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Concrete cost calculator: slab, driveway, and patio, installed.

Pick the pour, set the dimensions, choose your metro. The calculator prices the installed job from FatBook's v3 cost index, built on BLS trade wages, Craftsman labor hours, tracked material prices, and verified permit fees. It runs the bag and ready-mix math alongside, so you can weigh a DIY pour against a contractor's number before anyone quotes you.

Independent FatBook v3 cost indexReviewed by Leonard "Chuck" Thompson
DIY material assumptions. Edit them to match local supplier quotes.
National Average · Slab (garage or addition)
$3,871
Range $3,491 to $4,280 · lowest realistic price $3,491
DIY material math
How to read this result
  • The installed figure is the full contracted job for your metro: labor, materials, base prep, forms, finishing, permit, overhead, and a normal margin.
  • The DIY line is material math only. Bags stay practical for patch work and small pads. Ready-mix wins once volume passes a couple of yards, but minimum-load fees bite below three.
  • The gap between the two is what a crew earns: excavation, forms, screeding, finishing, curing, disposal, and the schedule risk they carry.
Cost-index version: 2026-07-21. Read the FatBook methodology, or open the bid and true cost calculators to grade a full hardscape quote.
From the cost index

What a concrete pour costs installed.

National averages for the typical project size of each pour, from the 2026-07-21 release. Every figure is a modeled installed price: Craftsman labor hours priced at BLS metro wages, materials tracked against producer price indices, plus permit, overhead, and normal margin.

ProjectTypical sizePer sqftInstalled range
Slab (garage or addition)400 sqft$9.68$3,491 to $4,280
Driveway, new pour400 sqft$9.60$3,465 to $4,248
Driveway, tear out and repour400 sqft$16.34$5,885 to $7,238
Patio, new pour400 sqft$9.31$3,346 to $4,135
Patio, tear out and repour400 sqft$15.84$5,692 to $7,034
Stamped concrete patio400 sqft$13.73$4,934 to $6,097
Sidewalk or walkway400 sqft$10.03$3,617 to $4,436
Sidewalk replacement400 sqft$16.56$5,964 to $7,336

Concrete slab cost by metro.

A standard 400 square foot concrete slab averages $3,871 installed nationally. Across the metros FatBook tracks, the same pour runs from $3,450 in Tampa to $5,251 in New York. Wages drive most of that spread, which is why the calculator prices labor from BLS data for your metro instead of applying one national number.

MetroAverageRangePer sqft
Tampa$3,450$3,142 to $3,782$8.62/sqft
San Antonio$3,458$3,120 to $3,822$8.64/sqft
Miami$3,512$3,245 to $3,812$8.78/sqft
Houston$3,545$3,166 to $3,952$8.86/sqft
Charlotte$3,556$3,185 to $3,956$8.89/sqft
Dallas$3,589$3,209 to $3,998$8.97/sqft
Raleigh$3,596$3,193 to $4,029$8.99/sqft
Springfield, MO$3,606$3,348 to $3,967$9.02/sqft
Kansas City$3,692$3,366 to $4,042$9.23/sqft
Atlanta$3,703$3,311 to $4,127$9.26/sqft
St Louis$3,793$3,511 to $4,215$9.48/sqft
Columbus$3,837$3,452 to $4,252$9.59/sqft
Phoenix$3,870$3,465 to $4,307$9.68/sqft
Denver$3,921$3,507 to $4,367$9.80/sqft
Austin$3,931$3,488 to $4,407$9.83/sqft
Philadelphia$4,211$3,817 to $4,634$10.53/sqft
Las Vegas$4,223$3,795 to $4,684$10.56/sqft
Minneapolis$4,251$3,871 to $4,660$10.63/sqft
San Diego$4,403$3,930 to $4,911$11.01/sqft
Boston$4,467$4,014 to $4,955$11.17/sqft
Los Angeles$4,519$4,052 to $5,023$11.30/sqft
Portland$4,597$4,188 to $5,038$11.49/sqft
Chicago$5,143$4,751 to $5,568$12.86/sqft
Seattle$5,159$4,692 to $5,661$12.90/sqft
New York$5,251$4,720 to $5,822$13.13/sqft

What moves a concrete bid.

Thickness sets the volume, and volume sets the truck bill. A 4 inch slab handles foot traffic and cars; parking a truck or an RV usually means 5 to 6 inches and a stronger mix, which raises material cost by a third before labor changes at all. Reinforcement is the next fork: wire mesh is cheap insurance on patios, while driveways and garage slabs justify rebar on chairs. Site access decides how much of the day goes to wheelbarrows. A pump truck adds a few hundred dollars but saves hours when the pour sits behind a fence line. Tear-out is the quiet budget killer, which is why replacement pours in the index run roughly 50 percent over new work of the same size. And small pours pay a short-load fee once the truck rolls for less than three yards, so batching a sidewalk with a patio pour usually beats doing them a month apart.

Concrete cost questions, answered from the data.

How much does a concrete slab cost per square foot?

The index puts an installed slab at about $9.68 per square foot nationally, with the full job ranging $8.73 to $10.70 per square foot by metro and site conditions. That figure covers labor, concrete, forms, base prep, finishing, permit, and normal contractor overhead, so it sits well above bare material math.

How much does a 20x20 concrete slab cost?

A 20 by 20 slab is 400 square feet, which is the typical project size in the index. Installed, it averages $3,871 nationally with a range of $3,491 to $4,280. Pick your metro in the calculator above for the local figure.

How much does DIY save on a concrete pour?

Materials, forms, and base for the typical slab run about $1,445 of the $3,871 installed average. The remaining $2,426 pays for labor ($855 of it), overhead, and margin. DIY keeps that difference if you can handle excavation, forms, screeding, and finishing before the truck's clock runs out. Concrete does not offer a second attempt.

How much more does stamped concrete cost?

Stamped concrete runs about 47 percent over a plain broom-finish patio: $5,494 versus $3,726 for the typical project nationally. The premium buys pattern work, color hardener, release agent, and sealing labor.

Does a driveway cost more than a patio?

Per square foot they land close together: about $9.60 for a driveway and $9.31 for a patio, installed. Driveways usually need thicker pours and stronger base prep, while patios spend more on finish. Replacement pours cost roughly half again as much as new work because tear-out and disposal come first.

Data Sources Used On This Page
  • Independent FatBook v3 cost index for concrete calculator.
  • BLS OEWS wage inputs (https://www.bls.gov/oes/) and FRED PPI material inflation (https://fred.stlouisfed.org/) references.
  • Craftsman labor-hour references and contractor overhead benchmarks.
  • Permit assumptions are included only where verified permit/source data is available.
Cost-index version: 2026-07-21
Updated: Jul 2026
Sources: BLS, Craftsman, FRED
Reviewed by: Leonard "Chuck" Thompson
DO
Cost index built by David Olson, Creator of the Cost Index & Permit Dataset · Methodology reviewed by Leonard "Chuck" Thompson, LC Thompson Construction Co., Owner (retired) · 2026-07-21