Paver Base Calculator

A paver project lasts only as long as its base. Enter your area and the type of project, and this calculator works out how much compacted gravel base and bedding sand to order, how deep to dig, how many pavers to buy and how much edging you need.

The layers of a paver installation

These are common ranges from installation guides; follow the paver manufacturer’s instructions and local conditions — poorly draining or frost-prone soils need more base.

The formulas

Loose gravel compacts, so order extra — allowances of 10–20% are common. A cubic yard is 27 cubic feet.

Worked example

A 12 × 16 ft patio (192 sq ft) on firm soil with a 4-inch base: 192 × 4 ÷ 12 ÷ 27 = 2.37 cu yd, plus 15% for compaction = 2.73 cu yd, about 3.8 tons of crushed stone. One inch of bedding sand is 0.59 cu yd (about 0.80 tons). With 4 × 8 in pavers and 8% waste, that’s 934 pavers, and about 56 ft of edge restraint. Digging depth is 4 + 1 + 2⅜ ≈ 7.4 inches below the finished surface.

Installation steps

1. Mark the area and call before you dig to locate utilities.
2. Excavate to depth, sloping about 1/8–1/4 inch per foot away from buildings for drainage.
3. Compact the subgrade; lay geotextile if the soil is soft.
4. Add base in 2–3 inch lifts, compacting each with a plate compactor.
5. Screed the bedding sand level over rails — don’t compact it yet.
6. Lay pavers in your pattern, cutting edges with a saw or splitter.
7. Install edge restraints.
8. Compact the pavers, sweep in joint sand and compact again.

Common paver patterns and waste

Diagonal and herringbone layouts need more cuts at the edges, so order more pavers. Buy all your pavers from one production batch where possible, as colours vary between batches, and keep a few spares for future repairs.

Drainage and slope

Water is the main enemy of a paver installation. Build the base with a slope of about 1/8 to 1/4 inch per foot away from the house — roughly 1.5–3 inches over 12 feet — and make sure the surrounding ground can take the runoff. On clay soils that drain poorly, a thicker base, geotextile and in some cases a drainage pipe along the low edge are common solutions. Permeable paver systems use open-graded stone instead of dense base and are designed to let water soak through; they follow different base specifications.

Driveways vs patios

Driveways carry concentrated wheel loads, so they need a deeper base, thicker pavers (often 80 mm / 3⅛ inch) and a pattern that interlocks well, such as 45° or 90° herringbone. Patios and walkways carry foot traffic and furniture and can use a thinner base and standard 60 mm pavers on well-drained soil. If a patio might ever carry a vehicle — a garden tractor, a hot-tub delivery — build it to the driveway specification.

Renting a plate compactor

• Most tool-rental shops rent plate compactors by the half day or day.
• Compact the base in lifts of about 2–3 inches for the best density.
• Slightly damp base material compacts better than bone-dry or soaking wet.
• Use a pad on the compactor when compacting pavers to avoid chipping.
• Wear hearing and eye protection and steel-toe boots.

Choosing base material

• Use angular crushed stone with fines (often sold as road base, crusher run or “paver base”) — it locks together when compacted.
• Avoid rounded pea gravel for the base; it doesn’t compact.
• Use coarse, washed concrete sand for bedding — not play sand or stone dust in many manufacturer guides.
• Polymeric joint sand reduces weeds and washout; follow its curing instructions.

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