Asphalt driveway cost
An asphalt driveway costs $7 to $13 a square foot installed. Concrete costs a little more and lasts longer; asphalt is cheaper up front and needs sealing. The choice depends more on climate than preference.
National average
$10
per sq ft
On this page
- What it costs
- Asphalt or concrete
- The base, and why cheap driveways fail
- Sealcoating, without the folklore
- Frequently asked questions
- How long before I can park on it?
- Can new asphalt go over the old?
- Why is my driveway cracking in a pattern like crocodile skin?
- Does the season matter?
- Is a gravel driveway a reasonable option?
An asphalt driveway costs $7 to $13 a square foot installed, typically around $10. A typical two-car driveway of 600 square feet is therefore $4,200 to $7,800. Concrete costs $8 to $15 for the same area and lasts longer; asphalt is cheaper up front and needs sealing.
The comparison between them is genuinely close and it depends more on climate than on preference.
What it costs
| Job | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| New asphalt driveway, per square foot | $7 to $13 |
| Two-car driveway, 600 sq ft | $4,200 to $7,800 |
| Long rural driveway, per square foot | $5 to $10 |
| Resurfacing over sound existing asphalt | $3 to $7 per sq ft |
| Removing an existing driveway | $2 to $5 per sq ft |
| Gravel base, per square foot | $1 to $3 |
| Extra base depth for heavy vehicles | $1 to $3 per sq ft |
| Sealcoating | $0.15 to $0.35 per sq ft |
| Crack filling | $2 to $6 per linear foot |
| Pothole repair | $100 to $400 each |
| Apron at the street, concrete | $500 to $2,000 |
| Drainage or a channel drain | $500 to $2,500 |
| Permit, where required | $50 to $500 |
Asphalt or concrete
| Asphalt | Concrete | |
|---|---|---|
| Installed cost, per sq ft | $7 to $13 | $8 to $15 |
| Life | 15 to 25 years | 30 to 40 years |
| Maintenance | Seal every 3 to 5 years | Seal every 5 years, optional |
| Cost of maintenance over 20 years | $1,200 to $3,000 | $500 to $1,500 |
| Cold climates | Better, flexes with frost | Cracks and spalls with salt |
| Hot climates | Softens, can rut | Better |
| Repairs | Easy and nearly invisible | Difficult and visible |
| Usable after installation | 2 to 3 days | 7 days, 28 for vehicles |
| Appearance options | Black | Colours, stamping, exposed aggregate |
In the northern half of the country, asphalt's flexibility genuinely suits freeze-thaw cycles and it does not spall from de-icing salt. In the south, concrete stays cooler, does not soften, and lasts longer.
That is most of the decision, and it is why driveways look different by region.
The base, and why cheap driveways fail
An asphalt driveway is a flexible pavement: it moves with the ground and relies on the base to spread the load.
6 to 8 inches of compacted aggregate base for a residential driveway, more in poorly draining soil or where trucks will park.
2 to 3 inches of asphalt in one or two lifts, compacted while hot.
Drainage. A driveway that holds water fails from underneath. It needs a crown or a cross-fall to shed water, and somewhere for it to go.
A contractor offering a 1.5 inch driveway over 4 inches of base at an attractive price is offering something that will rut and crack in five years. Ask for both numbers in writing.
Sealcoating, without the folklore
Asphalt oxidises in UV and the binder becomes brittle. Sealcoating replaces the surface film and slows that.
The honest version:
- Wait a year after installation before the first seal. New asphalt needs to cure and sealing it too early traps oils and keeps it soft.
- Every three to five years afterwards, not annually. Over-sealing builds a thick brittle layer that cracks on its own and looks worse than bare asphalt.
- Fill cracks first. Sealer is not a crack filler and bridging a crack with sealer achieves nothing.
- Beware the door-to-door offer. Driveway sealing sold by someone with leftover material from another job is a long-standing scam, and the material is frequently diluted.
Done on the right cycle it genuinely extends the life. Done annually it does not.
Frequently asked questions
How long before I can park on it?
Two to three days for cars, longer in hot weather. Avoid turning the wheels of a stationary car for the first few weeks, and keep motorcycle stands and trailer jacks off it, because point loads mark new asphalt.
Can new asphalt go over the old?
Over a sound base with no major cracking or settlement, yes: a 1.5 to 2 inch overlay for $3 to $7 a square foot. Over a failing base it repeats the failure within a few years.
Why is my driveway cracking in a pattern like crocodile skin?
Alligator cracking means the base has failed and the surface is flexing over it. It cannot be sealed or patched away; that area needs removing and rebuilding.
Does the season matter?
Yes. Asphalt needs to be laid warm, and most contractors will not pave below about 50°F. Late spring to early autumn is the season, and the best prices are usually early in it.
Is a gravel driveway a reasonable option?
For a long rural drive, yes, at $2 to $6 a square foot. It needs regrading every year or two and topping up every few years, it is poor for snow clearing, and it is a third of the price.
Read next
Concrete driveway cost$8 to $15per sq ftA concrete driveway costs $8 to $15 per square foot, so a two-car driveway is $4,000 to $9,000. Concrete cracks by nature; control joints decide where.
Driveway repair cost$300 to $3,000per projectRepairing a driveway costs $300 to $3,000, typically $900. What decides which repair you are doing is not the surface. It is whether the base underneath is still there.
Gravel driveway cost$2 to $6per sq ftA gravel driveway costs $2 to $6 a square foot installed. It is a third the price of asphalt and it is not maintenance free: regrading every year or two and topping up every three to five.
Concrete patio cost$8 to $26per sq ftA concrete patio costs $8 to $26 a square foot installed. It is the cheapest hard surface per square foot and the one where the base under it decides whether it lasts twenty years or cracks in three.
Landscaping cost$3,000 to $25,000per projectLandscaping costs $3,000 to $25,000 for a typical suburban garden, typically $8,000. Hardscaping is 60 to 80% of a full budget; plants are cheap by comparison and get all the attention.