Groundwork and paving
Concrete crack repair cost
The crack tells you what to do. Forty feet of hairline cracks sealed is about $350, most of it the crew's minimum; forty feet of wider cracks routed and sealed $440; a 100 sq ft section that has settled lifted with foam $850; a 600 sq ft driveway that is scaling resurfaced $3,564 — against $6,300 to demolish it and pour again, which is the number every repair is measured against. This reads the crack, prices the fix by the unit it is sold in, counts the bags for an interior floor, and says when to stop repairing.
Written and edited by Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Last reviewed 2026-09-23 · Nothing you type leaves your browser
Concrete crack repair cost calculator
What the concrete is doing
The crack tells you what to do. Level and thin is sealed; level and wide is routed; one side higher is not a crack but a settled slab; a flaking surface is resurfaced — if the slab under it has stopped moving.
Cracks that open and close with the seasons, or have opened once and stayed. They need a filler that moves with them, in a groove it can grip.
For the replacement comparison.
Add them all up. Under fifty feet, the minimum is the price.
Roughly, by eye.
A repair crew, with its minimum.
Used only to pick a regional labour rate. It stays in your browser.
Wider cracks
$440
40 ft of crack · $11 per ft · replacing the slab would be $6,300
Repair, not replace
$440 against $6,300 to replace — 7 per cent. Well under half, and the slab underneath is sound: repair.
The fix
A groove it can grip.
Routed to a clean groove, backer rod, and a self-levelling polyurethane sealant. A grinder, a caulk gun and an hour per twenty feet.
One slab, every problem
The same slab with each problem this page prices, against demolishing and pouring again.
What the crew charges for
- Routing and sealing 40 ft
Routed to a clean groove, backer rod, and a self-levelling polyurethane sealant. A grinder, a caulk gun and an hour per twenty feet.$440
What it costs
National average. Wider cracks: 40 ft of crack. Not included: a base that keeps washing out, tree roots under the slab, or drainage — which is usually why it cracked.
If the verdict is replace, the slab calculator prices the new one with the base, steel and joints that stop the next crack; the bags for a small pour are on the concrete calculator.
Worth knowing
- Cracks that open and close with the seasons, or have opened once and stayed. They need a filler that moves with them, in a groove it can grip. Routed to a clean groove, backer rod, and a self-levelling polyurethane sealant. A grinder, a caulk gun and an hour per twenty feet.
On this page — 5 sections
The crack tells you what to do
The short version
- Level and thin: seal it. $350 for 40 ft, most of it the crew’s minimum.
- Level and wide: rout and seal it. $440 for 40 ft; $179 yourself.
- One side higher: it is not a crack. Lift the slab, $850 for 100 sq ft with foam.
- Surface flaking: resurface, $3,564 for 600 sq ft — if the slab has stopped moving.
A crack is a symptom, and the repair follows what it is a symptom of. A hairline crack, level on both sides and not moving, is shrinkage from the day the slab was poured; it is sealed so water and frost stay out, and that is all. A wider crack that opens and closes with the seasons needs a groove routed out and a flexible sealant that can move with it — a rigid filler pops out the first winter. A crack with one side higher than the other is not a crack problem at all: the base under the slab has moved, and no filler fixes a step.
And a surface that is flaking off — salt, freeze-thaw, a weak finish — is a resurfacing job, on the strict condition that the slab underneath is sound and still. An overlay follows every crack in the slab it is bonded to.
| Sealed | Routed and sealed | |
|---|---|---|
| The crack | Under 1/8 in, not moving | 1/8 to 1/2 in, working |
| Per foot, crew | $5.5 | $11 |
| 40 ft, crew | $350 | $440 |
| 120 ft, crew | $660 | $1,320 |
| 40 ft, yourself | $56 | $179 |
| Lasts | About 5 years | About 8 |
American Concrete Institute, ACI 224.1R — Causes, evaluation, and repair of cracks in concrete structures · checked 2026-09-23
One side higher: lift it
A trip edge means the slab has dropped — the base washed out under a downspout, or compacted, or a root lifted the other side. The fix is from below: holes drilled through the slab and material pumped under it until it is level. Mudjacking pumps a cement slurry through 2 in holes; it is cheap, it is heavy, and it can settle again on the same soft base. Polyurethane foam goes in through coin-sized holes, expands, cures in minutes, weighs almost nothing, and lasts. It is the default now, at about $200 more on a 100 sq ft section.
Either way, the crack that opened when the slab settled is sealed after the lift, not before — and the downspout is moved, or it settles again.
$850
Foam, 100 sq ft
$8.5/sq ft, $850 minimum
$650
Mudjacked, 100 sq ft
$5/sq ft
$1,800
Replace that section
Break-out and pour
15 yrs
Foam lasts
7 for mudjacking
Surface flaking: resurface it — if it is still
Scaling and spalling take the top eighth of an inch and leave the slab underneath sound. A polymer resurfacer — pressure-washed, ground where it is loose, squeegeed on and broom-finished — gives it a new surface for about $5 a square foot, a third of a new slab. A decorative overlay, stamped or stained, is about $11: the look of a new decorative slab on the old one, at the price of a new plain one, and bought for the look.
The condition is the slab. A resurfacer is bonded to what is under it and it is only as good as that: every crack comes through at the same place unless it was routed and filled first, and a slab that is still settling cracks the overlay along the same line in a season. Preparation is not optional — $564 of washing and grinding here — and a bag of resurfacer on a moving slab is a bag of resurfacer on the ground.
International Concrete Repair Institute, ICRI 310.2R — Selecting and specifying concrete surface preparation for overlays and coatings · checked 2026-09-23
Interior floors: bags, by the quarter inch
A basement or garage floor with dips the new flooring cannot hide is not repaired but prepared: primed, then flooded with a self-levelling underlayment that finds its own surface. It is sold by the 50 lb bag, a bag covers about 12 sq ft at 1/4 in, and the count is the area times the depth in quarter inches.
bags = area ÷ 12 × (average depth ÷ ¼ in)
- area
- the floor, in square feet
- average depth
- the low spots averaged across the floor — a straight edge and a tape
- 12
- square feet one 50 lb bag covers at ¼ in
Worked through — 400 sq ft at an average ½ in: 400 ÷ 12 × 2 = 67 bags, about $2,626 with the primer — $3,386 poured by a crew, $2,686 yourself.
Before anything is mixed
- Find the cause. A downspout, a grade that runs towards the slab, a root: the repair lasts as long as the cause is gone.
- Add up the cracks in feet, and look at each one for a step. A step is a lift, not a seal.
- Estimate the cracked share of the surface. Past a quarter, price the replacement first.
- Wash the slab before judging the surface. Half of what looks like scaling is dirt; the other half is scaling.
- Price the replacement at the same time, and apply the half rule.
- Under fifty feet of crack, do it yourself or wait for more. The crew's minimum is the price.
- Self-levelling: prime, mix fast, and never stop halfway. The pour has twenty minutes.
MaterialsEstimator, Concrete repair, resurfacing and lifting price survey · checked 2026-09-23
What goes wrong
01Filling a crack with a step in it
The slab has settled. The filler sits in a crack that is still a trip edge, and the base is still washing out.
Instead — Lift it — $850 for a 100 sq ft section with foam — then seal the crack, then move the downspout.
02A bead of caulk on an unrouted crack
It bonds to dirt and the bottom of the crack, cannot stretch, and peels the first winter.
Instead — A routed groove, backer rod, and a self-levelling polyurethane sealant.
03Resurfacing a slab that is still moving
The overlay is bonded to the slab; every crack comes through it at the same place within a season.
Instead — Rout and seal the cracks, wait a season if the slab has been settling, then resurface.
04Skipping the pressure wash under a resurfacer
It bonds to the dirt, and the dirt is not bonded to the slab.
Instead — Wash and degrease, grind what is loose: about $564 on a driveway, and not optional.
05Calling a crew out for twenty feet of crack
The minimum is about $350; the crack is $220.
Instead — A Saturday and a crack-chasing wheel, or save it for a visit with more on the list.
06Chasing cracks across a slab that has decided
Past a quarter of the surface, the next crack is already forming, and each visit is a minimum.
Instead — Price the replacement — $10.5 a square foot — and apply the half rule.
07A decorative overlay as an economy
At $11 a square foot it costs more than a plain new slab.
Instead — Buy it for the look on a sound slab, or pour a new plain one.
08Self-levelling outdoors, or an inch deep
It is an interior underlayment, and past an inch it needs a different product or a second pour.
Instead — Indoors, before flooring, to the depth of the low spots — and a topping mix for anything thicker.
- 01Read the crackIs one side higher than the other? That is settlement, not a crack. Is it wider than a coin? It is routed, not sealed. Is the surface flaking? That is resurfacing, if the slab is sound.
- 02Measure what the fix is priced byCracks by the foot, all of them added up. Lifting and resurfacing by the square foot of the slab. Levelling by the square foot and the depth.
- 03Estimate how much is crackedPast a quarter of the surface, sealing is chasing cracks across a slab that has decided.
- 04Price the replacementAbout $10.5 a square foot to demolish and pour again, with a minimum. Every repair is measured against it.
- 05Apply the ruleRepair over half the price of replacement, or a slab more than a quarter cracked: replace.
- 06Fix the causeWater under the slab, a downspout, a tree root. The repair lasts as long as the cause is gone.
The slab calculator prices the new one with the thickened edge, the base, the steel and the joint layout — the things that decide whether the next crack is in five years or thirty.
If the answer is replace- Hairline crack
- Under 1/8 in, level both sides, not moving. Shrinkage from the day it was poured. Sealed to keep water and frost out; cosmetic otherwise.
- Working crack
- A crack that opens and closes with the seasons. It needs a flexible sealant in a routed groove it can grip, not a rigid filler that pops out the first winter.
- Routing
- Grinding the crack out to a clean, wider groove so a sealant has something to bond to. The difference between a repair and a bead of caulk.
- Backer rod
- A foam rope pushed into the groove under the sealant, so the sealant bonds to the two sides and not the bottom, and can stretch.
- Settlement
- A slab that has dropped because the base under it washed out or compacted. One side of the crack higher than the other — a trip edge — is the sign.
- Mudjacking
- Pumping a cement slurry under a settled slab through 2 in holes to lift it. Cheap, heavy, and the patched holes show.
- Polyurethane foam lifting
- Injecting expanding foam through coin-sized holes. Light, fast, and lasts; the default now.
- Spalling and scaling
- The top layer flaking off — from de-icing salt, freeze-thaw or a weak finish. The slab underneath is usually sound.
- Resurfacer
- A polymer-modified cement skim, 1/16 to 1/4 in, that gives a sound slab a new surface. It follows every crack in the old one unless they are treated first.
- Decorative overlay
- A thicker polymer overlay that is stamped or stained: the look of a new decorative slab on the old one, at the price of a new plain one.
- Self-levelling underlayment
- A cement that flows flat, for interior floors before tile or plank. A 50 lb bag covers about 12 sq ft at 1/4 in.
- Crew minimum
- What a repair crew charges to turn up, about $350. On a short crack it is most of the bill.
Common questions
- How much does concrete crack repair cost?
- About $5.5 a linear foot to clean and seal hairline cracks and $11 a foot to rout and seal wider ones — but a crew's minimum is about $350, so 40 ft of hairline cracks is $350 and 40 ft of wider ones $440; 120 ft of routed cracks is $1,320. Yourself, 40 ft of routed crack is about $179 of sealant and a crack-chasing wheel. A crack with one side higher than the other is not a crack repair at all — see lifting.
- How much does it cost to resurface a concrete driveway?
- About $5 a square foot for a plain polymer resurfacer plus preparation — $3,564 for a 600 sq ft driveway — and $11 a square foot for a stamped or coloured overlay, $7,164, which is more than a plain new slab and is bought for the look. Yourself, the plain resurfacer is about $497 of bags and a pressure washer. It only works on a slab that is sound and has stopped moving: an overlay follows every crack in the slab under it.
- How much does concrete lifting cost?
- Mudjacking about $5 a square foot with a $650 minimum; Polyurethane foam about $8.5 a square foot with a $850 minimum. A settled 100 sq ft driveway section is $850 with foam and $650 mudjacked, against $1,800 to break it out and pour it again. Foam is dearer, lighter and lasts; mudjacking is heavier and can settle again on the same base.
- How much does self-levelling concrete cost?
- A 50 lb bag is about $38 and covers 12 sq ft at 1/4 in — so a 400 sq ft basement floor filled an average 1/2 in is 67 bags, about $3,386 poured by a crew or $2,686 of bags, primer and a paddle yourself. It is for interior floors before flooring, and not for outdoors or for more than an inch.
- Should I repair or replace my concrete?
- Two rules. A repair over half the price of demolishing and pouring again — about $10.5 a square foot — is buying a few years of an old slab at most of the price of a new one that lasts thirty. And a slab more than a quarter cracked is a slab that has decided: sealing is chasing cracks across it. Sealing 40 ft of cracks on a 600 sq ft driveway is 7.000000000000001 per cent of replacement — repair. A decorative overlay on it is 114 per cent — a look, not an economy.
- Can you fix a crack where one side is higher than the other?
- Not with a filler. A trip edge means the slab has settled or heaved — the base moved and the slab went with it — and filling the crack leaves the step. The slab is lifted from below, by mudjacking or foam, until it is level, and the crack is sealed afterwards. If the base keeps washing out, it settles again, which is why the downspout matters more than the foam.
- Can I resurface a cracked driveway?
- Only after the cracks are dealt with, and only if the slab has stopped moving. A resurfacer is a thin skim bonded to the old surface, and every crack in the slab comes through it at the same place within a season unless it was routed and filled first; a slab that is still settling cracks the overlay along the same line. Sound, level, cracks treated: yes. Moving: no, whatever the bag says.
- Why is a short crack so expensive per foot?
- Because the crew's minimum — about $350 — covers the trip and the setup, and at $11 a foot the per-foot price only takes over past about 32 ft. Under that, it is the job to do yourself, or to save until there is more of it on the same visit.
- Can I repair concrete cracks myself?
- Hairline and working cracks, yes: about $179 for 40 ft of routed crack — a crack-chasing wheel on a grinder, backer rod and a self-levelling polyurethane sealant — and a Saturday. The groove is the job; a bead of caulk on an unrouted crack peels in a year. Resurfacing is within reach with a pressure washer and a squeegee. Lifting is a pump and a crew.
- What causes concrete to crack?
- Shrinkage as it cures, which every slab does and control joints are meant to steer; settlement, when the base under it washes out or compacts; heave, when frost or a tree root pushes it up; and salt and freeze-thaw, which take the surface. The repair lasts as long as the cause is gone — the downspout moved, the root dealt with — and no longer.
- How long does a concrete repair last?
- A sealed hairline crack about 5 years before it wants resealing; a routed and sealed working crack 8 or so; a foam lift 15 years and a mudjack 7; a resurfacer 8 years, an overlay 10. A new slab, thirty. Per year, that is the arithmetic behind the replace rule.
- Is mudjacking or foam better?
- Foam is dearer — $850 against $650 on a 100 sq ft section — and it is lighter, so it adds no load to the base that already failed; it goes in through coin-sized holes and cures in minutes. Mudjacking is a cement slurry through 2 in holes, cheap and heavy, and it can settle again. Foam is the default now; mudjacking is the budget choice on a base that is otherwise sound.
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About the author
Pablo Ruiz Quintero — Editor
Editor of MaterialsEstimator. Decides which documents count as a source, what every default value is, and where the line sits between what the reader parses and what the engines compute.
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