3,000 PSI Concrete Cost 2026: $127.05 to $165.00 Per Cubic Yard
Three thousand PSI is the mix most residential patios, walkways and pads are poured with. On four ready-mix price lists we read on 13 October 2026, in California, New Jersey, Nebraska and Tennessee, it costs $127.05 to $165.00 per cubic yard before tax, with the middle of the four at $142.00. Small orders pay a short-load fee on top, and delivery charges vary by supplier. This page shows each list, what small orders really cost per yard, and when bagged mix is cheaper.
Four Price Lists, Four Regions
These four suppliers publish their prices online. We read each on 13 October 2026; prices are per cubic yard before sales tax.
| Supplier | Region | 3,000 PSI | 4,000 PSI | What the list says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supreme Concrete | Los Angeles, CA | $127.05 | $132.00 | 3000 PSI 1" RK 50/50 mix (no date on the list) |
| Minimix Concrete | Pequannock, NJ | $136.00 | $142.00 | 3000 PSI, 3/4 mix (no date on the list) |
| Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix | Columbus, NE | $148.00 | $156.00 | SG-3000, 6 bag sand gravel (list dated 2026-01-01) |
| Scenic City Ready Mix | Tennessee | $165.00 | $175.00 | 3000 PSI, delivered, 8+ yard orders (list dated 2024-08-03) |
Four lists are not a national survey: they show the spread between places, not an average. Delivery is charged differently on each: Gehring makes no mileage charge within 20 miles, Scenic City adds a $35 fuel and environmental surcharge per truck, and Supreme’s Zone A example adds $363.88 delivery plus a $55 environmental fee per trip. Minimix publishes no delivery charges. Call local suppliers for your own price.
What Changes the Price of a Yard
Strength is mostly cement content. Gehring’s list states it: its SG-3000 sand-gravel mix is a 6-bag mix and SG-4000 a 7-bag mix, and each half-bag step up its ladder adds $4.00 a yard. Add-ons are charged per yard on top. The ones the lists publish:
| Add-on | Per cu yd | Supplier |
|---|---|---|
| Fiber Mesh | $8.00 | Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix |
| Fiber | $10.00 | Scenic City Ready Mix |
| Fiber | $15.00 | Minimix Concrete |
| Calcium chloride (1%) | $5.50 | Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix |
| Non-chloride accelerator (1%) | $6.00 | Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix |
| Hot water | $5.00 | Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix |
| Winter service (Dec 1 to Mar 15) | $5.00 | Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix |
| Accelerator (calcium chloride) | $11.00 | Minimix Concrete |
| Accelerator (non-chloride) | $15.12 | Minimix Concrete |
Accelerators and hot water are cold-weather items. None of the four lists publishes a separate price for air entrainment. Prices across the industry moved modestly over the last year: the BLS producer price index for ready-mix concrete rose 2.3% from August 2025 to August 2026 (FRED).
Why Small Pours Pay More Per Yard
A truck sent out with a small load costs the supplier nearly as much as a full one, so small orders carry a charge. Gehring adds $50 to loads under 4 yards. Scenic City adds $100 at 5 yards or less and another $100 at 2 yards or less. Here is what that does to the price per yard on Gehring’s list ($148.00 a yard, no mileage charge within 20 miles):
| Order | Total | Per cu yd |
|---|---|---|
| 2 cu yd | $346.00 | $173.00 |
| 3 cu yd | $494.00 | $164.67 |
| 5 cu yd | $740.00 | $148.00 |
| 8 cu yd | $1184.00 | $148.00 |
If you have more than one small job, a patio extension and a pad for example, pouring them from the same truck can take the order over the short-load line. Ask the supplier where their line is; it differs by company.
What the Code Asks For
The International Residential Code sets minimum strengths in Table R402.2, by where the concrete is and by the local weathering potential (negligible, moderate or severe, from Table R301.2(1)). Basement slabs and interior slabs on grade, except garage floors, need 2,500 PSI everywhere. Porches, carport slabs, steps exposed to the weather and garage floor slabs need 2,500, 3,000 or 3,500 PSI across the three columns. So 3,000 PSI meets the table for most slabs except where the severe column applies to those exposed uses. For those exposed uses in moderate and severe areas, the table also calls for air-entrained concrete with 5 to 7 percent air.
Driveways sit outside the IRC, and contractors commonly pour vehicle slabs at 4,000 PSI. On the four lists the step up costs $4.95, $6.00, $8.00, $10.00 a yard. The 4,000 PSI page covers that mix. States and cities amend the code, so check your local table.
Bagged Concrete vs Ready-Mix
QUIKRETE states that an 80 lb bag of its Concrete Mix yields about 0.6 cubic feet, so a cubic yard (27 cubic feet) takes 45 bags. At the $9.99 per bag we found on 13 October 2026 (Ace Hardware, price shown for one Maine store; shelf prices vary by store), that is $449.55 a yard: several times the ready-mix price.
Bags only win on very small pours, where a truck’s fixed charges dominate. On Gehring’s list the break-even is about 0.17 cubic yards (4.5 cubic feet); with Scenic City’s two short-load charges and truck surcharge (and its published 8-plus-yard price) it is about 0.83 yards (22 cubic feet). Below that, bags cost less; above it, ready-mix does, and it arrives mixed.
The bag count for any pour is its volume in cubic feet divided by 0.6: a 4x4 ft pad 4 inches thick is 5.33 cubic feet, or 9 bags; a 10x10 ft pad is 33.3 cubic feet, or 56 bags. See the DIY tool rental page for the rest of a bagged pour.
Sources: ready-mix price lists from Supreme Concrete, Minimix Concrete, Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix, Scenic City Ready Mix; QUIKRETE Concrete Mix data sheet (bag yield); Ace Hardware 80 lb bag price; BLS PPI ready-mix concrete via FRED; IRC R402.2 and Table R402.2 (2018 IRC as adopted in Minnesota, UpCodes). All read 13 October 2026.