Real price ranges, plus the three things that explain most of the difference between quotes.
Paver driveways in Edmonton generally run somewhere between $28 and $45 per square foot installed. That is a wide band, and where you land inside it has less to do with the paver you pick than most people expect.
For scale, a standard two-car city driveway is often in the 600 to 900 square foot range once you include the apron and any walkway that ties into it. Do that arithmetic and you get a number that makes people take a breath, so here is what goes into it.
Three line items explain most of the spread
Excavation and disposal
A driveway base is deep, which means a lot of material comes out and a lot of gravel goes in. If there is an existing concrete driveway to break up and haul away, that is a substantial line on its own. If we find soft fill, old rubble or a buried surprise, the number moves.
Base depth
This is usually why one quote is thousands less than another. A shallower base is cheaper today and it is the whole job again in five years. Ask every quote for the excavation depth in inches and the base material by name, and the cheap number usually explains itself.
Access and layout
Front driveways are usually straightforward because a machine can reach them. Curves, circular drives, multiple borders, banding and heavy cutting all add hand labour. A rectangle in a running bond is the cheapest thing we can build; a curved drive with a double soldier border and a contrasting field is not.
Where the paver choice matters
Product cost is real but it is rarely the deciding factor in a quote. Full-thickness driveway-rated pavers from Barkman, Belgard, Expocrete or Techo Bloc are a fraction of the total against excavation, base and labour. This is a bad place to save money and a small place to save it.
How this compares to concrete
A poured concrete driveway costs less up front. What you are buying with pavers is a surface that absorbs ground movement instead of cracking, that can be lifted and reset rather than jackhammered, and that looks like a designed landscape rather than a grey slab. Whether that is worth the difference depends entirely on how long you intend to be in the house.
How to compare two quotes properly
- ✓Excavation depth, in inches, and what happens to the spoil.
- ✓Base material by name and whether it is compacted in lifts.
- ✓Paver name, thickness, and whether it is rated for vehicles.
- ✓Edge restraint type, and polymeric sand by brand.
- ✓What happens if it settles, in writing.
If both quotes answer all five the same way, go with the crew you trust.