How much does asphalt cost per square foot and per ton?
A new asphalt driveway typically costs $7–$12.75 per square foot installed. That’s the middle of three national 2026 guides: HomeGuide gives $5–$12 or more, Angi $7–$13 and NerdWallet $7–$15. The price covers grading, base stone, the asphalt, the paving machine and roller, the crew and the contractor’s overhead.
The asphalt itself is sold by the ton. Hot mix typically costs $105–$111 a ton in the prices we found, which come from a North Carolina producer’s plant price list (effective October 5, 2026), the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s 2025 average contract price for asphalt surface, and a 2025 township paving bid in Putnam County, Ohio. Individual figures run from $88 to $113. Those are prices for the mix at the plant or in large public contracts, before anyone spreads it on your driveway.
Small jobs cost more per ton. In the same Wisconsin contracts, asphalt surface for driveways and field entrances averaged $173.33 a ton in 2025, 57% more than the $110.09 for regular road surface. A homeowner’s driveway is a small paving job, so expect a contractor’s price per ton placed to sit well above plant prices.
At plant prices the mix is a small share of the installed price. Paved 3 inches thick, the asphalt for one square foot weighs 35.5–37.5 lb, so with 5% extra it costs $2–$2.25 of each square foot. The rest of the typical $7–$12.75 is base, equipment, labor and overhead.
Asphalt driveway cost by size
The table gives totals at national typical prices for common driveway sizes, both new and as an overlay on an existing driveway.
| Size | New driveway | Overlay or resurface |
|---|---|---|
| 10 × 20 ft · 200 sq ft | $1,400–$2,550 | $300–$800 |
| 40 × 12 ft · 480 sq ft | $3,360–$6,120 | $720–$1,920 |
| 24 × 24 ft · 576 sq ft | $4,030–$7,340 | $865–$2,300 |
| 60 × 12 ft · 720 sq ft | $5,040–$9,180 | $1,080–$2,880 |
| 100 × 12 ft · 1,200 sq ft | $8,400–$15,300 | $1,800–$4,800 |
National typical price ranges, 2026 sources. New driveway: $7–$12.75 per sq ft; Overlay or resurface: $1.50–$4 per sq ft.
The next table gives the tons for the 40 × 12 ft driveway at four compacted thicknesses, priced at plant and public-contract rates. It covers the material only, before the 5% extra and before anyone places it.
| Size | Hot mix at plant prices |
|---|---|
| 40 × 12 ft, 2 in · 5.7–6 tons | $595–$665 |
| 40 × 12 ft, 2.5 in · 7.1–7.5 tons | $745–$835 |
| 40 × 12 ft, 3 in · 8.5–9 tons | $890–$1,000 |
| 40 × 12 ft, 4 in · 11.4–12 tons | $1,190–$1,330 |
Plant and public-contract prices, 2025–2026, before placement and before 5% extra. Hot mix at plant prices: $105–$111 per ton.
New driveway vs overlay vs resurfacing
An overlay is a new layer of asphalt paved over the old driveway. It typically costs $1.50–$4 per square foot: NerdWallet gives $3–$7 for an overlay and Angi $1–$4 for resurfacing with a 1 to 2 in layer, or $500–$2,000 in total. For a 40 × 12 ft driveway that’s $720–$1,920, against $3,360–$6,120 for a new one. A 2 in overlay on that driveway is 5.68–6.0 tons of hot mix, $595–$665 at plant prices.
An overlay reuses the old driveway as its base, so it only works where that base is still sound. If the old asphalt has to come out, HomeGuide prices removal at $3–$7 per square foot (a single source), which makes a tear-out and new driveway $10–$19.75 per square foot, or $4,800–$9,480 for 480 square feet. Angi’s figure for full replacement is $8–$15 per square foot.
Because of that spread, asphalt estimates can range from a few dollars to over $15 a square foot. A quote of $2–$4 a square foot matches an overlay; no source we found prices a new driveway that low. A $7–$13 quote fits a new driveway on prepared ground. Quotes above $15 are higher than any source’s figure for a new driveway, so expect them to include tearing out the old one, extra base for soft soil, drainage work or difficult access. Ask each contractor to name which job they’re quoting.
Thickness, rollback and tons
The Asphalt Pavement Association of Oregon’s design guide gives 2.5 inches of compacted asphalt for driveways with very light traffic. The calculator’s example uses 3 inches. Any thickness on a quote should be the compacted figure. Crews lay hot mix 20–25 percent thicker than the finished depth because the roller presses it down, so a 3 in driveway goes down about 3.6 to 3.75 inches loose. That figure comes from state transportation department inspection manuals in New York and Alaska and from Asphalt Institute engineers.
A low quote can save money on thickness without you seeing it. On a 480 sq ft driveway every extra half inch is 1.42–1.5 tons of hot mix, $150–$165 at plant prices, and every inch 2.84–3.0 tons, $297–$334. A driveway quoted at 3 inches but laid at 2 would use 5.68–6.0 tons instead of 8.52–9.0. Ask for the compacted thickness in writing and for the delivery tickets, which show the tons that arrived. The asphalt calculator turns any area and thickness into tons.
Cheaper options: asphalt millings and tar-and-chip
Asphalt millings are old pavement ground up and sold loose. HomeGuide, at $10–$20, is the only national guide in our survey that prices them by the ton. Two suppliers in our survey sell recycled asphalt by the yard: $32.99 a cubic yard at a Puyallup, Washington yard for pickup and $61.10 at an Arvada, Colorado supplier. HomeGuide prices a 20 × 20 ft two-car millings driveway, 6–8 tons, at $800–$2,000 installed.
For the 40 × 12 ft driveway rolled to 3 inches, Wisconsin DOT’s figures for rolled recycled asphalt base (1.64–1.71 tons per cubic yard) give 7.3–7.6 tons, about $75–$150 of millings at $10–$20 a ton. Loose, before rolling, that’s about 4 to 4.4 inches deep.
Check whether a quoted millings price is delivered. The Puyallup price is for pickup, and that supplier charges $80 to deliver within 20 miles plus $5 a mile beyond; national figures for a bulk delivery run $50–$150 a load. A truckload price is the tons on the truck times the price per ton plus delivery, so ask the hauler how many tons the truck carries. At $10–$20 a ton, every 10 tons is $100–$200 before delivery. Screened millings have the oversized chunks taken out; we didn’t find a source pricing screened against unscreened, so ask the supplier to quote both.
Tar and chip, also called chip seal, is a layer of hot liquid asphalt sprayed over a compacted gravel base, with stone chips spread on top and rolled in. The national guides in our survey disagree widely on what it costs, so we don’t give a typical range; get it quoted per square foot beside a regular asphalt quote.
Base preparation and drainage
The Oregon guide sets the aggregate base under a driveway by how firm the soil is: 4 inches on excellent subgrade, 8 on good and 12 on fair. Crusher run is a common base stone, and rolling packs it down, so each row below includes a third extra for compaction. For the 40 × 12 ft driveway, with that allowance and 5% for waste, at the typical $24–$34 a ton:
| Subgrade | Compacted base | Loose order | Crusher run | Stone cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 4 in | 8.28 yd³ | 10.1–12.4 tons | $240–$420 |
| Good | 8 in | 16.55 yd³ | 20.1–24.8 tons | $485–$845 |
| Fair | 12 in | 24.83 yd³ | 30.2–37.2 tons | $725–$1,270 |
Delivery adds $50–$150 a load. On fair soil the base stone can cost more than the asphalt that goes on top of it, which is one reason quotes for the same size driveway differ.
Water under the pavement softens the base, so the grade matters as much as the stone. Ask which way the driveway will slope, where the water will go and whether the edges will be supported.
Asphalt vs concrete vs gravel
For a 24 × 24 ft driveway, national typical prices give $4,030–$7,340 for new asphalt, $3,740–$7,630 for concrete and $575–$2,740 for gravel, whose price sources disagree widely. Asphalt and concrete cost about the same to install, but asphalt can be resurfaced with an overlay at $1.50–$4 per square foot instead of being replaced. For the other two materials, compare concrete driveway prices and gravel driveway prices, or price all three for your own size with the driveway cost calculator.
Sealcoating and upkeep
Sealcoating is a thin coating brushed or sprayed over the asphalt surface. National guides in our survey don’t agree well enough on its price for us to list one, so ask your paving contractor when the first coat should go on, how often after that, and what they charge. For longer-term budgeting, an overlay at $1.50–$4 per square foot is the main cost to plan for: $720–$1,920 for a 480 sq ft driveway at today’s prices.
Can you pave an asphalt driveway yourself? A 40 × 12 ft budget
Hot-mix asphalt arrives hot and has to be spread with a paving machine and rolled before it cools, so a new asphalt driveway is a contractor job. A materials budget still shows where the money goes. For the 40 × 12 ft driveway at 3 inches on 8 inches of crusher run, the materials come to:
- Hot mix: 8.95–9.45 tons with 5% extra, $935–$1,050 at plant and public-contract prices
- Base: 20.1–24.8 tons of crusher run, $485–$845, plus $50–$150 delivery
- Materials total: $1,470–$2,040
Paved by a contractor, the same driveway typically runs $3,360–$6,120. In Wisconsin’s highway contracts, placed driveway asphalt averaged $173.33 a ton, which would be $1,550–$1,640 for this driveway’s hot mix, placed, before any base or grading. The people running the paver and roller earned a national median of $25.64 an hour in May 2025 (paving, surfacing and tamping equipment operators, Bureau of Labor Statistics), and construction laborers $22.66.
Millings are the do-it-yourself option. Spread and rolled to 3 inches, the same driveway needs about 7.3–7.6 tons: $75–$150 of material plus $50–$150 delivery, so $125–$300 before you rent a roller or plate compactor.
What to ask a paving contractor
- Is this a new driveway, an overlay or a tear-out and replace?
- What’s the compacted thickness of the asphalt, and how many tons do you expect to use?
- How thick is the stone base under the asphalt, and which stone?
- Who removes the old surface, and are disposal fees included?
- Which way will it slope, and how will the edges be finished?
- When should it first be sealcoated?
- How long does this price hold if the paving date moves?
- What does the warranty cover, and for how long?
How to read an asphalt driveway quote
First, find out which job the quote is for. A new driveway and an overlay are priced on different scales, so compare each quote with the right range: $7–$12.75 per square foot for new, $1.50–$4 for an overlay.
Then check the tons against the area. At 3 inches compacted, 480 square feet takes 8.52–9.0 tons before waste. Divide the tons on the quote by the square feet and by the inches; at 142–150 lb per cubic foot, each square foot needs 11.8–12.5 lb of hot mix per inch of thickness. A quote with far fewer tons than that is probably thinner than it says.
The asphalt cost calculator above has a quote box. Choose New or Overlay in the Job menu, enter the size and the total, and you’ll see your price per square foot next to the matching range. If the quote includes removing old asphalt, take that line out before checking, or tick the removal box to see the typical total with removal.