How Much Does a Gravel Driveway Cost in Florida?
Two national cost guides put a new gravel driveway at about $1 to $4 a square foot. A third guide lists $4 to $10 a square foot for materials and installation. On a driveway 10 feet wide, that is about $10 to $100 per foot of length.
Hauling runs $100 to $500 a load in one guide. The rocks covered here run about $11 to $90 a ton. These are published market numbers, not our price list. For a number on your own lot, start with our gravel driveway installation page.
What does a gravel driveway cost per foot?
Most guides price driveways by the square foot. A driveway 10 feet wide has 10 square feet in each foot of length, so multiply by 10.
| What is priced | Published market range | Kind of source |
|---|---|---|
| Gravel driveway, installed | $1 to $4 per square foot | two national cost guides |
| Gravel driveway, installed | $4 to $10 per square foot | a third national cost guide |
| Crushed concrete driveway, installed | about $2.50 per square foot on average | a national cost guide |
| Crushed concrete, rock only | $11 to $53 per ton | a national cost guide |
| Crushed limestone (limerock is a Florida limestone) | $25 to $40 per ton | national cost guides |
| Crushed shell | $20 to $90 per ton | national cost guides |
| Crushed stone, delivered (57 stone is one size) | $30 to $60 per ton | a national cost guide |
| Hauling one load | $100 to $500 | a national cost guide |
| A truckload delivered and spread | $1,350 and up | a national cost guide |
| Grading the path | $1 to $3 per square foot | national cost guides |
| Culverts or drains | $500 to $2,000 | a national cost guide |
| Driveway permit | $50 to $300 | national cost guides |
One guide’s driveway, 100 feet long and 10 feet wide, lands at $4,000 to $10,000. Another prices a private road a tenth of a mile long and 16 feet wide at $10,600 to $33,920.
What does a load of driveway rock cost?
A 10-wheel dump truck carries about 12 to 20 tons, one guide says. In the guides, delivery alone runs $10 to $25 a ton. In one guide, a truckload delivered and spread starts near $1,350.
How many loads does a driveway take? One guide figures a ton covers about 60 to 80 square feet at 4 inches deep. So a driveway 100 feet long and 10 feet wide needs 13 to 17 tons, about one truckload. At 8 inches deep it takes about 33 tons, or two to three loads.
Which rock do Florida driveways use?
The Florida Department of Transportation’s specifications list limerock, shell, shell rock, coquina and recycled concrete as base materials. Size No. 57 is one of the standard stone sizes in the same book.
- Crushed concrete. Old concrete, crushed into rock. In the national guides, it sits near the low end of rock prices.
- Limerock. The state describes it as limestone of marine origin. It is a standard base rock under Florida roads.
- Shell and coquina. Coquina is broken shell that nature cemented into rock. One guide notes that crushed shell drains well and gives a white or cream surface.
- 57 stone. Crushed stone from 1 inch down to about 3/16 of an inch, with almost no fines. One guide favors 3/4-inch to 1-inch crushed stone for the top layer.
How deep should a gravel driveway be?
Most guides call for at least 4 inches of rock. For cars, 4 to 6 inches is the common range. One guide sets 5 to 6 inches as the floor. It calls for 8 to 12 inches under trucks or RVs.
Layers do the work. A base of mixed sizes, dust included, packs tight when compacted. One guide suggests a 3- to 4-inch base with 2 to 3 inches of top rock.
Why do drainage and the culvert at the road matter?
Federal climate normals put Melbourne at about 51 inches of rain a year. The local weather service calls June through September the wettest months. Much of Brevard sits on flatwoods sand that federal soil surveys call poorly drained. In the wet season, the water table can rise to within 18 inches of the surface.
That is when a low driveway holds water and ruts. One guide warns that poor grading leads to puddles and erosion. The fix is grading, with the surface sloped so rain runs off. Low ground may need fill dirt first, which is excavating and dirt work.
Where a road has a roadside ditch or swale, the driveway has to cross it. A culvert pipe under the driveway lets that water pass. Brevard County’s road code says a driveway may not interfere with the drainage of the road.
When the county requires a private culvert, the application gives the pipe’s size and material and how deep it sits. For a new home’s driveway, the code has the owner or the owner’s representative install it. One national guide puts culverts or drains at $500 to $2,000.
Do you need a permit for a driveway in Florida?
Usually, where the driveway meets a public road. In unincorporated Brevard County, building or relocating a driveway in a county road or easement takes a permit. The county Public Works Department issues this right-of-way and easement permit.
With a new house, you may apply for it alongside the building permit. If the house needs the driveway for access, no certificate of occupancy issues until the driveway passes final inspection. Without a building permit, the code sets a 15-day review and a 12-month permit.
Florida’s water rules add their own permit for some work. They exempt a culverted driveway over a man-made ditch, within limits. One limit is a single pipe no wider than 24 inches.
On a state road, the Florida Department of Transportation requires a connection permit for a new or altered driveway. Inside city limits, call that city’s permit office. National guides put a driveway permit at about $50 to $300. Our site preparation planning covers which permits apply to your lot.
What drives the price of a gravel driveway?
- Size. Length and width set the tons. Guides rank size as the biggest cost factor.
- Depth. Going from 4 inches to 8 inches doubles the rock.
- The rock. Shell, crushed concrete, limerock and 57 stone each price differently.
- Haul distance. One guide cites about $5 a mile for delivery.
- Clearing the path. Trees and palmettos come out first. See what land clearing costs per acre.
- The road edge. A culvert adds cost, and so does fill for low ground.
- Access. Hard-to-reach sites raise labor and machine charges, one guide notes.
How do you get a real number for your driveway?
The guide numbers set a range, and your lot sets the price. We build new dirt and gravel driveways and access roads on rural lots and job sites. We grade the base, then lay the rock and press it down. We also regrade and refresh old driveways.
We look at the route and the road edge, then put a free quote in writing. Start on our dirt and gravel driveways page, or call or text (904) 719-0443.