DIY vs Hire Concrete Pouring: Save Money or Hire a Pro?

What does a $600.00 DIY win mean?

On the defaults — $480 of concrete, $60 of supplies, 8 hours at $45 an hour and a $1,500 pro quote — the DIY cost is $900.00 and DIY wins by $600.00. The DIY cost is the concrete price plus the supplies plus your hours at your hourly value: $480 + $60 + 8 × $45 = $900.00. The win is the pro cost minus the DIY cost — if the win is positive, DIY wins by that much; if the win is negative, hiring wins by that much; if the win is zero, it is an exact tie. A $600.00 saving is real money, but it is not the whole story: a pro carries insurance, guarantees the slab is level and the finish is right, and takes the risk of a pour that sets too fast and a slab that cracks. DIY wins on price; hiring wins on risk. This calculator prices the money — you price the risk.

Three things about the model are worth stating plainly.

First, there is no division here — this is addition and multiplication, not a ratio: $480 + $60 + 8 × $45 = $900.00. Second, the meaning is six hundred dollars saved by pouring the concrete yourself — the price of your time, not the price of the concrete. And third, the DIY cost is displayed to two decimals, half-up, and a DIY cost that displays as $931.23 can sit a hair below the displayed figure: $479.95 of concrete, $59.40 of supplies and 7.5 hours at $52.25 an hour gives 931.225, which displays as $931.23 — all listed in Accuracy & limitations.

The worked example, line by line

Setup: concrete $480, supplies $60, 8 hours, $45 an hour, pro $1,500.

Line 1 — the DIY cost. $480 + $60 + 8 × $45 = $900.00.

Line 2 — the win. $1,500.00 − $900.00 = $600.00.

Line 3 — the check. At $121 an hour the DIY cost is $1,508.00 and hiring wins by $8.00; and at $120 an hour it is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE.

Every branch, checked

Hours 6: DIY $810.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $690.00 — With 6 hours the DIY cost falls to $810.00 and DIY wins by $690.00.

Hours 10: DIY $990.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $510.00 — With 10 hours the DIY cost rises to $990.00 and DIY wins by $510.00.

Hours 12: DIY $1,080.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $420.00 — With 12 hours the DIY cost rises to $1,080.00 and DIY wins by $420.00.

Hours 16: DIY $1,260.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $240.00 — With 16 hours the DIY cost rises to $1,260.00 and DIY wins by $240.00.

Concrete $700: DIY $1,120.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $380.00 — With $700 of concrete the DIY cost rises to $1,120.00 and DIY wins by $380.00.

Concrete $300: DIY $720.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $780.00 — With $300 of concrete the DIY cost falls to $720.00 and DIY wins by $780.00.

Supplies $120: DIY $960.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $540.00 — With $120 of supplies the DIY cost rises to $960.00 and DIY wins by $540.00.

Hourly $60: DIY $1,020.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $480.00 — At $60 an hour the DIY cost rises to $1,020.00 and DIY wins by $480.00.

Pro $1,200: DIY $900.00; pro $1,200.00 — DIY wins by $300.00 — Against a $1,200 pro quote the DIY cost is $900.00 and DIY wins by $300.00.

The reverses, worked backwards

Smallest hourly value where hiring WINS: At the displayed $121 the figures are DIY $1,508.00; pro $1,500.00 — Hiring wins by $8.00. At $120 an hour the figures are DIY $1,500.00; pro $1,500.00 — exact tie — a dead heat, a TIE — so $121 an hour is the smallest hourly value where hiring wins.

Largest hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $100.00: At the displayed $107 the figures are DIY $1,396.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $104.00. At $108 an hour the figures are DIY $1,404.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $96.00 — DIY wins by $96.00 — below the $100.00 target — so $107 an hour is the largest hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $100.00.

Smallest concrete price where hiring WINS: At the displayed $1,081 the figures are DIY $1,501.00; pro $1,500.00 — Hiring wins by $1.00. At $1,080 the figures are DIY $1,500.00; pro $1,500.00 — exact tie — a dead heat, a TIE — so $1,081 is the smallest concrete price where hiring wins.

Smallest hours where hiring WINS: At the displayed 22 hours the figures are DIY $1,530.00; pro $1,500.00 — Hiring wins by $30.00. At 21 hours the figures are DIY $1,485.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $15.00 — DIY wins by $15.00 — no tie — so 22 hours is the smallest hours where hiring wins.

Smallest supplies where hiring WINS: At the displayed $661 the figures are DIY $1,501.00; pro $1,500.00 — Hiring wins by $1.00. At $660 of supplies the figures are DIY $1,500.00; pro $1,500.00 — exact tie — a dead heat, a TIE — so $661 is the smallest supplies where hiring wins.

Smallest pro price where DIY WINS at all: At the displayed $901 the figures are DIY $900.00; pro $901.00 — DIY wins by $1.00. At $900 the figures are DIY $900.00; pro $900.00 — exact tie — a dead heat, a TIE — so $901 is the smallest pro price where DIY wins at all.

A warning about the ties: at $120 an hour the DIY cost is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE, not a hiring win — and at $121 it is $1,508.00 and hiring wins by $8.00. At $1,080 of concrete the DIY cost is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE — and at $1,081 it is $1,501.00 and hiring wins by $1.00. At $660 of supplies the DIY cost is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE — and at $661 it is $1,501.00 and hiring wins by $1.00. At $900 of pro price the pro cost is $900.00 — a dead heat, a TIE, not a DIY win — and at $901 it is $901.00 and DIY wins by $1.00. There is no tie at $107 an hour or 21 hours: at $107 DIY wins by $104.00 and at $108 DIY wins by $96.00; at 21 hours DIY wins by $15.00 and at 22 hours hiring wins by $30.00.

What the defaults assume

The defaults are $480 of concrete, $60 of supplies, 8 hours at $45 an hour and a $1,500 pro quote — DIY $900.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $600.00. With Hours 6, DIY $810.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $690.00. With Hours 10, DIY $990.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $510.00. With Hours 12, DIY $1,080.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $420.00. With Hours 16, DIY $1,260.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $240.00. With Concrete $700, DIY $1,120.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $380.00. With Concrete $300, DIY $720.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $780.00. With Supplies $120, DIY $960.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $540.00. With Hourly $60, DIY $1,020.00; pro $1,500.00 — DIY wins by $480.00. With Pro $1,200, DIY $900.00; pro $1,200.00 — DIY wins by $300.00. With All zero, DIY $0.00; pro $0.00 — exact tie — no concrete, no supplies, no hours, no pro quote — a dead heat. With Concrete $350, supplies $40, 5 hours, $40 an hour, pro $900, DIY $590.00; pro $900.00 — DIY wins by $310.00 — a small job with cheap concrete and a low pro quote. With Fractional inputs (DIY unrounded 931.225, win unrounded 368.375), DIY $931.23 (unrounded 931.225); pro $1,299.60 — DIY wins by $368.38 (unrounded 368.375) — the DIY cost displays as $931.23. With Concrete $1,200, supplies $150, 16 hours, $75 an hour, pro $3,500, DIY $2,550.00; pro $3,500.00 — DIY wins by $950.00 — a big job with expensive concrete and a high pro quote. With Pro $900, DIY $900.00; pro $900.00 — exact tie — a dead heat, a TIE. With Concrete $0, supplies $30, 2 hours, $40 an hour, pro $400, DIY $110.00; pro $400.00 — DIY wins by $290.00 — concrete you already own, so the DIY cost is mostly your time.

A note on the rounding: the DIY cost is displayed to two decimals, half-up. With the fractional inputs the unrounded DIY cost is 931.225 and the unrounded win is 368.375 — they display as $931.23 and $368.38. The page prints the unrounded values so the rounding does not mislead you.

Output · formula · meaning

Who uses this

• The homeowner pouring a patio slab: they learn $480 of concrete, $60 of supplies and 8 hours at $45 an hour costs $900.00 DIY against a $1,500.00 pro quote — and they check the $121 reverse to see the hourly value where hiring takes the lead.
• The renter pouring a small slab: they learn the supplies are the form boards, the stakes, the rebar or mesh and the finishing tools, not the concrete alone — and they check the $1,081 reverse to see the concrete price where hiring wins.
• The weekend DIYer pricing their time: they learn 8 hours at $45 an hour is $360 of their own time — and they check the 22-hour reverse to see the hours where hiring wins.
• The landlord comparing quotes: they learn a $900.00 DIY cost against a $1,500.00 pro quote is a $600.00 win — and they check the $901 reverse to see the pro price where DIY wins at all.

Accuracy & limitations

The math is first-principles: the DIY cost is the concrete price plus the supplies plus the hours times your hourly value, and the win is the pro cost minus the DIY cost — all in dollars, displayed to two decimals half-up. There is no division in this calculator — nothing is ever undefined. At $120 an hour the DIY cost is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE, not a hiring win — and at $1,080 of concrete the DIY cost is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE — and at $660 of supplies the DIY cost is $1,500.00 — a dead heat, a TIE — and at a $900 pro price the pro cost is $900.00 — a dead heat, a TIE. With the fractional inputs the unrounded DIY cost is 931.225 and the unrounded win is 368.375 — they display as $931.23 and $368.38. What the model cannot do is price the risk: it says nothing about a pour that sets too fast, a slab that cracks, or a pro who guarantees the work. It also says nothing about whether the pro quote includes the concrete — check that before you compare, or the comparison is wrong before it starts. Use it to see whether pouring the concrete yourself saves money — then check the concrete, drywall and tile comparisons before you decide the whole job is a DIY job.

Frequently asked questions