PSA: Found a huge discrepancy in gravel quotes for a driveway

I was getting quotes for a 40-foot driveway re-grade and gravel top-up. Three contractors quoted between $1,200 and $1,500, but one guy quoted $850 from the same pit. Turns out he was using a different spec of gravel, Class 2 instead of Class 1, which is softer and won't hold up to winter plowing. Check what grade of base material they're actually pricing for, because the cost difference can be $300 easy.

2 comments

2 Comments

the_robin1mo ago

Funny enough, I learned this the hard way when I redid my own driveway a few years back. Thought I was being smart by going with a cheaper quote, but after the first plow pass it looked like a gravel pit exploded under my truck. My wife still brings it up every time she crunches out the front door. Now I make sure to ask for the specific gravel number code and not just the price. Lesson learned, wallet lighter.

finleyh891mo ago

Man @the_robin I feel your pain. My buddy used that "bargain gravel" and now his driveway looks like a crater range after one snowstorm. The wife jokes about it every spring when she's picking rocks out of her flower beds. Funny how saving $300 on gravel ends up costing you a lot more in pride and marriage points.