delivery by zone and stacking as a small add-on. The cord price guide has every size.
How to compare a truck load to anything else
- Get cubic feet. Stacked height times length times log length, or use the table above for the bed. Thirds of a cord are about 43 cubic feet.
- Divide the price. $200 for a level full-size bed is about $5 a cubic foot. $360 for our 4x8 is about $8.40.
- Adjust for water. Wood that is still wet inside wastes a chunk of its heat boiling water, and part of it never catches. Call it a 20 to 30 percent haircut on the value of an unverified load, more if it hisses.
- Add the labor. A truck load gets dumped in the driveway. Stacking a third of a cord is an hour of work. We stack it for you.
Run those four steps and the gap between a cheap load and a delivered stack mostly closes, and sometimes flips. The worth-it guide walks through the full math.
When a truck load is the right buy
If you know the seller, you have seen the wood stacked, you can split a piece and check the inside, you have somewhere dry to stack it yourself, and you are burning outdoors where a little smoke does not matter, a truck load from a local woodlot is a fine deal. If any of those are a no, buy wood with the dimensions and the dryness in writing. Ours is on the firewood for sale page, and your zip at checkout gives the delivered price.
Frequently asked questions
How much firewood fits in a pickup truck?
A standard full-size bed, 6.5 feet long, holds roughly a third of a cord of split wood stacked level with the sides, about 40 cubic feet. An 8 foot bed heaped high gets to a half cord. A small truck bed holds a quarter cord or less. Nobody fits a full cord in a pickup.
How much does a pickup load of firewood cost?
Around Virginia, DC, Maryland, and North Carolina, roadside and Craigslist sellers quote anywhere from $150 to $350 for "a truck load," which is usually a quarter to a third of a cord of wood of unknown dryness. Our 4x8 stack, the same third of a cord, kiln-dried and stacked at your door, is $360 for Mixed Hardwoods or $420 for Oak plus a $25 to $60 delivery fee.
Is a truck load a cord?
No. A cord is 128 cubic feet, 4 by 4 by 8 feet stacked. A full-size pickup bed level with the sides is about a third of that. Anyone selling a "cord" from a half-ton truck is selling a face cord at best.
Is buying a truck load cheaper than delivery?
On the sticker, often. Per fire that actually burns, usually not: loose-thrown wet wood has less volume than it looks, part of it will not light, and you still have to stack it. Compare on cubic feet and moisture, not on the load.
What should I ask a truck-load seller?
How many cubic feet stacked, how long ago it was split (not cut), what species, and whether you can split a piece and check the inside before paying. If the answers are vague, so is the wood.
Clark started splitting and selling firewood on his family farm in Upperville, Virginia at age 11. Today Clark's Firewood delivers premium kiln-dried hardwood to homes across Virginia, Washington DC, Maryland, and North Carolina, and Clark personally guarantees every order.
