What a yard costs each way
| Option | Price | Per cubic yard |
|---|---|---|
| 80 lb bags (45 per yard) | $6.47 a bag | $291 |
| 60 lb bags (60 per yard) | $4.85 a bag | $291 |
| Ready-mix, US average | $179.95 a yard (2025) | $180 + fees |
Bag prices from one US home center in October 2026. The ready-mix average is ConcreteNetwork’s 2025 national figure; producer prices for ready-mix were 2.3% higher in August 2026 than a year earlier. Some cost guides quote lower ranges — around $119–147 a yard — alongside industry figures from 2016. A local quote is the only number that counts.
The fees that decide it
Ready-mix suppliers price small orders differently. Before you compare, ask for:
- The minimum order — the smallest load they’ll deliver, and how they charge below it.
- The short-load fee — a flat charge added to orders under a set size.
- Delivery and waiting time — the delivery charge, how long the truck can wait while you place the concrete, and what extra time costs.
These vary by supplier and region more than the price per yard does, so get them in writing.
Finding your crossover
With bags at about $291 a yard and ready-mix at about $180, every yard of ready-mix saves roughly $111. The fees are paid once. So:
Below your crossover, bags are cheaper; above it, the truck is. The fee figures above are illustrations — use your supplier’s.
Then count the labor
Money isn’t the whole comparison. A yard of 80 lb bags is 45 bags — 3,600 lb to lift into a vehicle, out again, and through a mixer or wheelbarrow, one batch at a time. A pallet of 42 bags is 25.2 ft³, a little under a yard.
- Bags suit post holes, steps, repairs, pads and small slabs you can pour in sections — jobs where the concrete can be placed batch by batch.
- Ready-mix suits anything that has to be placed and finished in one go, where the slowest mixer sets the pace and a gap between batches would leave a joint.
Check the truck can reach
A ready-mix truck is heavy and needs a clear route to the forms. If it can’t get close, add the cost of a pump or a crew with wheelbarrows to the ready-mix side of the comparison.
Sources for the numbers on this page
- The Home Depot — Quikrete Concrete Mix, 80 lb — shelf price at one US store · checked October 1, 2026
- ConcreteNetwork.com — Concrete prices — national ready-mix average ($179.95 per cubic yard, 2025) · checked October 1, 2026
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics via FRED — Producer Price Index: ready-mix concrete manufacturing (PCU327320327320) · checked October 1, 2026
- Quikrete — Concrete Mix No. 1101 — technical data sheet (bag yields, strength gain, curing) · checked October 1, 2026
- Sakrete — Estimating bagged concrete jobs · checked October 1, 2026
- National Ready Mixed Concrete Association — CIP 8 — Discrepancies in yield (ordering 4–10% extra) · checked October 1, 2026
Corrections and updates are logged on the sources page.