Concrete Cost: Ready-Mix vs Bags
The per-yard price is only half the story. Delivery minimums and short-load fees push small pours toward bags; labour and haul weight push big pours toward the truck. Run your own numbers below.
Rule of thumb: under about half a cubic yard, bags usually cost less all-in. Around one yard (≈62 bags of 80 lb for a typical slab with waste) the two routes cross, and past that ready-mix normally wins — one delivery instead of thousands of pounds of bags to haul and mix.
Prices are yours to enter — there is no national price for concrete. Quotes vary widely by region, plant and season, so treat any figure here as a planning estimate, not a quote.
Worked example: a 10 × 10 ft slab, 4 inches thick
The slab is 33.33 ft³ exactly, 1.36 yd³ with 10% waste, or 62 bags of 80 lb premix. At an illustrative $165/yd³ the truck route is about $224 of concrete before fees; at an illustrative $6.50 a bag, the bag route is about $403. Both prices are examples, not going rates — your local quotes decide. What doesn’t change with price: the bag route means mixing and placing 62 bags, 4960 lb of dry mix, by hand or mixer, inside the working time of the first batches.
The fees that flip the answer
Short-load fees. Many plants charge extra when a truck carries less than a minimum load — often somewhere in the 4–6 yd³ range, but policies differ by plant. On a 1.4 yd³ order that fee can exceed the price difference between routes.
Delivery and fuel surcharges. Sometimes bundled, sometimes a line item. Ask for the delivered price per yard, not the plant price.
Standby time. Trucks may allow a set unloading window per yard and bill beyond it. A bag pour has no clock — but it has your afternoon.
Your labour and gear. Bags need a mixer (rental), water on site, and enough hands. Price the rental and be honest about the labour before bags “win”.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a cubic yard of ready-mix cost?
It varies too much by market to state a single figure — per-yard prices before delivery commonly land somewhere in the low-to-mid hundreds of dollars, with fees on top. Get two delivered quotes for your exact yardage; that number, not a national average, is the one to compare against bags.
Why do plants charge short-load fees?
A truck, driver and drum cost roughly the same to send out whether it carries 2 yards or 9. The fee spreads that fixed cost over small orders. Some plants waive it if a truck is already nearby — worth asking.
Which route gives a better slab?
Ready-mix is batched to a consistent water-cement ratio and placed in one continuous pour, which usually means a stronger, more uniform slab. Bag work done carefully — consistent water, no re-tempering — can be perfectly sound for small, non-structural pours.
Should I include waste in the cost comparison?
Yes — price the volume you’ll actually order, waste included, on both routes. The main concrete calculator works out that volume from your dimensions.