| 
Trying to choose between concrete pavers and natural stone pavers for your outdoor living space’s hardscaping? Both options are excellent choices for outdoor kitchens, pool decks, dining patio, or garden walkways.
In this article, we’ll compare the costs, customizability, installation, and maintenance of concrete pavers vs natural stone pavers so that you can determine which is the best material for your outdoor living space.
The Cost of Natural Stone Pavers
Natural stone is significantly more expensive than other hardscape paving materials because it must be physically excavated from quarries. Installing natural stone pavers can be cost-prohibitive depending on your budget and the size of the space that needs paving.
Concrete pavers, on the other hand, are much less costly to manufacture, which is why they are much more affordable per square foot than natural stone pavers. Plus, architectural grade concrete pavers are specially mixed and molded to look just like natural stone, which means you can still get that “natural stone look” without the premium price tag.
Customizability
There is something so refined and elegant about natural stone patio, but it’s important to keep in mind that with natural stone, what you see is what you get. That isn’t necessarily a problem, of course — many homeowners admire the irregular, earthy charm and predictable coloring of natural stone pavers like slate, travertine, flagstone, limestone, and bluestone.
Even so, the natural stone you choose can limit your design options if you have a very specific vision in mind for your outdoor living areas. If you’re looking for a paving material that gives you the most creative flexibility at the best price point, concrete pavers are, by far, the most versatile option. Concrete pavers not only mimic the look of natural stone, but also come in a wide variety of colors, shapes, and sizes to suit your unique aesthetic vision and accommodate the dimensions of your space.
At Peacock Pavers, our patio paver colors include Rice White, Dolphin Grey, Oyster, Champagne, Buff, Keystone Grey, and Slate, though we also can mix custom colors on request. Our paver shapes include rectangles, squares, hexagon, chevrons, and pickets — all of which come in a variety of sizes and thicknesses.
Paver Installation & Maintenance
Concrete pavers and natural stone pavers both require a fair amount of preparation and skilled labor. However, installing some types of natural stone pavers, like flagstone, can sometimes be extra tricky for DIY enthusiasts due to material’s irregular shapes and thicknesses. That’s why installing irregular-shaped pavers is a project best left to a professional stonemason.
When properly installed and maintained, natural stone pavers will stand the test of time and look great. It’s one of the reasons why people are so attracted to natural stone. However, if natural stone isn’t installed properly, the paving stones can shift over time and even crack prematurely under extreme circumstances. This is especially common if natural stone is set into concrete; poured concrete slabs are notoriously susceptible to cracking caused by fluctuations in the ground underneath. This kind of damage can be extremely expensive to fix.
Concrete pavers also offer outstanding longevity; they can last for many decades even with heavy traffic and wear. One benefit of concrete pavers over natural stone pavers is that it is much more affordable to repair a cracked concrete paver and it’s also very easy to re-level a dislodged concrete paver that isn’t grouted.
Get the “Natural Stone Look” With Peacock Pavers
Dreaming of natural paving stones for your next hardscaping project but wishing there was a more affordable option? Peacock Pavers’ handcrafted concrete pavers look just like natural stone and come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and colors to meet your paver patio needs.
So, if you’re looking for elegant handcrafted concrete pavers and excellent service, contact us to request a quote today.