Cost to Pour a 1,000 Sq Ft Concrete Slab: $4,990 to $12,220
A 1,000 sq ft concrete slab, poured 25x40 at 4 inches with wire mesh on a 4-inch crushed-stone base and broom-finished, costs about $7,490 installed. From the lowest published prices to the highest the range is $4,990 to $12,220 ($4.99 to $12.22 per sq ft). It takes 12.35 cubic yards of concrete, about two truckloads. As a 6-inch floor with a rebar grid, the usual spec for vehicles, it is about $10,780.
What 1,000 Square Feet Costs, by What It Carries
At this size the slab is usually the floor of something: a workshop, a hobby barn, a large patio, an RV pad. What it has to carry sets the thickness and steel, and those move the price far more than the footprint does. All rows are 25x40 ft, priced with the same model.
| 25 x 40 spec | Concrete | Low | Typical | High |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4-inch, no reinforcement | 12.35 yd | $4,520 | $6,830 | $11,270 |
| 4-inch, wire mesh | 12.35 yd | $4,990 | $7,490 | $12,220 |
| 4-inch, 4,000 PSI, mesh (driveway mix) | 12.35 yd | $5,070 | $7,610 | $12,410 |
| 4-inch floor, thickened edge, rebar, vapor retarder | 15.56 yd | $6,900 | $10,160 | $15,980 |
| 6-inch, 4,000 PSI, rebar (vehicles) | 18.52 yd | $7,440 | $10,780 | $17,280 |
| 8-inch, 4,000 PSI, rebar (heavy loads) | 24.69 yd | $9,210 | $13,220 | $20,630 |
All rows: broom finish, crushed-stone base (4 inches, or 6 inches under the 8-inch slab), national prices. The thickened-edge row is our example of a monolithic slab (4-inch floor (above the IRC R506.1 minimum of 3.5 inches), 3,000 PSI, #4 rebar, 6-mil vapor retarder, 4-inch stone base, thickened edge 12 in wide x 8 in below the slab (assumed; your plans set it)); a slab that carries a building is built to that building’s plans, so treat it as a starting point. The IRC sets a 3½-inch minimum for a concrete floor on the ground (R506.1).
Why the Pour Usually Needs Two Trucks
12.35 cubic yards plus overage is about 12.97 to 13.59 yards, more than one 10-yard truckload (the load in Supreme Concrete’s published delivery example, and the figure our model uses). At the four published price lists, 3,000 PSI concrete is $127.05 to $165.00 a yard, and the concrete and truck charges for this slab come to $1,647 to $3,079. An order this size pays no small-load fee.
The second truck has to arrive while the edge of the first load is still workable. If it is late, fresh concrete is placed against concrete that has started to set, leaving a weak cold joint. Ask the contractor how the trucks will be scheduled and where a construction joint will go if one is late.
What the Crew Costs on a 1,000 Sq Ft Pour
Our model counts crew hours rather than heads. For this slab it allows 53 to 96 crew hours: 8 to 16 of fixed work plus 4.5 to 8 per 100 sq ft for grading the base, forming, laying mesh, placing and finishing. Priced at Bureau of Labor Statistics wages for cement masons and construction laborers, plus employer costs, a crew hour is $29.60 to $43.77, so labour is $1,569 to $4,202: about 47% of the direct cost at typical prices.
These crew hours are our estimate, not a published figure; the method block below lists them so you can compare them with the hours on your quote.
Why Per-Sq-Ft Cost Is Lowest at This Size
| Size | Typical total | Per sq ft | Low to high |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 sq ft (10 x 10) | $1,410 | $14.09 | $830 to $2,880 |
| 200 sq ft (10 x 20) | $2,100 | $10.49 | $1,300 to $3,760 |
| 400 sq ft (20 x 20) | $3,360 | $8.41 | $2,180 to $5,620 |
| 500 sq ft (20 x 25) | $4,050 | $8.09 | $2,650 to $6,630 |
| 1,000 sq ft (25 x 40) | $7,490 | $7.49 | $4,990 to $12,220 |
Same spec in every row (4-inch, mesh, stone base). The fall flattens out as the slab grows: once the fixed work and small-load charges are spread thin, each extra square foot costs roughly its own concrete, stone, steel and crew time. Going from 20x40 (800 sq ft) to 25x40 adds about $1,350, or $6.75 per added sq ft, against an average of $7.49.
Use the size calculator for your exact dimensions, or check a quote you already have.
Permit Path for a 1,000 Sq Ft Slab
Whether a 1,000 sq ft slab needs a building permit depends on what it is for. Under the model International Residential Code, a slab that is the floor of a garage, workshop or addition is part of a building, which needs a permit (R105.1); the code’s exemption list (R105.2) names sidewalks and driveways and sets no size threshold for slabs. Cities amend those rules, and zoning, grading or stormwater limits can apply to a large paved area, so check with the building department. Fees are set locally and are not in the prices above.
Where a permit is issued for a building, IRC R109.1.1 calls for the foundation inspection after the trenches are dug and the forms and any reinforcing steel are in place, before any concrete is placed. Build that inspection into the schedule: the pour date depends on it. See the foundation cost page for slabs that carry a building.
How We Price a Slab
Every installed price on this site comes from one model: published ready-mix and materials prices, plus crew hours priced at Bureau of Labor Statistics wages, plus overhead and margin. The low figure uses the lowest published input and our lowest assumption at every step; the high figure uses the highest. The crew hours, overage and margin are our own estimates, not published figures, and are listed below so you can check them against your quote. Worked example: a 25 x 40 ft (1,000 sq ft) slab (4-inch, 3,000 PSI, wire mesh, broom finish, 4-inch stone base).
| Line | Low | Typical | High | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ready-mix concrete | $1,647 | $1,885 | $2,241 | 12.35 cu yd plus 5 to 10% overage, at published per-yard prices |
| Delivery and small-load charges | $0 | $70 | $838 | Per-truck charges from the same price lists (10 yd per truck) |
| Crushed-stone base | $652 | $812 | $1,107 | 4 in compacted crusher run |
| Reinforcement | $240 | $240 | $240 | 6x6 10-gauge mesh panels, lapped |
| Form lumber | $49 | $74 | $99 | Perimeter boards, shared across reuses |
| Crew labour | $1,569 | $2,682 | $4,202 | Crew hours x BLS wages x employer costs |
| Overhead and margin | $831 | $1,729 | $3,491 | 20% to 40% on direct cost |
| Installed total | $4,990 | $7,490 | $12,220 | Rounded to the nearest $10 |
Not included: excavation and soil haul-off, removing an old slab, permits, pumping, decorative finishes and sealing. Totals are national; the calculators’ state option swaps in that state’s BLS wages and leaves concrete and materials at the published lists.
Published inputs (read 13 October 2026)
- Ready-mix, per cubic yard: 3,000 PSI $127.05 to $165.00, 4,000 PSI $132.00 to $175.00, from Supreme Concrete (Los Angeles, CA), Minimix Concrete (Pequannock, NJ), Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix (Columbus, NE, list dated 2026-01-01), Scenic City Ready Mix (Tennessee, list dated 2024-08-03).
- Small orders and trucks: short-load charge $50 under 4 yd (Gehring) or $100 at 5 yd or less, plus $100 more at 2 yd or less (Scenic City); per truck, no charge within 20 miles (Gehring), a $35 surcharge (Scenic City), or $363.88 Zone A delivery plus a $55 environmental fee (Supreme).
- Crushed-stone base: $44.00 to $74.75 per cubic yard from D & L Supply (Central New York, $44.00/yd), JMJ Companies (Lynchburg, VA, $39.50/ton), Golden Landscaping Supply (Cumming, GA, $50.00/ton), Yard Works Landscape Supply (Fort Mill, SC, $74.75/yd); per-ton prices converted at 2,450 lb per yard.
- Steel, forms, poly: #4 rebar 20 ft $8.99, 6x6 10-gauge mesh 4x8 panel $6.99, 2x6x12 $14.32, 2x4x16 $12.13, 6-mil poly 8 ft 4 in x 100 ft $59.99, rebar chair $0.33 (Menards online prices; Home Depot and Lowe’s pages could not be read that day). That works out to $0.24 per sq ft for mesh and $0.74 per sq ft for a rebar grid, materials only.
- Wages: BLS OEWS 47-2051 cement masons (May 2025) 25th percentile $22.60, median $27.41, 75th $32.15 an hour; 47-2061 construction laborers $18.57, $22.66, $28.72. Employer costs from BLS ECEC June 2026, construction industry ($51.96 total compensation per $36.13 of wages, x1.44): a crew hour costs $29.60 to $43.77.
Our assumptions (estimates, not published figures)
- Crew: half cement masons, half laborers.
- Setup per job: 8 to 16 crew hours (layout, stripping, cleanup).
- Per 100 sq ft: 4-inch 4 to 7 crew hours, 6-inch 5 to 8.5, 8-inch 6 to 10; add 0.5 to 1 for mesh or 1.5 to 2.5 for rebar.
- Concrete overage 5% to 10%; base stone ordered at 1.2x its compacted volume; form boards charged at half to all of their price.
- Overhead and margin 20% to 40% of direct cost.
- 6-inch and thicker slabs use 4,000 PSI mix; thinner slabs 3,000 PSI.
Sources: BLS OEWS 47-2051 cement masons (May 2025), BLS OEWS 47-2061 construction laborers (May 2025), BLS ECEC, construction (June 2026), ready-mix price lists from Supreme Concrete, Minimix Concrete, Gehring Construction & Ready-Mix, Scenic City Ready Mix, crusher-run prices from D & L Supply, JMJ Companies, Golden Landscaping Supply, Yard Works Landscape Supply, Menards mesh, rebar, lumber and poly prices, IRC R105.1, R105.2, R109.1.1 and R506.1. All read 13 October 2026. Crew hours, overage, truck size, overhead and margin are our estimates and are listed in the method above.