Enter the ultimate bearing capacity (kN/m^2) and the factor of safety into the calculator to determine the Bearing Pressure. 

Bearing Pressure Formula

The following formula is used to calculate the Bearing Pressure. 

Pbearing = UBC / FS
  • Where Pbearing is the Bearing Pressure (kN/m^2)
  • UBC is the ultimate bearing capacity (kN/m^2) 
  • FS is the factor of safety 

To calculate the bearing pressure, divide the ultimate bearing capacity by the factor of safety.

How to Calculate Bearing Pressure?

The following two example problems outline how to calculate the Bearing Pressure.

Example Problem #1:

  1. First, determine the ultimate bearing capacity (kN/m^2). In this example, the ultimate bearing capacity (kN/m^2) is given as 5000.
  2. Next, determine the factor of safety. For this problem, the factor of safety is given as 2.5.
  3. Finally, calculate the Bearing Pressure using the equation above: 

Pbearing = UBC / FS

Inserting the values from above and solving the equation: 

Pbearing = 5000 / 2.5 = 2000 (kN/m^2)

Example Problem #2: 

Using the same process as above, first define the variables required by the formula. In this case, these values are:

ultimate bearing capacity (kN/m^2) = 10000

factor of safety = 3

Entering these values yields:

Pbearing = 10000 / 3 = 3,333.33 (kN/m^2)