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Generator Hut

Paver Calculator

Pavers, base gravel and bedding sand for a patio or path.

Your measurements

4 in for a patio or path, 6–8 in for a driveway.

5% for a running bond, 10% or more for herringbone and circular patterns.

Paving materials

264pavers

264 pavers for 120 sq ft

Area to pave12 ft × 10 ft
120 sq ft
Coverage per paver6 in × 12 in
0.5 sq ft
With waste allowance+10%
132 sq ft
Pavers required
264
Gravel baseat 4 in compacted
1.48 cu yd
Bedding sandat 1 in
0.37 cu yd

The base is the job. A paver patio fails from below — an under-compacted or too-shallow base will settle and rut no matter how carefully the pavers were laid on top of it. Compact the base in lifts of a few inches rather than all at once.

Bedding sand is coarse concrete sand, not play sand or builder's sand. Fine sand migrates and the surface goes wavy within a year.

Edge restraint and polymeric joint sand are separate purchases and are not optional. Without an edge, the perimeter pavers creep outward and the whole field loosens.

Enter the area and the size of a single paver and it returns the paver count along with the gravel base and bedding sand volumes underneath. The base is what determines whether a patio lasts, so it is calculated alongside rather than left as an afterthought.

Why use this tool?

The full stack

Pavers, gravel base and bedding sand together. A paver count on its own leaves out the two layers that actually determine whether the patio settles.

Any paver size

Enter the dimensions in inches and it derives the coverage per unit itself, from small setts to large-format slabs.

Base depth by use

4 inches for a patio, 6 to 8 for a driveway. The field carries the guidance.

Waste by pattern

5% for a running bond, 10% or more for herringbone and circular layouts where every perimeter cut is angled.

How this paver calculator works

A paver's coverage is its width times its length in inches, divided by 144. The area plus the waste allowance, divided by that figure, gives the paver count.

The base and bedding volumes are calculated from the same area at their own depths, then converted to cubic yards. Note that the base figure is the compacted depth — gravel loses roughly a fifth of its loose volume under a plate compactor, so ordering to the compacted figure without allowing for that will leave you slightly short.

Both layers matter more than the pavers on top. A patio fails from underneath, and an under-compacted or too-shallow base will rut and settle no matter how carefully the surface was laid.

How to use it

  1. Step 1: Measure the area

    Length and width of the patio or path. Break irregular shapes into rectangles and calculate each.

  2. Step 2: Enter the paver size

    Width and length in inches as sold. The nominal size is fine — joint sand fills the small difference.

  3. Step 3: Set the base depth

    Four inches for a patio or footpath, six to eight for anything a vehicle will use, and more again on soft or clay soil.

  4. Step 4: Compact in lifts

    When building, compact the base in layers of a few inches rather than all at once. A single deep lift does not compact through.

Example usage

A 12 by 10 patio
120 square feet with 6x12 inch pavers at half a square foot each, plus 10% waste, needs 264 pavers. Underneath that is 1.48 cubic yards of base gravel at 4 inches and 0.37 of bedding sand at 1 inch.
The same patio in large slabs
Switching to 24x24 inch slabs at 4 square feet each drops the count from 264 to 33. Far fewer units to lay, but each one is heavy and the cuts are much harder.
A driveway apron
Keep the paver calculation the same but raise the base to 8 inches. On 200 square feet that doubles the base gravel from 2.5 to 4.9 cubic yards — the base, not the pavers, is where driveway cost lives.

Frequently asked questions

How many pavers do I need?

Divide the area by the coverage of one paver, then add 5 to 10 per cent for cuts. A 6x12 inch paver covers half a square foot, so a 120 square foot patio needs about 264 including waste.

How deep should the paver base be?

Four inches of compacted gravel for a patio or footpath, six to eight for a driveway, and more on clay or poorly draining soil. This is the single most important number in the whole job.

What sand goes under pavers?

Coarse concrete sand, screeded to about an inch. Not play sand and not soft builder's sand — fine sand migrates over time and the surface goes wavy.

Should the bedding sand be compacted?

No. The base beneath it is compacted; the bedding layer is screeded flat and left alone so the pavers can bed into it. Compacting it first defeats its purpose.

Do I need edge restraint?

Yes, and it is not optional. Without an edge the perimeter pavers creep outward under load and the whole field gradually loosens. Edge restraint and polymeric joint sand are separate purchases from the pavers.

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