How much does it cost to pave a brick paver driveway?

Reviewed by Adam Graham remodeling expert. Written by Fixr.com.

If you want a strong, durable, versatile, and attractive driveway, consider laying your driveway with brick pavers. They offer many appearance options while requiring less maintenance than many asphalt and concrete driveways. Bricks come in several shapes and layouts, allowing for various shapes and sizes. This creates a wide range of total project costs.

The average cost to build a brick driveway ranges from $8,500 to $17,500. Most people pay around $11,500 for a 24’ x 24’ double driveway with molded pavers in a herringbone pattern. On the lower end, it is possible to create a 12’ x 24’ single-car driveway with non-dented pavers in an offset pattern for $2,880. At the highest cost, you can create a 24’ x 36’ heated triple driveway with a circular, fully interlocked pattern for three or more cars for $25,000.

Cost to Pave a Brick Driveway

Brick Pavers Cost per Square Foot

The paver’s price is one of the smallest parts of the project cost. Brick pavers start at around $1 a square foot for reclaimed pavers, meaning bricks taken from old roads, sidewalks, and other uses. The brick driveway cost per square foot increases to around $2.50 for new, interlocking pavers. With labor, equipment, a gravel and sand base, and the finishing joint sand, the total cost ranges between $10 and $30 a square foot. Some elaborate or difficult installations can reach $40 a square foot, although most people pay around $20 a square foot for their driveway installed.

Brick Driveway Cost by Size

Your driveway’s size is a large cost factor. Larger areas require more material and labor and have higher costs than smaller ones. Driveways with curves, hills, or other difficult features also have higher costs. Below are the average cost ranges for common sizes:

Small

A small brick driveway could be a single stall or a single driveway and ranges from $2,000 to $8,640. When you want plenty of space to house a single vehicle, a single or single stall’s size ranges from 10’ to 24’. For a small, single vehicle, a single stall has the needed room. However, if you have a large SUV or another vehicle, this is the better option. This makes it large enough for your needs without taking up additional space. If your home uses one to two cars, this is a good driveway size to meet your needs. However, it may be too small for those with additional cars or large vehicles.

Medium-Sized

Paving a medium-sized driveway ranges from $4,000 to $17,280. You can choose from a double driveway or a double stall based on your specific needs. A double stall measures 20’ x 20’, while a double one is slightly larger at 24’ x 24’. Two vehicles fit in these but make sure to consider the size. For two smaller vehicles, a double stall is enough room. However, a double driveway is the better option for SUVs, RVs, or other large vehicles.

Long

A long or triple driveway costs about $8,640 to $25,920 for materials and installation. A long driveway creates a luxurious feel and adds to the visual appeal of the property. These are 24’ x 36’ and work well for people with three or more RVs, trucks, cars, or SUVs. For a larger, longer driveway such as this, it is important to choose the most durable pavers to accommodate the heavy weight of several vehicles.

Brick Paver Prices by Brick Shape

Homeowners can choose from all sorts of shapes to create the driveway of their dreams. Brick pavers can be classified in several ways. Size, shape, manufacturing method, and age all impact the cost of the pavers you choose, but the paver prices do not vary tremendously. Pavers start at $1 per square foot for non-dented, rectangular, square, and other shapes but can be as much as $3.50 for fully interlocked pavers. The labor, area size, and base materials are what impact your project costs more than the paver type:

Non-Dented Pavers

Non-dented pavers cost between $1 and $2 a square foot. Non-dented pavers have straight, smooth sides. They are mostly squares and rectangles and can be laid in several patterns. Square and rectangular pavers can be combined in a stronger pattern than one of the shapes used alone. You can also use the shapes in patterns, such as herringbone.

Rectangular Brick Pavers

Rectangular brick pavers cost between $1 and $2. When most people think of brick pavers, they picture red or brown 4” x 8” rectangular bricks. This is the most common type of brick, and they come in several colors and surface textures. These are not as strong when connected as non-dented pavers. However, they are easy to store, package, and ship to homes or supply stores across the country.

Square Brick Pavers

Square brick pavers also cost between $1 and $2 a square foot. Square brick pavers are less common on their own. They are frequently combined with rectangular pavers. However, square pavers make nice edges or inlaid designs, especially when they are a contrasting color. Square brick pavers are ideal for homeowners who wish to have a symmetrical design across the driveway.

Extruded Pavers

Extruded pavers cost between $1 and $2 a square foot. Extruded pavers are the most common type of brick for driveways and walkways. An extruded paver is made from a long, machine-issued ribbon of clay cut into the shape of a brick before being fired. Extruded pavers have a rougher texture, so they are less likely to be slippery and hold up better to cars.

Interlocked on One Axis

Brick pavers interlocked on one axis cost between $1 and $2 a square foot, just like other standard pavers and shapes. Bricks are stronger if they interlock with one another. This can be done in a few ways. The bricks can be curved or dented to lock together, or you can lock them together in a pattern. If a brick is interlocked on one axis, they are locked by a pattern, such as mixing squares and rectangles or creating a herringbone pattern.

Reclaimed Brick Pavers

Reclaimed brick pavers cost around $1 to $6 a square foot. Reclaimed brick pavers are usually rectangular, and many are 100 years old or older. They are taken from old streets, sidewalks, and walkways, and they still have many years of use left. They are often smoother from wear and have unique coloration. In addition, these brick pavers come in many designs and styles. Many of them have a unique rustic appearance compared to other pavers.

Molded Pavers

Molded pavers work for borders or accents and cost around $2 to $3 a square foot. Molded pavers are bricks formed inside a mold. They are smooth on the top and bottom, so they are rarely used for driveways. Molded pavers work well for driveways, walkways, and patios. They tend to be durable, strong, and age in a way that makes them look great year after year. These pavers come in many colors and styles.

Specialty Shapes

Because there are so many different shapes that can be made from bricks, specialty shapes have a wide cost range from $2 to $10 a square foot for the material. Bricks come in many more shapes other than rectangles and squares. They can be octagons, hexagons, diamonds, or shapes meant to curve that are more narrow on one end than the other.

Interlocked Brick Pavers

Interlocked brick pavers cost between $3 and $6 a square foot. Interlocked pavers are not technically brick, meaning that they are made of concrete to resemble brick and are not made of brick clay. They are a unique way of creating an attractive and highly durable driveway. The individual pavers lock together in a way that makes them stable. The more the pavers interact, the stronger the driveway becomes. This is why some patterns are more durable and more frequently recommended than others. If you like the look of brick, want a durable driveway, and do not mind that your pavers are made of colored concrete, interlocking pavers make a good option.

Cost to Install a Brick Paver Driveway

The cost to brick pave a driveway is between $10 and $30 a square foot, and only a small fraction of that cost is made up of the pavers. The rest is labor, base material, and equipment fees. While several professionals can do this job, the best option is a professional paver installer or a design company. These professionals have the most experience with this sort of work. No inspection is required, but most professionals will want to view the area before providing a quote.

Removal costs are $500 to $600 for the dirt necessary to dig down and add the gravel base or remove your existing driveway and haul it away. Excavation costs can be up to $1,000. This process needs to be done before the new one is installed. You also have delivery costs for all the material, adding another $500 to $600 to the total, plus equipment costs, which adds $1,000. There may also be additional fees, depending on your area and the slope of the driveway.

For a two-car driveway, the paver costs approach roughly $1,300, including extra waste material. In addition, it is roughly $340 for a gravel base and $170 for bedding sand. Most need a fabric layer and a concrete layer, which adds roughly $200 each to the total. Add another $50 for joint sand, and your total materials come in close to $2,260.

The remaining costs are labor, involving the removal of either 12 inches of earth for a new driveway or breaking up and removing an old driveway. This is followed by spreading the base material, sand, fabric, and concrete. Then, the hand-laying of the pavers, spreading of the joint sand, and clean up.

The labor portion of the $11,500 is around $6,000, or slightly more than half. In terms of time, it may take three or four days for the preparation and excavation process. Then about three to four more days to pave the driveway depending on the size of the project, and an additional one to two days to remove and clean up the worksite.

Brick Paver Driveway Repair

The cost to repair a brick driveway varies depending on the amount and extent of the damage. A few damaged bricks are easy and inexpensive to repair, costing just $10 to $50 to replace the bricks. If sand is needed underneath the bricks, this costs $20 to $30 for a 50-pound bag. The most common reason for repairs is tree limbs falling and breaking bricks or roots growing up and eroding the sand. For damage caused by roots of trees, you can expect to pay about $600 to $850 for the brickwork. There may be additional charges to remove the tree.

A damaged driveway needs replacing when the damage is due to a faulty base. In this case, expect the restoration to range from $11,000 to $12,000. While restoration is possible, it is not overly common. With regular maintenance, a brick driveway can often last for several decades. Major repairs or a full replacement is often needed when sinkholes or potholes are created. They can occur due to improper drainage causing erosion, a foundation that was installed badly, or alligator cracks that are not repaired promptly.

Factors Affecting the Cost to Build a Brick Driveway

Many factors impact the cost beyond the size. The pavers and patterns you choose will have some impact since these range in price from inexpensive to more costly. While paver choice is a minor cost difference, costs increase by a much larger amount when you build a new driveway and need to excavate the earth. The process takes a lot of time and hard work, which causes the price to increase. If your driveway has many curves or bends or a significant slope, your costs are also higher due to the need to grade the land. This involves making the area for the driveway one height so the driveway can be installed properly.

In addition, if you need to remove trees or stumps, that adds to the costs. Stumps are less expensive to remove than trees, but both tasks might be needed if the area for the driveway has several trees associated with it. Adding in a drainage system, making sure it is accessible, and adding borders also affect the price for the project. The drainage system prevents erosion and is a necessity for most driveways. Accessibility also matters to ensure the driveway can be used by anyone who needs it. Borders are a visual addition that makes the space look nice rather than having a highly practical use. Installation costs also increase if you choose a unique shape for your paver because this may take the installers longer to complete the job.

Permeable Brick Driveway

A permeable brick driveway is made of brick pavers that limit the amount of rainwater that leaves the roof, moves down the driveway, and ends up in water systems, rivers, and ponds nearby. Non-permeable surfaces allow water to move across a distance picking up fertilizer, oil, and debris, contributing to local pollution. Permeable brick is more eco-friendly and lets water flow through it instead of sending it off in another direction. The cost of permeable paving stones ranges from $15 to $30 per square foot, depending on design and type.

Heated Brick Driveway

For homeowners who want to avoid shoveling snow in the winter months, a heated brick driveway is an option. The basic idea is that a radiant heating system is placed under the surface to help melt ice and snow and keep the area clear, so it is easier to leave and enter. Both electric and hydronic systems are available and have their pros and cons. Electric systems consist of a grid of cables under the driveway, while hydronic uses tubing with non-freezing water that circulates through a boiler to keep the driveway free of ice and snow. Adding heating to a driveway costs $12 to $21 per square foot in addition to the cost of the installation of the driveway itself.

Brick and Grass Driveway

Another option for those who enjoy the look of brick pavers and the beauty of the natural outdoor world is a brick and grass driveway. What sets this option apart is how versatile it can be. For instance, you can have grass in between each row of brick pavers or make a large area of grass in the middle. In addition, it may require fewer brick pavers since part of the surface consists of grass. Adding grass to the pavers also makes it permeable and better for the environment. This type is often used by homeowners who want to install a driveway with a creative appearance. The cost of this driveway will be fairly similar to an all brick paver one but slightly less expensive at $6,000 to $15,000.

Patterns

When most people think of bricks, they think of the most common brick pattern called a running bond or offset pattern. However, this is not the best pattern to use for your driveway from a stability standpoint, and neither is a straight-set pattern with simple rows of bricks. Because neither of these patterns locks the bricks together, the driveway is not strong or durable enough to handle heavy cars and trucks, and the bricks can crack over time.

Patterns that force the bricks together, such as a herringbone or a mix of rectangular and square pavers, are the strongest. Curved patterns are popular for creating a very dramatic appearance, but these do not often have the best results because there is little interlocking. The shape of the pavers also impacts what patterns can be made.

An L-pattern is good for those who want a look that seems random. Different sizes of paving stones are used to create the shape of the capital letter L. This creates a unique look and is extremely durable. Herringbone is another good choice for versatility. The stones are placed at 90 or 45 degree angles to create a zig-zag aesthetic. This is a durable option for use on driveways.

Any pattern beyond straight-set increases the material and labor costs by roughly 10% to 20% because you have more waste, and the installer spends longer putting them together. So, for example, if a running bond pattern was used and the cost was quoted at $5,000, choosing a curved pattern could cause the price to be $5,500 to $6,000 instead.

How Thick Should Driveway Pavers Be?

The thickness of your driveway pavers varies depending on how thick your base material layers are. A thinner base requires your bricks to be closer to 3” thick, but a thicker base could mean you could use bricks 2½” inches in thickness. All in all, you can expect the pavers to range from two to three inches in thickness. Underneath this is a paver base of about four to six inches thick. This includes soil mixed with crushed concrete and is just as important as the pavers.

Driveway pavers cannot be the same bricks you would use on the exterior of the home or even on some walkways or sidewalks. They must be thicker to withstand the weight of cars.

Pros and Cons

Like any driveway material, brick has positive and negative attributes. Brick is attractive, and a brick driveway is very attention-getting and improves your home’s curb appeal. Brick is versatile and can be laid in many patterns and with some color variation.

Clay bricks are environmentally friendly, especially if you use reclaimed material rather than newer bricks. And they are very durable and low-maintenance. They are stain and crack-resistant. If a brick were to crack or stain, you could remove and replace a single brick. This is not the case with concrete or asphalt.

However, brick driveways are very expensive. They cost many times what an asphalt or concrete driveway would cost. While they are very durable, they are also prone to cracking in cold temperatures.

Maintenance

Brick driveways are very low-maintenance. They resist staining and cracking and do not require sealers. Grass grows between the bricks, but this can be solved by packing joints with sand. This can also be prevented through the use of granular weed preventative. If a brick becomes stained or damaged somehow, remove it and replace it with a new one. Paver cleaner and a broom with coarse bristles can be used for regular cleaning. However, it is also a good idea to clean them with a pressure washer once or twice annually. After the driveway is dry, the joints should be repacked with sand.

Brick Driveway Cost vs Concrete

Brick driveways are frequently installed in the same areas where concrete driveways are installed. Both make attractive, durable, and long-lasting driveways. Concrete cracks more easily than brick and is harder to maintain and repair. Concrete costs between $3,460 and $6,910, while the cost for a brick paver driveway runs between $8,500 and $17,500 a square foot. This makes concrete more affordable than brick, even with the additional maintenance and risk of staining or cracking. However, brick tends to last longer and is more eco-friendly than concrete. It can also retain an excellent aesthetic for decades.

Cost of Brick Driveway vs Asphalt

One of the main differences between a brick driveway and one made of asphalt is the price. The average project cost for asphalt is $3,000 to $10,000, while the average cost of a brick paver driveway is $8,500 to $17,500. However, several differences explain why brick pavers are more expensive to create a driveway. For instance, asphalt driveways can easily crack or experience other damage, which is less common with brick. In addition, less maintenance needs to be done with a brick paver driveway. Asphalt is also less energy efficient and sustainable than brick, so pavers are more eco-friendly.

Enhancement and Improvement Costs

Apron

In most cases, for a driveway apron, the average installation cost runs from $10 to $30 per square foot. The apron is the area where the driveway connects with the street. That area of curb can be removed, and brick pavers can be installed for a better look. This is another way to use brick to add additional value to your home.

Sealing

Sealing a brick driveway makes it last longer and typically costs about $0.20 to $12 per square foot. The cost varies based on the sealant used, how much brick is used in the driveway, and how much the labor costs are for the project. Water repellent sealers are the most common option for brick and ensure moisture does not cause staining, mildew, mold, or cracking.

Brick Paver Driveway Extension

The average cost of a brick driveway extension is $10 to $30 per square foot. The purpose of using pavers in this manner is to make a it longer, wider, or both. Placing brick pavers along the edge of an existing driveway gives it a more pleasing appearance. It offers both a practical purpose and an aesthetic one.

Brick Walkway

The average cost of a brick driveway walkway ranges from about $10 to $30 per square foot, with installation included. A walkway made of brick is highly durable and has a pleasing aesthetic. It also adds value to your home, making it a great investment, especially in tandem with a brick driveway.

Paint a Brick Driveway

Expect costs to paint a brick driveway to come in at between $4 and $5 a square foot. Brick is paintable, and if you want to change the color of your driveway, this is easily done. Brick takes color well and can keep the pattern and get a new look at the same time.

Additional Considerations and Costs

• Permits. In most areas, you need a permit to create a new driveway. Speak with your town or city hall to get more information.
• Curb appeal. Brick driveways can improve the curb appeal of your home, which may help improve its value.
• Longevity. Clay bricks are fired to very high temperatures as part of their manufacturing. This helps them withstand extreme weather, which is why so many old bricks can be reclaimed and are still in use.
• Versatility. Brick allows for a lot of creativity and versatility in design, particularly when compared with asphalt. Bricks come in many shades and textures, and the set sizes make it easy to plan and design.
• Environmental friendliness. Brick is a more environmentally friendly option than many other driveway types. Clay can be recycled and last for decades without needing to be replaced.
• HOA. If you have an HOA in your neighborhood, you may need to submit plans to make sure that a brick driveway meets their ordinances.
• Circular driveway. In most cases, it costs anywhere from 10% to 30% more than a straight driveway. The average cost of a brick paver driveway with an S shape, L shape, half circle, or horseshoe will also be more expensive. The process is more complicated than building a straight-line driveway.
• DIY. Building a brick driveway is possible to do on your own but takes a significant amount of time and effort. Most people get better results choosing a professional with experience installing this type of driveway.
• Home value. Driveways can add value to your home, especially when they have interesting materials and designs. The increase in value varies based on market conditions and the typical home prices in your neighborhood.