#8 Gravel vs Crushed Limestone: Size, Cost, and Which to Use

#8 Gravel

Small crushed stone approximately 3/8 to 1/2 inch in size. Good for walkways and as a top dressing for driveways. #8 gravel bridges the gap between coarse aggregates and fine pea gravel, offering a balance of comfort and stability.

Crushed Limestone

Crushed limestone is quarried limestone that has been crushed and screened into standard sizes from screenings to 3-inch rock. It costs $20 to $45 per ton in 2026, weighs 1.3 to 1.5 tons per cubic yard, and is the cheapest crushed stone across the Midwest, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, and any other region sitting on limestone bedrock. Its light color, low price, and the way its fines cement together under traffic make it the default driveway and road gravel in a big part of the country.

#8 Gravel

• ✓ Walkways
• ✓ Patios
• ✓ Between pavers
• ✓ Asphalt mix
• ✓ Top dressing
• ✓ Drainage backfill

Crushed Limestone

• ✓ Driveways
• ✓ Road base
• ✓ Drainage
• ✓ Paver base
• ✓ Concrete aggregate
• ✓ Farm lanes and arenas
• ✓ Landscaping

#8 Gravel

• + Smaller size is more comfortable to walk on
• + Compacts better than larger stone
• + Good for filling gaps between pavers
• + Excellent drainage
• + Smooth driveway top-dressing

• − Can migrate without edging
• − Not as stable as larger crushed stone
• − May be tracked by shoes
• − Less commonly stocked than #57
• − Dusty when dry

Crushed Limestone

• + Cheapest crushed stone in the Midwest, Texas, and Florida
• + Fines cement together into a hard surface
• + Light color brightens driveways and beds
• + Every standard size available
• + Packs harder than granite crusher run

• − White dust in dry weather
• − Raises soil pH, bad for acid-loving plants
• − Softer, breaks down faster under heavy trucks
• − Expensive where it has to be trucked far

#8 Gravel

#8 gravel consists of angular crushed stone pieces from 3/8" to 1/2" in diameter. Like other crushed stone, color varies by source quarry — gray, blue-gray, tan, and brown are most common.

Crushed Limestone

Crushed limestone comes in every standard sieve size: screenings under 1/4 inch, #8 (3/8 to 1/2 inch), #57 (3/4 to 1 inch), #4 (1 to 1.5 inch), #2 (2 to 3 inch), and crusher run (3/4 or 1.5 inch minus). It is angular when fresh and wears smoother than granite. Color runs white, cream, light gray, and tan, and it turns bright white as dust dries on the surface.