Brick vs Paver vs Concrete Patio: Cost, Install Difficulty and Lifespan

Three materials dominate residential patios: poured concrete, concrete pavers and clay brick. They are not interchangeable - each has a different cost, install difficulty, lifespan and look. A 200 sq ft patio runs $400-800 in materials for poured concrete, $1,200-2,400 for pavers and $1,400-2,800 for clay brick. Labor cost reverses the order. Here is how to actually choose.

How much does each material cost per square foot?

Materials only (no labor), typical 2026 US pricing:

• Poured concrete: $2-4 per sq ft for 4 inch slab (concrete + rebar + gravel base)
• Concrete pavers: $6-12 per sq ft (pavers + base gravel + bedding sand + polymeric joint sand)
• Clay brick: $7-14 per sq ft (brick + mortar + sand + base prep)

Add labor and the comparison flips: a concrete pour goes fast (a 200 sq ft slab is a one-day job for a 2-3 person crew), while pavers and brick are labor-intensive (3-5 days for the same area). Hired-out, paver patios often cost about the same per square foot installed as poured concrete because the materials savings on concrete is offset by the higher labor on pavers - but pavers last 2-3x longer.

What does each material cost in materials for a 200 sq ft patio?

Worked example for a 200 sq ft patio (10x20 ft), all calculations done in the calculators below:

Poured concrete: A 4 inch slab is 67 cu ft = 2.5 cubic yards. Bagged 80lb concrete: 124 bags (about $750). Ready-mix delivered: $400-500 at typical local prices. Add rebar (#4 on a 16 inch grid = ~250 linear ft = 16 sticks = $80-120) and gravel base (1.5 cubic yards = $40-80 bulk). Total: $520-750. Run your specific dimensions in the concrete calculator.

Concrete pavers (6x9 inch, running bond): 800 pavers including 5% waste (about $1,200-2,000 depending on style). Base gravel 4 inches deep: 2.5 cubic yards (~$80 bulk). Bedding sand: 0.5 tons (~$30). Polymeric joint sand: 2-3 bags (~$60). Total: $1,370-2,170. Detailed breakdown in the paver patio calculator.

Clay brick (modular 7-5/8 x 2-1/4 x 3-5/8 in laid flat): About 940 bricks per 200 sq ft including 10% waste (clay brick is roughly $0.60-1.20 each = $560-1,130). Mortar: 7 bags 70lb (~$60). Sand: 1 cubic yard (~$40). Base gravel: ~$80. Total: $740-1,310. Full count in the brick calculator.

How long does each one last?

• Poured concrete: 25-30 years before significant cracking. Hairline cracks start within 1-3 years and grow. Cannot be repaired - once it cracks badly, it has to be broken out and re-poured.
• Concrete pavers: 50+ years. Individual pavers can be lifted and replaced if damaged. Joint sand needs refreshing every 5-10 years.
• Clay brick: 75-100 years. Clay does not fade like concrete pavers. Individual bricks can be replaced. Mortar joints need re-pointing every 25-50 years.

The longevity gap is real and significant. Over 50 years of ownership, a brick or paver patio is often the cheapest option even though it costs 2-3x more upfront. A concrete slab needs to be torn out and re-poured at least once in that window.

Which is easiest to install yourself?

Ranked from easiest to hardest for DIY:

1. Poured concrete: hardest. Mixing, forming, pouring, finishing and curing concrete is a skill that takes years to master. Get one mistake (water content, finishing too early or too late, no expansion joints) and the slab cracks within months.
2. Clay brick on sand: moderate. Brick is small, predictable and forgiving - if a brick is off, you pull it out and reseat it. Mortar-set brick is much harder and is a skilled trade.
3. Concrete pavers on sand: easiest. Modern paver systems are designed for DIY install. The base prep is the hard part; laying the pavers is straightforward.

Most DIYers should pick concrete pavers. The materials cost more than poured concrete but the install is forgiving and any mistake can be fixed by lifting and resetting pavers. Poured concrete looks easy on YouTube and is brutal in practice.

Which looks the best?

Subjective, but the rough consensus:

• Clay brick: most timeless and most expensive looking. Pairs well with traditional, colonial and Mediterranean home styles. Color stays consistent for decades.
• Concrete pavers: most versatile - patterns, colors and shapes for any home style. Premium designer pavers approach the look of natural stone. Budget pavers look like budget pavers.
• Poured concrete: looks utilitarian unless stamped, stained or polished. Stamped concrete can imitate pavers or brick at lower cost but reveals its concrete origin when the surface fades or cracks.

Which holds up best under cars?

Driveway use changes the calculation:

• Poured concrete: standard driveway choice. 5-6 inch slab with rebar handles cars; 6-8 inches for trucks. Cracks are inevitable but functional integrity holds for 20+ years.
• Concrete pavers: excellent for driveways with the right base. 8-12 inches of compacted gravel base required. Pavers flex with the ground and resist cracking better than concrete. The premium choice for driveways but 3-4x the cost.
• Clay brick: generally not used for driveways. Standard brick cracks under car weight. Brick pavers (different from clay face brick) can be used like concrete pavers but at premium pricing.

How to choose

Quick decision framework:

• Tightest budget, hiring it out: poured concrete
• Tightest budget, DIY: still poured concrete - bagged on a small slab is the cheapest material per square foot
• Moderate budget, DIY: concrete pavers - the install is forgiving and the result lasts decades
• Highest budget, want the look: clay brick on a mortared base, professionally installed
• Driveway: poured concrete (budget) or concrete pavers (premium)
• Walkway: pavers or brick - both can be DIY in a weekend

For all three, the base prep matters more than the surface material. A 4 inch compacted gravel base under any surface stops most settling and cracking issues. Skip the base and the most expensive brick patio will heave and fail in three winters.