Paver calculator

Enter the area and paver size to see how many pavers to buy and how much base gravel and sand go underneath.

By the Calcist team · Checked against known answers · Updated October 27, 2026

Private: calculated on your device. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.

Next: Want one shopping list for the whole patio? Use the project planner. Edging the patio with a low wall? Try the retaining wall calculator.

How pavers are calculated

Pavers per sq ft = 144 ÷ (paver length × width in inches)
Pavers = area × pavers per sq ft, + extra for cuts
Base or sand (cu yd) = area × depth (in) ÷ 12 ÷ 27

Worked example

A 12 × 10 ft patio is 120 sq ft. With 4 × 8 in pavers, 144 ÷ 32 = 4.5 per sq ft, so 540 pavers; with 10% extra, buy 594. A 6 in gravel base is 120 × 6 ÷ 12 ÷ 27 = 2.22 cu yd (about 3.1 tons), and a 1 in sand bed is 0.37 cu yd (half a ton).

How deep should the base be?

Unilock recommends a compacted gravel base of 6 to 10 inches for patios and walkways (deeper on clay soil) and 8 to 14 inches for driveways, topped with about 1 inch of bedding sand or chip stone.

Limitations

Extra for cuts: 5 to 10% for straight layouts, 10 to 15% for diagonal or patterned layouts and curves.
Joint sand: polymeric sand for the joints is extra; check the bag's coverage for your joint width.
Edging: you'll also need edge restraint around the perimeter.

Sources

Unilock: How deep should a paver base be?

How we checked this

Before every update, this calculator is run in a real browser with these known answers, and it must match all of them:

12 × 10 ft, 4 × 8 in pavers, 10%: 594 pavers ✓
Same: 6 in base is 2.222 cu yd ≈ 3.111 tons ✓
Same: 1 in sand is 0.3704 cu yd ≈ 0.5 tons ✓
100 sq ft of 12 × 12 in pavers, no extra: 100 pavers ✓

Last checked October 26, 2026. Spotted something wrong? The math is done in your browser with the formula shown on this page, so you can check any result by hand.

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Questions people ask

How many pavers do I need for a 10 × 10 patio?

With 4 × 8 in pavers, 100 × 4.5 = 450 pavers, or 495 with 10% extra.

How many pavers are in a square foot?

144 divided by the paver's length × width in inches: 4.5 for 4 × 8 in, 2.25 for 8 × 8 in, 1 for 12 × 12 in.

How much base do I need for pavers?

About 6 to 10 inches of compacted gravel for patios and walkways and 8 to 14 inches for driveways, plus 1 inch of bedding sand.

How much sand do I need under pavers?

A 1 inch bed: about 0.31 cu yd per 100 sq ft, or roughly 0.4 tons.

Related calculators

Tons to cubic yardsConvert tons and cubic yards of gravel, stone or sand.Gravel calculatorCubic yards and tons of gravel, sand or crushed stone.Retaining wall calculatorWall blocks, caps and gravel for a block wall.Square footage calculatorAdd up rooms and odd shapes in feet and inches, subtract cutouts, and price the floor.