Gravel Driveway Cost Calculator

How much does a gravel driveway cost?

A gravel driveway costs the stone plus getting it in place: delivery, excavation, geotextile fabric where needed, spreading and compaction. Gravel is sold by the ton or by the cubic yard, so the size and depth of the drive fix the quantity, and your supplier’s price sets the cost. We do not publish a national average price because stone prices vary with the material, the region and the haul distance.

Tons = L (ft) × W (ft) × depth (in) ÷ 324 × 1.10 × tons per yd³

Gravel driveway cost = tons × price per ton + delivery per load × loads + excavation + fabric + spreading and compaction + drainage

The calculator above starts with crusher run at 6 in deep. Enter your driveway size and your price per ton, and it returns cubic yards, tons and the total cost. Switch the material to #57 crushed stone, gravel or pea gravel to compare.

Gravel for common driveway sizes

This table gives the stone for common driveway sizes at 4 and 6 in deep, with 10% extra included. Tons use typical loose weights of 1.6 tons per yard for crusher run and 1.35 for #57 stone; your supplier’s figure may differ.

In metric: 100 mm (about 4 in) of crusher run is roughly 0.19 tonnes per square metre, and 150 mm about 0.29 tonnes, before extra.

Long and rural driveways: 250 ft to a quarter mile

Long drives are where the price per ton matters most, because small differences multiply over hundreds of tons. The table shows a 12 ft wide drive, plus a 10 ft option at 500 ft, with 10% extra, and what every $10 of your price per ton adds.

At these quantities, ask suppliers for a per-ton price that includes delivery and spreading, and for a quarry-direct price if you can haul or have a contractor haul. On a quarter-mile drive at 4 in, each $1 per ton is worth about $344, so it pays to get several quotes. Width matters too: each extra foot of width on a 100 ft drive at 6 in is about 3.26 tons, so a 12 ft drive uses 20% more stone than a 10 ft drive of the same length.

How is driveway gravel priced?

Quarries and landscape yards price gravel per ton or per cubic yard, and charge for delivery. Check which unit your quote uses before you compare. For national average prices per ton and a per-ton ↔ per-yard conversion table, see gravel cost per ton.

• Per ton. Multiply the tons from the table or calculator by the price.
• Per cubic yard. Use the cubic yards (with extra) instead. The price box in the calculator above takes a price per ton, so multiply the yards it shows by a per-yard quote yourself, or convert the quote with the table below.
• Delivery. Usually a per-load charge that depends on distance and truck size. Ask how many tons the truck carries, then divide your total by that payload to get the number of loads.
• Spreading and compaction. Dumping in piles is cheapest. Having the driver tailgate-spread the stone, or hiring a skid steer and roller, costs more but saves days of work.

Converting per-yard and per-ton prices

To compare a yard that quotes per ton with one that quotes per yard, convert with the stone’s weight per yard. Use your supplier’s figure when they give one; the typical weights below are the site’s defaults.

Price per yard = price per ton × tons per yard. Price per ton = price per yard ÷ tons per yard. The tons to cubic yards converter does the same with any density.

Crusher run or #57: compare per yard, not per ton

The driveway is filled by volume, but stone is often sold by weight. Because crusher run is denser, the same 24.44 yd³ for a 100 × 12 ft drive at 6 in is 39.1 tons of crusher run but 33.0 tons of #57 stone. A lower price per ton for crusher run can still cost more in total. Convert both quotes to price per yard before choosing.

The layered build is lighter in tons only because #57 is less dense; it is the same volume. Whether it costs less depends on your two prices. For a 50 × 10 ft drive the same layers are 9.2 tons of #57 and 5.4 tons of crusher run; for a 200 × 12 ft drive, 44 tons and 26.1 tons. The driveway gravel calculator covers layer depths and stone choice in more detail.

Parking pads, turnarounds and top-ups

Price the extras with the same formula, then add them to the driveway total before you order, so they come on the same loads.

• Parking pad 10 × 20 ft at 6 in: 4.07 yd³ with extra, about 6.5 tons of crusher run.
• Two-car pad 20 × 20 ft at 6 in: 8.15 yd³, about 13 tons.
• 24 × 24 ft pad at 6 in: 11.73 yd³, about 18.8 tons.
• Circular turnaround, 30 ft across, at 6 in: 707 ft², 14.4 yd³, about 23 tons.

Gravel drives also need topping up as stone is pushed aside and pressed into the ground. One ton of crusher run covers about 203 ft² at 1 in deep, 101 ft² at 2 in and 51 ft² at 4 in (at 1.6 tons per yard, before the 10% extra). A 1 in top-up on a 100 × 12 ft drive is about 6.5 tons; 2 in is about 13 tons. A 1 in top-up on a 200 × 12 ft drive is also about 13 tons. Ask your supplier how often local drives need it, and budget that as a recurring cost when you compare gravel with concrete or asphalt.

Site work: excavation, fabric and drainage lines

On a new drive the stone is often less than half the job. These lines are priced by volume, area or length, so you can measure them yourself and check each quote.

Excavation and spoil. If the drive is dug down so the finished gravel sits near ground level, the soil removed has the same volume as the stone that replaces it. Digging out 6 in on a 100 × 12 ft drive is 22.22 yd³ measured in place; 4 in is 14.81 yd³, and a 200 × 12 ft drive dug 6 in is 44.44 yd³. Soil weight varies with type and moisture, so ask the hauler for their tons per yard if they charge by weight. Soil bulks up when it is dug, so it fills more truck space than its in-place volume. Ask whether the contractor will haul it off or spread it on site, since spreading avoids a disposal charge.

Geotextile fabric. Priced per square foot or per roll. Measure the drive area, add the pads and turnaround, and add the overlap the manufacturer specifies at each seam. A 100 × 12 ft drive with a 20 × 20 ft pad is 1,600 ft² before overlaps.

Drainage. Culverts are priced per pipe length plus installation, so measure each ditch crossing where the drive meets the road or crosses a swale. Ask your local road department whether a driveway permit or a minimum culvert size applies at the road edge; that rule varies by town and county.

Compaction. Each layer is spread and rolled. Ask whether the quote includes a roller or plate compactor, and whether the price assumes one lift or several. Thin lifts compact better but take more passes.

Decision rule: if the ground is firm and already drains, you may only need to strip turf and lay stone. If you see standing water or soft clay after rain, budget for fabric, a deeper base and drainage before you compare stone prices.

What makes a gravel driveway cost more?

Depth, the condition of the ground and how far the stone travels matter most.

• Depth. Every inch adds a quarter of a 4 in drive’s stone. New drives on soft ground often need a deeper base in layers.
• Excavation. Removing turf and topsoil and grading for drainage.
• Fabric. Geotextile under the stone helps stop it sinking into clay. It is priced by area: a 100 × 12 ft drive is 1,200 ft² plus overlaps at the seams.
• Material. Crusher run, #57 stone and decorative gravel are priced differently. Pea gravel is round and shifts under tires, so it is a poor driving surface.
• Drainage. Culverts at ditches and crowned surfaces so water runs off.
• Access and haul distance. Long hauls raise the delivery charge per load, and soft or narrow sites can limit truck size, which means more loads.
• Upkeep. Gravel drives need topping up and regrading over time, which belongs in a long-term comparison with concrete.

Gravel driveway in metric

Outside the US, driveway stone is usually sold by the tonne and quoted per cubic metre. Crusher run at 1.6 tons per yard is about 1.9 tonnes per m³, so tonnes = m³ × 1.9.

• 20 × 3 m at 100 mm: 6 m³, 6.6 m³ with 10% extra, about 12.5 tonnes.
• 30 × 3 m at 150 mm: 13.5 m³, 14.85 m³ with extra, about 28.2 tonnes.
• 50 × 3.5 m at 150 mm: 26.25 m³, 28.88 m³ with extra, about 54.8 tonnes.

Multiply the tonnes by your price per tonne, or the m³ with extra by your price per cubic metre.

Common mistakes when pricing a gravel driveway

1. Comparing per-ton prices for different stones. #57 at 1.35 tons per yard and crusher run at 1.6 fill the same drive with 33.0 and 39.1 tons; compare per yard.
2. Leaving out the 10% for compaction. A 100 × 12 ft drive at 6 in is 35.6 tons of crusher run before extra and 39.1 tons with it; the 3.6 tons you skip turn into a thin drive or a second delivery charge.
3. Using a generic density. The same 24.44 yd³ is 33.0 tons at 1.35, 34.2 at 1.4, 39.1 at 1.6 and 41.6 at 1.7 tons per yard (typical planning values). Ask your supplier for their figure.
4. Forgetting pads and turnarounds. A 20 × 20 ft parking pad at 6 in adds about 13 tons, a third of a 100 × 12 ft drive.
5. Ordering by length alone on long drives. Going from 10 to 12 ft wide on a 500 ft drive at 4 in adds about 21.7 tons.
6. Not counting delivery loads. The delivery line is per load, so divide your tons by the truck’s payload before you compare quotes.

Gravel driveway cost vs related calculators: which one to use

• This calculator: the cost of a gravel driveway in tons or yards at your price per ton, with delivery and site work.
• Driveway gravel calculator: how much stone, layer by layer, when you are not pricing it yet.
• Concrete driveway cost: the same drive in concrete, for an install-cost comparison.
• Gravel calculator: gravel for paths, patio bases, French drains and shed pads.
• Tons to cubic yards: convert a quote between tons and yards with any density.

How do I get accurate gravel driveway quotes?

Measure the drive, choose the depth and material, then call suppliers with the quantity.

1. Measure length and width, including turnarounds and parking pads, and run the driveway gravel calculator.
2. Ask two or three suppliers for the price per ton or per yard of each layer’s stone, their weight per yard, the truck payload and delivery charges.
3. If you are hiring out the work, ask for itemized quotes: excavation, fabric, stone, spreading, compaction and drainage.
4. Enter your price per ton above to see the total.