Cost Comparison: Block Paving vs Resin (no pros & cons again!)

Block paving has been one of the most popular surfaces for driveways for such a long because it gives that aesthetically classic look to your property. However, resin is a new trend for driveways.

It’s all personal preference and all comes down to your choice. Some people find block paving outdated or hard to maintain and some people find resin looking cheap even after spending tons of money.

We’ll not be talking about the pros or the cons about there here because there’s already plenty of information on the web that differentiates the two and there’s nothing interesting to rewrite those same pros and cons here again. Here we’ll talk about only the costs, that’s it!

It’s not possible to come up with a price for your particular job because there’re are so many factors involved in a job despite its size, let it be either block paving or resin.

Block Paving vs Resin Costs per Square Metre

I’ve posted in a landscaping group on Facebook saying how much would it typically cost to have a resin driveway done in around a 60m2 area, for example, and the answer that I frequently got was around £10,000 which is around £170/m2 for a resin driveway.

I also posted the same question for block paving, and the price/m2 is between £80-£110/m2 to block pave a driveway. So, to block pave a 60m2 driveway the cost would be between £5,000-£6,500.

Remember that these costs are for straightforward jobs like to dig out up to a certain depth, have a solid sub-base, screed, and lay in case of block paving. If there’s anything more involved like extra digging, you have to pay for that.

Long-term Costs

Although you may save a couple of thousand pounds upfront for an average size block paved driveway, block paving does require a huge cost after every 2-3 years if you really care for it.

After every couple of years, the block paving needs to be cleaned, re-sanded, and sealed to protect it and keep it looking as new as possible for years to come. It costs £10/m2 in all for cleaning, re-sanding, and sealing a block paved driveway. See this post here on this site to know more about the costs.

Cost Benefits

Resin can be laid on the top of an existing surface or driveway. If you already have a solid Tamarac or concrete driveway down, you can overlay resin on it without starting from the beginning. This is actually going to save you the money because the price drops to £50-£80/m2 which is half the cost compared to starting from scratch.

To be honest, there’s no such cost-benefit in block paving because you can’t lay block pavers on an existing surface. Block paving is a flexible installation and it needs suitable ground preparation to last. Even though you have an existing surface, you’ve to dig through and remove it which may involve more cost than digging up straight in the soil.

The other cost that may or may not be involved in a block paved driveway is whether you need a drainage system or not depending on the type of pavers you choose. If you choose permeable pavers, then you don’t need a drainage or soakaway system for your block paving.

However, if you’re going to lay non-permeable pavers, you strictly need to have a drainage system installed even before you lay the pavers to comply with the rules.

For resin, you never need a drainage system because it’s permeable meaning the water can drain through it.

In Conclusion

I’d still suggest you get several quotes also from your local builders for both, the same size block paved as well as a resin driveway according to what size you want it to be to get an idea of the closest price comparison in your area because the cost varies a lot from place to place.

It can be literally £30-50 more or less per metre square of resin or block paving depending on where do you live. Don’t go for the cheapest quote to stay within the budget is what you should avoid.

If possible go and see a driveway they’ve done nearby in the past as they’ll be eager to show it to you if they’ve done great jobs in the past.