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Asphalt Cost Calculator
See what asphalt costs per ton, per cubic yard, and per square foot, then calculate the total material cost for your project in seconds. Enter your tonnage or dimensions, pick your asphalt type, and get a price estimate built from 2026 public bid prices. Free, no signup.
2026 public bid prices · Per ton, per yard, per sq ft · Regional estimates built in
By Shawaiz Hassan · Updated October 28, 2026
Calculate asphalt cost
Thickness (in)
Total landed cost
$1,240
range $1,070 to $1,420
Tonnage
15.2
tons · incl. 5% waste
Cubic yards
7.4
cu yd
Your project covers 800 sq ft. At 3 inches, 1 ton covers about 55 sq ft.
Material estimate built from 2026 public bid prices picked up at the plant. Small residential orders usually cost more per ton. Get a current quote from your local supplier.
Pricing
How much does asphalt cost?
Hot mix asphalt costs about $70 to $130 per ton picked up at the plant in 2026 public bid tabulations. Bulk high-performance cold mix ran $115 to $230 per ton in a Texas county bid, and recycled asphalt millings cost $10 to $20 per ton for the material. A small residential order usually costs more per ton than these bulk prices, because of minimum charges and delivery.
Those are material-only prices. If you are hiring a contractor, an installed asphalt driveway runs about $3 to $15 per square foot depending on base work and region (HomeGuide lists $3 to $7; Bob Vila lists $7 to $15, updated May 2024). This page covers the material side. For installed driveway estimates, use the asphalt driveway cost calculator.
Hot mix asphalt costs about $70 to $130 per ton picked up at the plant in 2026 public bid tabulations, before delivery and installation.
Why published prices differ. Published hot mix prices differ because they measure different things. Public bid tabulations show what a county or town pays for hundreds of tons picked up at the plant. Consumer cost guides such as HomeGuide list $40 to $80 per ton for material. A homeowner ordering a few tons pays more than either, because of minimum charges and delivery. Installed prices, quoted per square foot or per ton laid in place, add labor, equipment and base work on top. Sources, checked October 2026: Cleveland Metroparks, OH (April 2026), Garrett County, MD (June 2026), Town of Lewisboro, NY (June 2026) and Grayson County, TX (March 2026).
Illustration: getasphaltcalculator.com
By type
Asphalt price per ton (2026)
Asphalt is sold by the ton at the plant and priced differently depending on the mix. These are the prices we could source, checked October 2026.
| Asphalt type | Price per ton (material) | Where the figure comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) | $70 to $130 | Four 2026 public bids, picked up at the plant |
| Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) | $80 to $145 (estimate) | Hot mix bid range plus the roughly 12% premium HomeGuide lists |
| Cold mix, bulk high-performance | $115 to $230 | Grayson County, TX bid: $115 to $135 picked up, $143 to $228 delivered |
| Cold mix, bagged | $8 to $20 per 50 lb bag | HomeGuide |
| Porous Asphalt | $85 to $155 (estimate) | Hot mix bid range plus the roughly 20% premium HomeGuide lists |
| Recycled asphalt millings (RAP) | $10 to $20 | HomeGuide, material only, delivery extra |
| Colored Asphalt | Not priced here | We have no checked source. Ask the plant |
Most residential and commercial jobs use hot mix. If a quote for hot mix sits well outside the bid range, ask which mix it is for, what quantity, and whether delivery is included, because a small delivered order is priced differently from a bulk pickup. Our guide to asphalt price per ton by mix type compares the common mixes side by side, and what asphalt is made of explains why the binder drives most of the gap.
By volume
Asphalt cost per cubic yard
A cubic yard of hot mix asphalt costs about $135 to $255 at 2026 public bid prices. One cubic yard weighs about 3,915 pounds (1.96 tons) at the standard density of 145 pounds per cubic foot, so the per-yard price is roughly double the per-ton price.
One cubic yard of hot mix asphalt costs about $135 to $255 at 2026 public bid prices and weighs about 1.96 tons.
Some suppliers and contractors quote by the cubic yard instead of by the ton, especially for smaller jobs. Use this conversion to compare:
| Unit | HMA price range | How to convert |
|---|---|---|
| Per ton | $70 to $130 | Base unit |
| Per cubic yard | $135 to $255 | Multiply per-ton price by 1.96 |
| Per pound | $0.035 to $0.065 | Divide per-ton price by 2,000 |
By area
Asphalt cost per square foot
The cost per square foot depends on how thick the asphalt layer is. A thicker layer uses more material per square foot, so the price goes up.
| Thickness | Material cost per sq ft | Coverage per ton |
|---|---|---|
| 2 inches | $0.85 to $1.57 | about 83 sq ft |
| 3 inches | $1.27 to $2.36 | about 55 sq ft |
| 4 inches | $1.69 to $3.14 | about 41 sq ft |
| 6 inches | $2.54 to $4.71 | about 28 sq ft |
These are material costs at the plant, using the $70 to $130 per ton bid range. Labor, base work and delivery come on top. Thickness is what moves this number most, and our guide to how thick an asphalt driveway should be covers the standards.
By project
Asphalt cost by project size
Here is what the asphalt material alone costs for common project sizes at 3 inches thick, using the 2026 public bid range of $70 to $130 per ton at the plant. If you would rather look tonnage up than compute it, our guide to how to calculate asphalt tonnage tabulates tons by area and thickness.
| Project | Area | Tons needed | Material cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single car driveway (10 × 20) | 200 sq ft | about 3.6 | $255 to $470 |
| 2 car driveway (20 × 30) | 600 sq ft | about 11 | $760 to $1,415 |
| Wide driveway (20 × 40) | 800 sq ft | about 14.5 | $1,015 to $1,885 |
| Large driveway (1,000 sq ft) | 1,000 sq ft | about 18 | $1,270 to $2,355 |
| Garden path (3 × 100) | 300 sq ft | about 5.5 | $380 to $705 |
| 10 car parking lot | 3,000 sq ft | about 54 | $3,805 to $7,070 |
| Private road (12 × 100) | 1,200 sq ft | about 22 | $1,525 to $2,830 |
For a full installed estimate that includes labor and base, use the asphalt driveway cost calculator.
Bulk buying
Bulk asphalt and truckload pricing
Hot mix is sold in bulk, and minimum orders are typically 2 tons (HomeGuide), because small loads cool too fast in transit. For jobs below that minimum, such as a single patch, see pothole repair cost for the bagged cold mix route.
| Load size | Material cost | Material + delivery |
|---|---|---|
| 2 tons (typical minimum) | $140 to $260 | $150 to $280 |
| 10 tons | $700 to $1,300 | $740 to $1,390 |
| 15 tons | $1,050 to $1,950 | $1,110 to $2,085 |
| 20 tons (full tandem) | $1,400 to $2,600 | $1,480 to $2,780 |
Delivery adds about $4 to $9 per ton within 15 to 20 miles of the plant (HomeGuide). Beyond that, expect to pay more for the longer haul. These figures use bulk bid prices, and a plant may charge a small private order more per ton.
Regional · estimates
How do asphalt prices change by region?
Asphalt prices vary by region with distance from binder terminals and refineries, local aggregate, labor, and how many plants compete for the work. The table below is the same one published on the asphalt price index, and the figures are estimates.
| Region | Estimated HMA at plant, per ton | What the estimate rests on |
|---|---|---|
| Gulf Coast (TX, LA, MS, AL) | $81 to $97 | One checked bid: Grayson County, TX, March 2026 |
| Southeast (FL, GA, NC, SC, TN, KY) | $70 to $130 | National bid range. No bid checked in this region yet |
| South Central (OK, AR, KS) | $70 to $130 | National bid range. No bid checked in this region yet |
| Midwest (OH, MI, IL, IN, WI, MN, MO, IA, NE, ND, SD) | $70 to $93 | One checked bid: Cleveland Metroparks, OH, April 2026 |
| Mountain West (CO, AZ, NV, UT, NM, ID, MT, WY) | $70 to $130 | National bid range. No bid checked in this region yet |
| Mid-Atlantic (PA, VA, MD, NJ, DE, WV) | $72 to $83 | One checked bid: Garrett County, MD, June 2026 |
| Northeast (NY, MA, CT, RI, VT, NH, ME) | $100 to $129 | One checked bid: Town of Lewisboro, NY, June 2026 |
| West Coast (CA, WA, OR) | $70 to $130 | National bid range. No bid checked in this region yet |
Method, as of October 11, 2026. How these estimates are built: the national range is the span of hot mix prices at the plant in four 2026 public bid tabulations (Ohio, Maryland, New York and Texas). A region that contains one of those bids shows that bid's range. A region with no checked bid shows the national range. Each state shows its region's figure, except the four states where we read a bid directly. One bid is not a market survey, so treat every row as a starting estimate and ask a local plant for a quote.
These are material prices at the plant. Delivery adds to the total, and a job far from the nearest plant pays more for the haul. For the state DOT binder indices and the bids behind these figures, see the 2026 asphalt price index.
By state · estimates
Asphalt cost by state (top 15)
Here is the estimated hot mix price per ton at the plant for 15 large states, taken from the asphalt price index. Four of them show a 2026 public bid we checked. The others show their region's estimate.
| State | HMA per ton (est.) | What the estimate rests on |
|---|---|---|
| Texas | $81 to $97 | Checked 2026 public bid |
| Louisiana | $81 to $97 | Gulf Coast estimate (one checked bid in the region) |
| Florida | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
| Georgia | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
| North Carolina | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
| Tennessee | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
| Ohio | $70 to $93 | Checked 2026 public bid |
| Michigan | $70 to $93 | Midwest estimate (one checked bid in the region) |
| Illinois | $70 to $93 | Midwest estimate (one checked bid in the region) |
| Pennsylvania | $72 to $83 | Mid-Atlantic estimate (one checked bid in the region) |
| Virginia | $72 to $83 | Mid-Atlantic estimate (one checked bid in the region) |
| Colorado | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
| New York | $100 to $129 | Checked 2026 public bid |
| California | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
| Washington | $70 to $130 | National bid range (no bid checked in this region) |
Method, as of October 11, 2026. How these estimates are built: the national range is the span of hot mix prices at the plant in four 2026 public bid tabulations (Ohio, Maryland, New York and Texas). A region that contains one of those bids shows that bid's range. A region with no checked bid shows the national range. Each state shows its region's figure, except the four states where we read a bid directly. One bid is not a market survey, so treat every row as a starting estimate and ask a local plant for a quote.
If your state is not on this list, the asphalt price index covers all 50. Enter your local supplier's quote in the calculator for an estimate you can rely on.
The trend
Asphalt price history (2021 to 2026)
We have no consistent year-by-year source for the price of finished hot mix, so this table shows the liquid binder index instead, which state DOTs publish monthly. These are the January and July readings from the Pennsylvania Zone 1 index and the Tennessee Bituminous Index, in dollars per ton of liquid binder.
| Year | Pennsylvania Zone 1, January | Pennsylvania Zone 1, July | Tennessee, January | Tennessee, July |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $406 | $532 | $420.42 | $507.50 |
| 2022 | $555 | $791 | $532.92 | $772.92 |
| 2023 | $594 | $605 | $671.36 | $642.73 |
| 2024 | $572 | $619 | $629.09 | $629.55 |
| 2025 | $609 | $650 | $590.77 | $601.54 |
| 2026 | $614 | $784 | $580.77 | $753.08 |
Binder peaked in the summer of 2022, eased through 2023, and stayed in a narrow band until early 2026. It then jumped between March and June 2026: Pennsylvania Zone 1 went from $588 to $778 per ton. Binder is about 5% of hot mix by weight, so the mix price moves less than the index. The month-by-month figures for eleven indices are on the asphalt price index. Recycled millings are the cheapest way to cut the material bill, priced in our asphalt millings cost guide.
Price drivers
What affects the price of asphalt?
Five things move asphalt prices up or down. They explain why quotes differ and why prices shift year to year.
1. Crude oil prices
Asphalt binder is a product of crude oil refining. When crude oil goes up, the liquid binder that holds the mix together costs more, and that flows into the per-ton price at the plant.
2. Mix type and quality
A basic hot mix for a residential driveway costs less than a polymer-modified mix for a highway or a porous mix designed for drainage. Recycled asphalt millings are the cheapest option but suit base layers and rural driveways.
3. Distance from the asphalt plant
Hot mix has to stay between 275°F and 325°F during transport. The farther the job is from the plant, the more it costs to haul and the more the material cools on the way.
4. Order volume
A small order costs more per ton than a large one, because the fixed cost of loading and dispatching a truck is spread across fewer tons. The public bids on this page are for hundreds of tons, which is why a homeowner should expect to pay more.
5. Season and demand
Paving season runs from late spring to early fall in most of the US, and plants are busiest then. Many northern plants close for the winter, which makes late-season orders harder to fill.
Save money
How to get the best price on asphalt
Asphalt pricing is not fixed. Here are five ways to lower your material cost without cutting quality.
- Ask early in the season. Plants and crews are busiest in midsummer. Asking in spring gives you more choice of dates and time to compare quotes.
- Combine with a neighbor. If two driveways on the same block need paving, one larger order spreads the fixed dispatch cost across more tons.
- Ask for a delivered price. A per-ton price that excludes delivery looks cheaper than it is. Compare every quote on a delivered basis.
- Use recycled asphalt for the base layer. Millings cost about $10 to $20 per ton for material, against $70 to $130 for hot mix at the plant.
- Get three quotes on the same terms. Make sure every quote uses the same unit (per ton delivered, or per square foot installed) and includes delivery, waste, and tax.
Compare units
Asphalt cost per ton vs per square foot: which one to use
Suppliers quote by the ton. Contractors quote by the square foot. Knowing both lets you compare the two.
Use per ton when you are buying material directly from a plant or checking the raw material cost of a project. One ton covers about 55 square feet at 3 inches thick.
Use per square foot when you are comparing contractor quotes, because their price includes material plus labor plus base prep. A contractor quoting $8 per square foot installed is covering everything, while a plant quoting $100 per ton is covering material only.
The calculator above converts between the two, so you can set a contractor's quote against the raw material cost and see how much of the total goes to labor and base.
All 5 types
Asphalt type cost comparison (all 5 types)
| Factor | Hot Mix (HMA) | Warm Mix (WMA) | Cold Mix | Porous | Recycled (RAP) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost per ton | $70 to $130 | $80 to $145 (est.) | $115 to $230 bulk | $85 to $155 (est.) | $10 to $20 |
| Available in bags | No (bulk, typically 2 ton minimum) | No (bulk only) | Yes ($8 to $20 per 50 lb bag) | No (bulk only) | Sometimes |
| Needs hot temperature | Yes (275°F to 325°F) | Yes (lower temp than HMA) | No (apply cold) | Yes | No |
| Durability | 15 to 20+ years | 15 to 20+ years | Temporary (months to a few years) | 10 to 15 years | 5 to 10 years as surface |
| DIY friendly | No | No | Yes | No | Somewhat |
| Best for | Driveways, lots, roads | Cooler weather jobs | Pothole patches, small repairs | Drainage lots | Base layers, rural driveways |
Cold mix is the only type most people can place themselves, because it does not need to be heated. Hot mix and warm mix need paving equipment and have to be laid within hours of leaving the plant.
The method
How to calculate asphalt cost yourself
If you want to check a quote or estimate a project before calling anyone, here is the math.
- 1
Measure the area. Length times width in feet gives you square feet.
- 2
Pick the thickness. Most driveways use 3 inches. Parking lots use 4 to 6 inches.
- 3
Calculate the tonnage. Multiply area times thickness in feet times 145, then divide by 2,000. Example: 800 sq ft at 3 inches = 800 × 0.25 × 145 ÷ 2,000 = 14.5 tons.
- 4
Price the material. Multiply tons by your local price per ton. At $100 per ton, that is $1,450.
- 5
Add delivery. Add about $4 to $9 per ton. For 14.5 tons, that is $58 to $131.
- 6
Add waste. Add 5% to 10% for compaction and spillage. That bumps 14.5 tons to about 15.2 to 16 tons.
- 7
Total material cost. Tonnage with waste times price per ton plus delivery.
The calculator does all seven steps when you enter your numbers.
Why this one
Why use this asphalt cost calculator
- Three units at once. The result shows cost per ton, per cubic yard, and per square foot for your project.
- Your quote overrides ours. Type a price per ton from your plant and the tool drops its bid-based range.
- Delivery by distance. Enter miles from the plant and delivery is added per ton.
- Region estimates match the price index. The regional prices are the same figures published on the asphalt price index, with the same caveats.
Pick your tool
Which calculator should you use?
- Material cost from a price per ton. Stay here.
- Tons and cubic yards for any shape. Use the main asphalt calculator.
- Installed driveway price with labor and base. Use the asphalt driveway cost calculator.
- Plans in square yards. Use the asphalt square yardage calculator.
- A commercial lot sized by spaces. Use the asphalt parking lot calculator.
- Hot mix with a specific mix density. Use the hot mix asphalt calculator.
- Not sure which fits? Compare all seven on the asphalt calculators page.
For site owners
Embed this calculator on your website (free)
Suppliers and estimators can add this cost calculator to their own site with the one line of code below. It is free and needs no account. The embed is the full tool in a 720 pixel tall frame, with a small "Powered by Asphalt Calculator" link back to getasphaltcalculator.com.
<iframe src="https://getasphaltcalculator.com/asphalt-cost-calculator/embed/" width="100%" height="720" frameborder="0" style="border:0;" title="Asphalt Cost Calculator"></iframe>FAQ
Frequently asked questions
13 questions answered
Hot mix asphalt picked up at the plant costs about $70 to $130 per ton in the 2026 public bid tabulations we checked. In those bids the plant price ran $81 to $96.75 in Texas, $70 to $93 in Ohio, $71.50 to $83 in Maryland and $100 to $129 in New York. These are bulk prices paid by counties and towns. A small residential order usually costs more per ton because of minimum charges and delivery.
Hot mix costs about $70 to $130 per ton at the plant in 2026 public bids. Bulk high-performance cold mix ran $115 to $230 per ton in a Texas county bid, bagged cold mix costs $8 to $20 per 50 lb bag, and recycled asphalt millings cost $10 to $20 per ton for material (HomeGuide). Warm mix ($80 to $145) and porous asphalt ($85 to $155) are estimates that apply HomeGuide's listed premiums to the hot mix bid range. Most driveways and parking lots use hot mix. Cold mix is for patches and small repairs only.
A cubic yard of hot mix asphalt costs about $135 to $255 at 2026 public bid prices. One cubic yard weighs about 1.96 tons at the standard density of 145 pounds per cubic foot. Some suppliers quote by the yard instead of by the ton, so multiply the per-ton price by 1.96 to compare.
Twenty tons of hot mix asphalt costs about $1,400 to $2,600 for material at 2026 public bid prices, plus about $80 to $180 for delivery within 15 to 20 miles of the plant (HomeGuide). That is a full tandem truck load and covers roughly 1,100 square feet at 3 inches thick. A small private order can cost more per ton than these bulk prices.
Multiply the area in square feet by the thickness in feet, multiply by 145, and divide by 2,000 to get the tonnage. Then multiply the tonnage by your local price per ton. For example, 800 square feet at 3 inches needs about 14.5 tons. At $100 per ton, that is $1,450 in material before delivery and waste.
Asphalt prices vary with the price of liquid binder, distance from the plant, mix type, order size, and the season. In the 2026 bids we checked, hot mix at the plant ran $81 to $96.75 per ton in a Texas county and $100 to $129 in a New York town for comparable material. Always get a current local quote, because a published range cannot tell you what your nearest plant charges.
Recycled asphalt millings (RAP) are the cheapest at $10 to $20 per ton for the material, with delivery extra (HomeGuide). They work as a base layer or a budget surface on rural driveways, but they do not last as long as hot mix. For a finished driveway, hot mix at about $70 to $130 per ton at the plant is the standard.
Bulk high-performance cold mix ran $115 to $230 per ton in a 2026 Texas county bid: $115 to $135 picked up and $143 to $228 delivered. Bagged cold mix costs $8 to $20 per 50 lb bag (HomeGuide), which works out to $320 to $800 per ton. Cold mix is made for pothole repair and temporary patches. It does not need heating, which makes it the only asphalt product most people can place themselves.
Yes. Asphalt binder is a product of crude oil refining, so when crude oil rises the liquid binder costs more, and plants pass that into the per-ton price of hot mix. State DOTs publish a monthly binder index for this reason. Plant capacity and local demand also affect the price.
Asphalt delivery costs about $4 to $9 per ton, or $40 to $80 per hour of trucking, within 15 to 20 miles of the plant (HomeGuide, checked October 2026). Longer hauls cost more because hot mix has to arrive hot. For a 15-ton order, expect about $60 to $135 in delivery on top of the material cost.
A tandem dump truck carries about 13 to 20 tons (HomeGuide). At 2026 public bid prices of $70 to $130 per ton, that is about $910 to $2,600 for the material picked up at the plant, plus about $52 to $180 for delivery. A full truckload spreads the fixed cost of dispatching the truck across more tons.
It can. Plants are busiest in the warm months, and many northern plants close for the winter, which limits supply late in the year. Binder prices also move month to month: in the state DOT indices we track, liquid binder rose sharply between March and June 2026 (Pennsylvania Zone 1 went from $588 to $778 per ton). Ask how long a quote is valid when you request one.
We have no consistent year-by-year series for finished hot mix, so we track the liquid binder index that state DOTs publish. The Pennsylvania Zone 1 index was $472 per ton in January 2020 and $614 in January 2026, with a peak of $791 in July 2022. In 2026 it rose from $588 in March to $778 in June. Binder is about 5% of hot mix by weight, so the finished mix moves less than the index.
Enter your project dimensions or tonnage above and see the cost for your asphalt type and region. Free, instant, no signup.
The tonnage math on this page uses 145 lb/ft³ for compacted hot mix, as documented on our About page. Prices come from one shared data file where each figure carries its source and the month it was checked; the sources are listed on the asphalt price index. Found an error? Email hello@getasphaltcalculator.com.