Crushed stone costs $15–$75 per ton delivered in 2026, and most homeowner orders land between $25 and $45 per ton. The spread is wide because “crushed stone” covers everything from dusty screenings to fist-sized rip rap, and because hauling distance from the quarry can matter as much as the rock itself.
Picked up at the quarry, the same stone often costs $10–$25 per ton — but unless you own a heavy trailer, delivered pricing is the number that matters. A tandem dump truck brings 13–15 tons per trip, and delivery fees run $50–$150 per load when they are not folded into the per-ton price.
Here is what each grade costs, why your neighbor two counties over pays something different, and how to compare quotes without getting burned. To turn square feet into tons before you call, use the crushed stone calculator.
Crushed Stone Prices Per Ton by Grade
Quarries size stone by number: the bigger the number, the smaller the stone (with a few regional quirks). Prices below are typical delivered rates for 2026:
| Grade | Size | Price per ton (delivered) | Common uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screenings / stone dust | Under 1/4 in. | $15–$30 | Paver base, walkway topping |
| Crusher run (#411, dense grade) | Fines to 3/4 in. | $20–$40 | Driveway top course, compacted base |
| #8 / chip stone | 3/8 in. | $30–$50 | Concrete mix, pipe bedding, paths |
| #57 stone | 3/4–1 in. | $25–$45 | Driveways, drainage, concrete base |
| #3 / #4 stone | 1–3 in. | $25–$45 | Driveway base, entrances, mud control |
| Rip rap | 3–12 in. | $40–$75 | Erosion control, banks, culvert ends |
Notice that the workhorse grades — crusher run, #57, #3 — cluster in the $20–$45 band. Specialty products cost more because they take extra crushing, washing, or screening passes at the plant.
What Actually Drives the Price
Distance to the quarry
Stone is cheap; moving 15 tons of it is not. Trucking commonly adds $0.30–$0.60 per ton per mile, so a site 30 miles from the nearest quarry can pay $10–$18 more per ton than one 5 miles away. This is why prices are lowest near limestone belts in the Midwest and Southeast and highest in areas that barge or rail stone in.
Local geology
Regions quarrying abundant limestone or dolomite sit at the low end. Areas working harder granite or trap rock — or with few active quarries and heavy construction demand — run 20–50% higher for the same grade.
Season and order size
Spring and early summer are peak season; some suppliers quote better in late fall. Full truckloads price better than partial loads, which often trigger a short-load fee. If your project needs 8 tons, ask what 13 costs — the answer is sometimes only $50–$100 more.
Bulk vs Bagged Crushed Stone
Bagged stone from a home center runs $4–$8 for a 0.5 cubic foot bag. That is convenient for a fence post or a French drain repair, but the math turns ugly fast: a ton of stone is roughly 40 of those bags, so bagged stone costs the equivalent of $160–$320 per ton — four to eight times bulk price.
The rule of thumb: under about half a cubic yard, bags win once you count the bulk delivery fee. Above that, bulk wins decisively. We work through the exact crossover in our bulk stone buying guide.
Tons or Cubic Yards? Converting Between Quotes
Some suppliers quote per ton (weighed on a scale), others per cubic yard (measured by loader bucket). Crushed stone weighs about 1.5 tons per cubic yard, so a $30-per-ton quote equals roughly $45 per yard. Always convert both quotes to the same unit before comparing — a “$38 per yard” price that sounds high may actually beat a “$28 per ton” one once you do the math. The cubic yards to tons calculator handles this in seconds.
For coverage planning: one cubic yard covers 324 ÷ depth-in-inches square feet. At a typical 3-inch layer, that is 108 sq ft per yard, or about 72 sq ft per ton.
How to Get an Accurate Quote
- Ask for the delivered price per ton for your specific grade and zip code, and whether delivery is included or a separate $50–$150 fee.
- Confirm the minimum order and any short-load fee if you need less than a full truck.
- Get the price in writing per ton with a scale ticket at delivery — not “per load.”
- Call two or three quarries, not just landscape yards; yards often resell quarry stone at a markup.
- Know your tonnage before you call. Run your dimensions through the gravel calculator so a vague “you’ll need about 20 tons” cannot inflate the job.
Bulk Order Discounts: How Tonnage Affects Price
Crushed stone pricing is not flat per ton — it steps down as order size grows, because the quarry’s cost per ton to load and haul a truck barely changes whether the truck carries 5 tons or 15. Many suppliers won’t volunteer these tiers; you generally have to ask “what does a full load cost” to see them.
| Order size | Typical price effect | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Under 3 tons | Top of range, plus possible short-load fee | Often cheaper to buy bagged or from a landscape yard |
| 3–8 tons | Standard per-ton price | Baseline quote most suppliers give first |
| 8–14 tons (partial to full tandem) | 5–15% below standard price | Approaching a full truckload |
| 14+ tons (full tandem or larger) | 10–25% below standard price | Best per-ton rate; ask about tri-axle pricing above 15 tons |
The practical takeaway: if your project needs 10 tons, it is worth asking what 14–15 tons costs. The discount on the last few tons frequently outweighs the cost of the extra stone, and gravel does not spoil sitting in a pile for the next project.
Worked Example: How Much Distance Really Costs
Take a 15-ton order of #57 stone priced at $22 per ton at the quarry gate. Trucking at $0.30–$0.60 per ton per mile changes the delivered total sharply with distance:
- 5 miles: $22 + ($0.30–$0.60 × 5) = $23.50–$25/ton, or $353–$375 total
- 20 miles: $22 + ($0.30–$0.60 × 20) = $28–$34/ton, or $420–$510 total
- 40 miles: $22 + ($0.30–$0.60 × 40) = $34–$46/ton, or $510–$690 total
Going from 5 to 40 miles roughly doubles the delivered cost on identical stone. This is why calling the two or three nearest quarries — not just the one with the best-known name — is consistently the single biggest lever on your final price.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do two quarries quote such different prices for the same grade?
Usually distance, not the stone itself. Two quarries five miles apart can pull from the same rock formation and price #57 stone almost identically at the gate — but if one is 8 miles from your site and the other is 35, the delivered quotes can differ by $15–$20 per ton purely on trucking. Always ask for the gate price and the delivery price separately so you can see which part of the quote is actually stone.
Does crushed stone price change with the seasons?
Somewhat. Spring through midsummer is peak construction and landscaping season, when demand is highest and quarries have the least incentive to discount. Late fall and winter, especially in colder climates where projects slow down, sometimes bring modest price breaks or more willingness to negotiate on a larger order. The swing is usually 5–10%, not dramatic, but it can be worth asking about if your project timeline is flexible.
Bottom Line
Budget $25–$45 per ton delivered for common crushed stone grades in 2026, less near a limestone quarry, more in stone-poor regions or for specialty products. Order full truckloads when you can, compare quotes in the same unit, and price your exact tonnage first. If the stone is destined for a driveway, our gravel driveway cost guide shows how per-ton prices roll up into a full project budget.
