Pave Measure guides
Useful answers
for real paving jobs.
Straightforward guides for site visits, measurements, material quantities and quotes. Find the answer you need, check the workings and get back to the job.
Need a number?
Calculate asphalt tonnage or work out how many paving packs to order using your own checked figures. The calculators also cover driveway area, sub-base quantities, and markup and margin.
A good place to start
Take the job from site visit to written quote.
Begin with the site visit checklist, then measure the driveway and build your price. If you are using a development build of Pave Measure, follow the first-job walkthrough.
Measuring
Measuring
How to measure a driveway for a paving estimate
Measure driveway area using rectangles, triangles and exclusions, with a worked example and a practical checking checklist.
Measuring
Paving site visit checklist for contractors
A practical checklist for customer requirements, access, measurements, drainage questions and the information needed before pricing paving work.
Materials
Materials
How to calculate asphalt tonnage
Calculate asphalt tonnes from area, compacted depth and density, with an 80 m² worked example and ordering allowance checks.
Materials
How to calculate excavation and spoil quantities
Work out in-place excavation volume and keep transport assumptions separate.
Materials
Paving ordering allowances and waste: how to estimate them
Separate measured area from cutting, handling and ordering allowances, and avoid applying waste twice in a paving estimate.
Materials
How to calculate paving blocks and packs
Calculate paving coverage, allowances and whole-pack orders with a free calculator.
Materials
Paving layers and sub-base: what to record in an estimate
Understand the information needed to estimate paving layers, excavation and sub-base quantities without guessing a universal construction depth.
Planning
Planning
Comparing driveway surfaces before you request a quote
Compare asphalt, block paving, concrete and gravel using a practical specification checklist.
Planning
Driveway drainage and planning: questions before quoting
Record runoff, levels and permeable paving questions before pricing a driveway, with England-specific planning sources and clear scope checks.
Estimating
Estimating
How much does a driveway cost?
Understand the scope, quantities and access factors behind a driveway price.
Estimating
How to estimate labour for a paving job
Build a task-based labour estimate with crew hours and an original worked example.
Estimating
Markup vs gross margin for paving estimates
Understand markup and gross margin using a £3,000 cost example, formulas and a comparison table before setting your quote price.
Estimating
Common paving estimating mistakes and how to check them
Catch overlapping areas, missing costs and allowance errors before quoting.
Estimating
Paving quote checklist and scope template
Prepare a clear paving quote with a reusable scope outline, exclusions, assumptions and a final review checklist.
Estimating
How to price a paving job: a contractor’s estimating workflow
Build a paving price from materials, labour, plant and overhead, with an illustrative cost table and checks before issuing a quote.
Estimating
How to manage paving quote revisions and scope changes
Keep a clear record when a customer changes the paving area, material or scope, with a revision checklist and comparison example.
Using the app
Using the app
How to back up paving jobs and quote records
Understand Pave Measure job archives, PDF copies and restore checks so customer details and estimate assumptions remain recoverable.
Using the app
Your first paving job in Pave Measure
Follow the Pave Measure workflow from customer details and checked measurements to material costs and a reviewed PDF quote.
How we write these guides
Every guide draws on the current Pave Measure workflow, calculations you can reproduce and technical sources you can follow. The examples explain the method, but they are not a construction specification or a substitute for assessing the site. Where planning rules differ by location, we say which part of the UK the source covers.
Last reviewed 9 September 2026. The iPhone app is still in development, but the free calculators are available now.