CONCRETE · PROJECT PLANNING

What should a concrete driveway quote include?

Before you compare the totals, check that each contractor is pricing the same driveway. This checklist helps you turn a rough number into a clear scope of work.

A quote that says “new concrete driveway” leaves room for different assumptions. One contractor might include removing the old surface. Another might expect that work to be finished before the crew arrives. Start with a description that each contractor can respond to.

Start with the area and the work

Give each contractor the same description: where the driveway sits, how you use it, what is there now and what you want to change. Ask them to confirm the dimensions at the site. Photos can help explain the job, but do not treat them as a substitute for a site assessment.

The FTC recommends written estimates that cover the work, materials, completion date and price. It also recommends asking why estimates differ instead of choosing on the total alone. Source: FTC contractor guidance.

Ask what happens before the concrete arrives

• Removal: Is breaking up and taking away the existing surface included?
• Preparation: What excavation, base preparation and compaction does the contractor propose?
• Water: How will the finished surface drain, and what happens at the garage and street?
• Access: Will the crew need to cross a lawn or remove a gate? Who puts that area back?

These are questions for the contractor to resolve for your site. Ask them to explain any work they cannot price until they inspect or open up the area.

Get the slab and joint plan in writing

Ask for the proposed thickness, concrete specification, finish and any reinforcement. Have the contractor explain how their choices fit the intended use of your driveway. A passenger-car driveway and an area used by heavier vehicles should not be priced from an unexplained assumption.

Ask where the joints will go. Concrete changes size with moisture and temperature. Contraction joints help control where cracks occur; isolation joints allow adjoining parts to move separately. Joints do not mean the contractor can promise that concrete will never crack. Source: NRMCA, Joints in Concrete Slabs on Grade.

Include curing and your return to the driveway

Curing means maintaining suitable moisture and temperature after placement so concrete can develop its intended strength and durability. It starts after placement and finishing. Ask what curing method is included, who carries it out and how long it must continue for your job. Source: NRMCA, Curing In-Place Concrete.

Get separate instructions for walking on the surface and bringing vehicles back. Ask how weather could change the schedule. Keep that written plan with the quote rather than relying on a general rule you found online.

Compare a complete proposal

Use this final checklist with every contractor:

• Measurements, removal and preparation are clear.
• The slab, finish, joints and drainage plan are described.
• Curing, access and cleanup responsibilities are assigned.
• The total, exclusions and payment stages are written down.
• There is a process for agreeing to extra work and its cost.

Check references and any license or insurance documents relevant to your project before you sign. The FTC advises against paying the entire project price in advance. Source: FTC contractor guidance.

If you are ready to describe the job, start a concrete or paving request. PickedPros is a matching service. Contractors provide their own proposals, and you decide whether to hire. For a structural or basement concern, see foundation and basement services.