Concrete Cost Calculator: Price per m³
Find what your concrete will cost: bags, mixing your own, or a ready-mix lorry.
Measure your project
Your answer
That is about 46 wheelbarrow loads. We added 10% extra.
If you buy bags
Blue Circle says each 20 kg bag makes about 0.01 m³. Bag price: the middle of 4 prices from 3 stores.
If you order a lorry (ready-mix)
Ask for 1.50 m³. We round up to the next 0.25 m³.
This is a guide to material costs. For a drive, footing or floor, check your local building rules or ask a builder or engineer.
Which costs less?
You also skip mixing 132 bags by hand. Have the edges ready before it comes.
Ready-mix: £150 per m³ with VAT, the middle of 7 prices from 4 UK suppliers, October 2026. Type your own quote in "Change prices".
Quick answers
- A 4 × 3 m base, 100 mm
- 1.32 m³ with 10% extra. A lorry costs about £225; 132 bags cost about £1,452.
- Ready-mix price
- About £150 per m³ with VAT. That is the middle of 7 prices from 4 UK suppliers.
- Bagged concrete
- About £1,100 per m³ in 20 kg bags, at £11 a bag with VAT.
- Laid concrete
- £65–£85 per m² for a laid slab. That is from one cost guide, MyBuilder, which does not say if VAT is in.
How to work it out
- Work out the m³: length × width × thickness, in metres.
- Add 10% extra for spills.
- Ready-mix: round up to the next 0.25 m³, then multiply by the price per m³.
- Add any delivery, part-load or Saturday fees your supplier quotes.
- Bags: divide the m³ by 0.01, round up, and multiply by the bag price.
4 × 3 × 0.1 = 1.2 m³ + 10% = 1.32 m³
Lorry: 1.5 m³ × £150 = £225
Bags: 132 × £11 = £1,452
Concrete cost per m³ by mix
Ready-mixed concrete is sold by the m³, and Cemex says each m³ weighs about 2.4 tonnes. Stronger mixes cost more. Rock Solid Concrete, a Midlands supplier, prices each mix (grade) in a range. Its prices include delivery within 8 miles. They do not include VAT, so we added it.
| Mix | Without VAT | With 20% VAT | Use it for |
|---|---|---|---|
| GEN1 | £95–£115 | £114–£138 | House footings with no steel (Heidelberg) |
| GEN3 / C20/25 | £105–£125 | £126–£150 | Garage floors and ground slabs (Rock Solid) |
| C25/30 | £115–£135 | £138–£162 | Most house footings (Rock Solid) |
| C28/35 | £125–£145 | £150–£174 | Drives and shed bases (Rock Solid) |
| C32/40 | £135–£155 | £162–£186 | – |
| C35/45 | £145–£170 | £174–£204 | – |
Mix names as Rock Solid groups them. Uses from Rock Solid and Heidelberg Materials.
Our calculator starts at £150 per m³. That is the middle of 7 prices for C20–C25 from 4 suppliers, from £120.10 to £166.80, with VAT. This includes Rock Solid's C20/25 and C25/30 prices. Each supplier shows prices without VAT, so we added it. Type your own quote in "Change prices".
Concrete price: bags, mix your own or a lorry
| Job | m³ | 20 kg bags | Mix your own | Lorry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pad 1 × 1 m, 100 mm | 0.11 | £121 | £92 | £150 |
| Shed base 2.5 × 1.9 m, 75 mm | 0.39 | £440 | £125 | £150 |
| Base 4 × 3 m, 100 mm | 1.32 | £1,452 | £451 | £225 |
| Drive 20 m², 100 mm | 2.20 | £2,420 | £702 | £338 |
With 10% extra. Mix your own: 1 : 5 ballast, 25 kg cement at £8.39 and 800 kg bulk bags of ballast at £75. Lorry: our middle price, from 1 m³. No delivery added.
Bags cost the most per m³. But mixing your own means buying whole bulk bags of ballast, and a lorry has a smallest order. Our ballast price comes from only 3 sellers, so treat it as a rough guide.
For a drive, the Concrete Society names a ready-mix called PAV1. Our mix-your-own cost leaves out mixer hire.
Extra charges to ask about
- Smallest order: Rock Solid takes 1 m³. Mister Concrete has a minimum charge of £625 plus VAT (£750 with VAT).
- Small loads: MyBuilder says £30–£60 more per m³ under 4 m³. It says prices may or may not include VAT.
- Saturday or short notice: Rock Solid adds £15–£35 per m³ plus VAT. That is £18–£42 with VAT.
- Waiting time: Heidelberg gives 30 minutes free to unload. MyBuilder says after that it is £2–£3 a minute, VAT not made clear.
- Pump: Checkatrade says £280–£300 a day for a line pump. EasyMix's starts from £275. Neither says if VAT is in.
Ask about all of these before the day of the pour. Then type any per-load fee and any per-m³ extra into "Change prices" above.
Laid concrete prices per m² (base, slab, drive)
If you pay someone to lay it, cost guides give these prices per square metre. They include labour and materials. None says if VAT is in.
| Job | Price per m² | Who says |
|---|---|---|
| Laid slab | £65–£85 | MyBuilder |
| Shed or garden base | £40–£80 | MyBuilder |
| Garage or heavier slab | £60–£140 | MyBuilder |
| Slab with steel mesh | £90–£120 | MyBuilder |
| Concrete drive | £95; £80–£100; £85–£135 | Checkatrade; MyBuilder; MyJobQuote |
| Imprinted (stamped) drive | £75–£90 (£80–£110 on its driveway page) | Checkatrade |
| Break out an old drive | +£30–£50 | MyBuilder |
MyBuilder adds that labour in London and the South East costs 15–20% more.
Whole drives cost less per m²
| Drive | Total | Per m² |
|---|---|---|
| 20 m² | £2,300 | £115 |
| 50 m² | £4,750 | £95 |
| 100 m² | £7,500 | £75 |
These come from only three cost guides, so get quotes. For tarmac (asphalt), see our tarmac calculator. For a block wall, use our concrete block calculator. For footings and foundations, use our concrete footing calculator. For precast concrete fence posts, see our fence post page.
Questions people ask
Why do concrete prices differ across the UK?
Region, mix and load size all change the price. Mister Concrete in Surrey charges £162 for C20 with VAT, not counting delivery. Rock Solid in the Midlands lists £105–£125 for C20/25 with delivery, plus VAT. That is £126–£150 with VAT. MyBuilder says labour in London and the South East costs 15–20% more.
Do ready-mix prices include VAT?
Our middle price of £150 includes 20% VAT. The 4 suppliers behind it, such as Mister Concrete and Rock Solid, quote without VAT, so we added it. Always ask. Two cost guides, MyBuilder and Checkatrade, don't say clearly.
Do suppliers charge extra for small loads?
Some do. MyBuilder says loads under 4 m³ often cost £30–£60 more per m³, which may or may not include VAT. EasyMix advertises no part-load charges.
How much does a concrete pump cost to hire?
Checkatrade says a line pump costs £280–£300 a day, and a boom pump £550–£800. It does not say if VAT is in. Rock Solid's half-day line pump starts from about £400 plus VAT. That is £480 with VAT.
How much does a stamped concrete driveway cost?
Checkatrade's imprinted (stamped) drive guide says £75–£90 per m², about £80 on average. Its driveway guide says £80–£110. Neither says clearly if VAT is in, so get quotes.
What does a concrete shed base cost to make yourself?
For a 2.5 × 1.9 m base at 75 mm, about £440 in 20 kg bags, or £125 mixing your own. A lorry's smallest load costs about £150. That leaves out delivery and mixer hire.
What is the smallest ready-mix order?
Rock Solid takes home orders from 1 m³. Checkatrade says most suppliers set a minimum order of around £500. It does not say if VAT is in.
Where our numbers come from
- Ready-mix price: the middle of 7 prices from 4 UK suppliers (Oct 2026, with VAT)
- Rock Solid Concrete price guide (Midlands ready-mix)
- Heidelberg Materials UK: types of concrete
- Rock Solid Concrete: C20/25 mix uses
- Rock Solid Concrete: C25/30 mix uses
- Rock Solid Concrete: C28/35 mix uses
- Minimum charge: Mister Concrete price page (£625 + VAT)
- No part-load fee: EasyMix Concrete price page
- Part loads: Heidelberg Materials ready-mix pricing guide
- Ready-mix extras: MyBuilder guide (small loads +£30–60 per m³)
- Ready-mix delivery and minimum order: Checkatrade cost guide (a third party)
- Bag price: the middle of 4 prices from 3 UK stores for 20 kg concrete (Oct 2026)
- Bag size: Blue Circle Multi-Purpose Concrete data sheet (20 kg makes about 0.01 m³)
- Cement price: the middle of 7 prices from 3 UK sellers (25 kg, Oct 2026)
- Mix ratios and 25 kg bags: Heidelberg General Purpose cement data sheet
- Bulk bag prices: the middle price from 3 UK sellers each (Wickes, Tippers, Lawsons; Oct 2026)
- Cement and stone per m³: BS 8500-2 Table 10 (as copied by Pavingexpert)
- Shed base: Heidelberg Materials guide (75 mm concrete minimum)
- Laid concrete prices: MyBuilder guide
- Concrete drive cost: Checkatrade guide (about £95 per m²)
- Concrete drive cost: MyBuilder guide (£80–100 per m²)
- Tarmac per tonne, resurfacing and drive surfaces: MyJobQuote (VAT not stated)
- Imprinted concrete cost: Checkatrade guide (£75–90 per m²)
- Drive mix: Concrete Society (PAV1 for house drives)
- Concrete weight: Cemex concrete FAQs (about 2.4 tonnes per m³)
- Full loads, barrows and mixes: Heidelberg Materials UK merchant guide
- Extra for spills: Sakrete slab calculator (10%)
Made by BuildersCount. Last checked 4 Oct 2026.
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