Paver patio calculator

Every line shows the quantity to buy and how StudSheet got it: the spacing, the waste and the package size, so you can check it before the supply house or the quote.

In Canada (4.88 m × 3.66 m paver patio)

Set to Canada, the Sheet works the job out again for Ontario: metric sizes, bag sizes, the frost depth and the code notes. It doesn't just convert feet to meters. The first lines:

• 4 m³ delivered, Crushed stone base, bulk: 5.18 m × 3.81 m (the patio + 152 mm past the three open sides) = 19.7 m² × 152 mm deep, +20% because it compacts = 3.61 m³ — about 6.4 tonnes. Order it delivered (255 bags otherwise). No stone dust: it holds water.
• 34 bags, Leveling sand: 17.8 m² × 25 mm + 5% for screeding = 0.48 m³ ÷ 0.014 m³ a bag. Coarse sand, not fine play sand.
• 19.3 m² (≈936 pieces), Concrete pavers: 17.8 m² + 5% for a running bond pattern + 3% for the edge cuts; 48.4 pieces a m² with joints. Buy from one lot number so the color matches; check the pallet’s coverage.
• 6 sections, Paver edge restraint, 2.03 m sections: 12.19 m of open edge (none along the house) ÷ 2.03 m a section.
• 5 bags, Polymeric joint sand, 22.7 kg: 17.8 m² + 10% for topping up ÷ about 4.6 m² a bag for 4×8 brick-style pavers with narrow joints. Wider joints and thicker pavers take more: read the bag’s chart.
• 2 pieces, EMT conduit 1-inch × 3.05 m: Two pipes on the base set the sand at 25 mm; a straight 2×4 screeds between them.

1. Call 811 (NJ One Call) at least 3 full business days ahead and wait for the utility markings.
2. Lay out the patio with stakes and string, and set the strings to fall 1–2% (⅛–¼″ per foot) away from the house.
3. Dig: 9-3/8″ below the finished height (6″ of base + 1″ of sand + 2-3/8″ pavers), 6″ past the open edges; take out the sod and dark topsoil, keep the slope, and compact the soil at the bottom.
4. Base: spread the gravel in 2 lifts of no more than 4″, wet each one lightly, and run the plate compactor over it until it stops sinking; check the slope as you go.
5. Sand: lay the two pipes on the base, fill between them with sand and drag the 2×4 across to screed it flat; pull the pipes and fill their grooves. Don’t walk on it or compact it.
6. Lay pavers: start along a straight edge (the house side), set each one straight down hand-tight against the last, and check the joint lines with a string every few rows.
7. Edges: cut the edge pieces to fit, then set the edge restraint tight against the pavers and spike it into the base about every foot.
8. Compact the pavers with a pad on the plate compactor, two passes in different directions, sweeping sand into the joints as you go.
9. Polymeric sand: with the pavers bone dry and no rain coming, sweep it into the joints, compact again, top up, blow every grain off the surface, and mist it as the bag says.

Must-have tools first, then the ones that help and the ones to rent for the day.

Mistakes that cost a callback or a second trip

• Stone dust as the base: It holds water and heaves (Unilock). Use crushed stone with fines, ¾″ minus, compacted.
• Compacting one thick layer: The plate only packs the top few inches: the rest settles later. 2 lifts of 4″ or less here.
• A base that stops at the pavers: The edges sink first. Run the base 6″ past the open edges, under the edge restraint.
• Too much bedding sand: More than an inch ruts and shifts under feet and tires. Screed 1″ and never walk on it.
• No slope, or a slope toward the house: Water pools or runs into the basement. 1–2% away from the house.
• Polymeric sand on wet pavers or before rain: It hazes the surface and the joints wash out. Bone-dry pavers, a dry forecast, and every grain blown off before misting.

What the calculator assumes

• Patio 16′ × 12′ = 192 sq ft, one long side along the house (no edging or base extension there).
• Base 6″ for a patio on normal soil: Unilock gives 4–6″ for walks and patios, 6–8″ in its tech guide, 8–12″ for driveways, deeper in clay; it runs past the open edges by its depth and is compacted in lifts of 3–4″. Gravel compacts about 20%.
• Bedding sand 1″, not compacted before the pavers go down (Unilock). Bags hold 0.5 cu ft; past about a cubic yard the list orders bulk. Crushed stone weighs about 1.4 tons a cubic yard.
• Pavers: + 5% for the pattern (running 5%, random 8%, herringbone 10%) + 3% for edge cuts; 4.5 pieces a sq ft with joints.
• Polymeric sand about 50 sq ft a 50 lb bag on 4×8 pavers with narrow joints, more on bigger pavers with less joint per square foot (typical; the bag’s chart decides).
• Edge restraint in 6′ 8″ sections, spiked about every foot.
• Soil out: 213 sq ft × 9-3/8″ = 6.1 cu yd, about 8.3 tons (soil about 100 lb a cubic foot), more once it fluffs up: plan where it goes.

The Sheet sets its code notes for the job's state or province. These are New Jersey's and Ontario's; the code reference has more. Always confirm with your building department.

• Call 811 first — it’s the law: In New Jersey, call 811 (NJ One Call) at least 3 full business days before digging. Free. Wait for the utility markings.
• No frost footing: Pavers on a compacted gravel base move a little with the frost and settle back; they don’t need footings below the frost line. A deeper base on clay or wet soil (8″ here) and good drainage keep the heave down.
• Where the water goes: A patio adds hard surface: some towns cap how much of a lot can be paved (lot coverage), and the water off it needs somewhere to go. Slope it 1–2% away from the house, and keep downspouts from dumping onto it (the Gutters Sheet sizes extensions).
• On a slope?: This list counts a patio on fairly level ground. If one side needs a wall more than two blocks high to hold it up, that is a retaining wall: the Garden wall Sheet counts the blocks, drainage and permit.
• Cutting dust: Concrete pavers hold silica: cut them with a splitter or a wet saw, or wear a P100 respirator with a dry saw, and keep others away from the dust.
• Ask your town’s zoning office: A patio on the ground usually needs no construction permit in New Jersey, but towns cap how much of a lot can be paved (lot coverage) and some want a zoning permit. Ask your town’s zoning office.
• Click Before You Dig: Before you dig, request a free utility locate from Ontario Dig Authority (ontariodigauthority.ca) at least 5 business days ahead, and wait for the markings.
• Usually no building permit: A patio on the ground usually needs no building permit in Canada, but lot coverage and grading by-laws apply. Ask your municipality’s building department. Confirm with your building department.

What materials do I need to build a paver patio?

For the worked example, a 16′ × 12′ paver patio, the Sheet counts 8 lines with waste included, starting with crushed stone base, bulk (5 cu yd delivered), leveling sand (34 bags), concrete pavers (208 sq ft (≈936 pieces)), paver edge restraint, 6′8″ sections (6 sections). Each line's math is in the table above. Put in your own sizes in the paver patio calculator and every line is counted again.

How long does it take to build a paver patio, and can I do it myself?

About 62 to 96 hours for the worked example, in 9 steps. StudSheet stamps it DIY OK: you can do this.

What tools do I need to build a paver patio?

21 in all. The must-haves start with mason's line + stakes, line level, tape measure (25 ft), 4-ft level, square shovel, round-point shovel. On the Sheet you mark each one as owned, to buy or to rent.

Stuck while you build a paver patio? Ask in the Patios and pavers group of the StudSheet community with this Sheet attached. Homeowners who've done it and verified pros answer, and anyone can read it.

• Landscaping and hardscaping for contractors: run this takeoff at your own prices, send the estimate, and get it signed and the deposit paid.
• Build a garden or retaining wall (16′ wall, 2′ tall): Stack a block wall up to 4 ft: base, drainage, courses, caps.
• Concrete slab or footings (10′ × 10′ slab, 4″ thick): Bags or ready-mix yards, gravel base, rebar or mesh and forms for a slab, a pad or footings.
• Pour concrete steps (brick or stone facing optional) (3 concrete steps, 1′ 9″ rise): Forms, base, concrete (bags or a truck), rebar and the finish for a set of outdoor steps and their landing — with the frost and handrail rules where you live.
• All 45 Sheets, across 16 trades.
• Code reference: frost depths, guard heights, stairs, retaining walls.