Thickness of Concrete Pavers and Other Specifications

Pavers for residential patios and driveways are 2 3/8" thick, but there are both thinnner and thicker options for other applications.

How Thick Are Pavers?

Thickness of concrete pavers varies according to the application:

• Pedestrian areas, patios, driveways, and areas subject to limited vehicular use are paved with units 2 3/8" thick.
• Streets and industrial pavements should be paved with units 3 1/8" thick.
• Thin concrete pavers are about 1 1/4" and are applied to existing concrete slabs

How Thick Does Paver Base Need to Be?

Paver base should be between four and six inches thick. Four inches of crushed rock or gravel, with an inch of bedding sand works well for a patio. While you may want to increase the thickness for a driveway so that it will easily support the weight of vehicles.

Paver Specifications

Pavers made in the United States should meet or exceed the requirements established in the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) C 936, Standard Specifications for Solid Interlocking Concrete Paving Units.

Here are the requirements for this standard:

• An average compressive strength of 8,000 psi
• An average absorption no greater than 5%
• Resistance to at least 50 freeze-thaw cycles with average material loss not exceeding 1%
• Conformance to abrasion resistance tests