Paver Patio vs Concrete Patio: 25-Year Cost Compare

How the paver vs concrete comparison works

A patio has three costs over 25 years, not one: the upfront lay, the replacement, and the resale value at the end. Pavers are laid once and last the full 25 years, so they have no replacement. Concrete is poured twice over 25 years — at year 0 and again at year 20 — because it lasts about 20 years. Pavers are also worth about $3,000 to the house when it sells, while concrete is worth about $1,000; the net cost is the gross cost minus that resale value. Divide by 25 and you have the net cost per year.

At the defaults — 400 sq ft, pavers $22.00/sq ft installed, concrete $10.00/sq ft installed, pavers $3,000 resale, concrete $1,000 resale — the paver upfront is 400 × $22.00 = $8,800.00 and the concrete upfront is 400 × $10.00 = $4,000.00, so concrete wins upfront by $4,800.00. The paver gross is $8,800.00 and the concrete gross is $8,000.00, so concrete wins gross by $800.00. And the paver net is $8,800.00 − $3,000.00 = $5,800.00 while the concrete net is $8,000.00 − $1,000.00 = $7,000.00 — so pavers win net by $1,200.00, or $232.00 a year against $280.00.

The worked example, line by line

Setup: 400 sq ft; pavers $22.00/sq ft installed, $3,000 resale; concrete $10.00/sq ft installed, $1,000 resale; 25-year horizon.

Line 1 — the upfront cost. Pavers: 400 × $22.00 = $8,800.00. Concrete: 400 × $10.00 = $4,000.00. Concrete wins by $4,800.00.

Line 2 — the applications. Pavers last 25 years, so over a 25-year horizon they are laid once. Concrete lasts 20 years, so it is poured twice (years 0 and 20).

Line 3 — the 25-year gross. Pavers: 1 × $8,800.00 = $8,800.00. Concrete: 2 × $4,000.00 = $8,000.00. Concrete wins by $800.00.

Line 4 — the 25-year net. Pavers: $8,800.00 − $3,000.00 = $5,800.00. Concrete: $8,000.00 − $1,000.00 = $7,000.00. Pavers win by $1,200.00.

Line 5 — the net cost per year. Pavers: $5,800.00 ÷ 25 = $232.00/yr. Concrete: $7,000.00 ÷ 25 = $280.00/yr.

Line 6 — the break-even paver price. Pavers tie concrete on net cost when their installed price is ($7,000.00 + $3,000.00) ÷ 400 = $25.00/sq ft. Buy pavers below that and pavers win net; above it, concrete wins net.

Every branch, checked

300 sq ft: the paver upfront is 300 × $22.00 = $6,600.00 and the concrete upfront is 300 × $10.00 = $3,000.00 (concrete by $3,600.00); the gross is $6,600.00 against $6,000.00 (concrete by $600.00); and the net is $3,600.00 against $5,000.00 (pavers by $1,400.00), or $144.00 a year against $200.00. A smaller patio shrinks every number by a quarter, but the winner is the same at every size.

Pavers at $15.00/sq ft: the paver upfront falls to 400 × $15.00 = $6,000.00, so the gross is $6,000.00 and the net is $6,000.00 − $3,000.00 = $3,000.00 against $7,000.00 for concrete — pavers win net by $4,000.00, or $120.00 a year against $280.00. Cheap pavers win gross and net, though concrete still wins upfront by $2,000.00.

Concrete at $7.00/sq ft: the concrete upfront falls to 400 × $7.00 = $2,800.00, so the gross is $5,600.00 and the net is $5,600.00 − $1,000.00 = $4,600.00 against $5,800.00 for pavers — concrete wins net by $1,200.00, or $184.00 a year against $232.00. Cheap concrete wins at every stage: upfront, gross and net.

Resale $0: with no resale value, the paver net is the gross cost: $8,800.00 against $8,000.00 for concrete, so concrete wins net by $800.00, or $352.00 a year against $320.00. Pavers need the resale value to win: without it, the paver upfront is too dear to make back.

Reverse — the break-even paver price: pavers tie concrete on net cost when their installed price is ($7,000.00 + $3,000.00) ÷ 400 = $25.00/sq ft. At $22.00 a square foot pavers are below that, so pavers win net by $1,200.00; at $28.00 a square foot they are above, so concrete wins net. The $25.00 line is where the two patios are exactly equal over 25 years.

What the defaults assume

The model counts lay, replacement, and resale only: it does not count the cost of removing the old patio, the grading, the drainage, the edging, or the sealing. It assumes pavers last the full 25 years and are never replaced — in reality a paver patio in a freeze-thaw climate can heave and need re-levelling, which this model does not count. It assumes concrete lasts 20 years and is replaced once at the same price — in reality concrete prices may rise, and concrete in a mild climate may last 25 years. It assumes the resale values hold: pavers add about $3,000 to a house and concrete about $1,000, but the real numbers depend on the buyer and the market. It assumes prices stay flat for 25 years, which they will not. Rounding convention: money is rounded to cents and all figures are computed from unrounded values, rounded only for display.

Output · formula · meaning

Who uses this

• The homeowner replacing a cracked concrete patio: they learn pavers cost $5,800.00 net over 25 years against $7,000.00 for concrete — and pavers are the patio that stays neat, so the patio that looks better is also the cheaper one.
• The landlord paving a rental patio: they will never see the resale value, but with resale at $0 concrete still wins net by $800.00 — so they pour concrete, knowing the pavers would need 25 years to pay back.
• The homeowner in a freeze-thaw climate: concrete in the cold cracks and needs replacing sooner, and at 15 years it is poured twice in 25 years anyway — so they check the replacement in the calculator before they trust the default.
• The renovator who found cheap pavers: at $15.00 a square foot installed, pavers win net by $4,000.00 — so they buy the pavers before the price goes back up.

Accuracy & limitations

The math is exact for the numbers you enter: the upfront is the area times the installed price, the gross adds the replacement, and the net subtracts the resale value. What the model cannot do is know your yard: pavers in a freeze-thaw climate may heave and need re-levelling, and concrete in a mild climate may last 25 years without a crack. It leaves out removal of the old patio, grading, drainage, edging, and sealing — ask the contractor whether the quote includes those. It assumes the resale values hold, but the real numbers depend on the buyer and the market, and a buyer who plans to re-lay the patio will pay nothing for it. It assumes prices stay flat for 25 years, which they will not: paver and concrete prices move with stone and with cement. For the cost of the pavers themselves, see paver patio cost calculator; for the concrete itself, see concrete cost calculator.