#57 Gravel Near Me

Buying #57 gravel locally

#57 gravel is crushed stone screened to 3/4 to 1 inch with the dust washed or screened out. It costs $20 to $35 per ton in 2026, weighs 1.35 to 1.55 tons per cubic yard, and is the most used aggregate in the country. Quarries sell more #57 than any other size because it works for driveways, French drains, concrete, pipe bedding, and backfill. If a contractor says "gravel" with no other detail, they usually mean #57. ## What the Number Means The 57 comes from the ASTM C33 grading table. Size #57 means most of the stone passes a 1-inch screen and stays on a #4 sieve (about 3/16 inch), with the bulk of it between 1/2 and 1 inch. It is "clean" stone, so there are no fines. That leaves about 35 percent air space in a pile, which is why it drains so well and why it stays loose on its own. ## Limestone, Granite, or Gravel? #57 is a size, not a rock. In Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and Texas, #57 is crushed limestone. In Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia it is granite. In the Northwest it is basalt. In river valleys it may be crushed river gravel with one rounded face. All of them behave about the same. Limestone is softer and packs a bit tighter over time as the edges wear. Granite stays sharp and drains better for longer. Price follows what is local: the nearest quarry is almost always the cheapest #57. ## What #57 Gravel Is Used For - **Driveway middle layer.** The standard three-layer gravel driveway is 4 inches of #3 or #4 base, 3 to 4 inches of #57, and 2 inches of #8 or crusher run on top. #57 fills the gaps in the base and gives the top layer something to bite into. - **French drains.** Wrap a trench in fabric, add 2 to 3 inches of #57, lay perforated pipe, and cover with more #57 to within 4 inches of grade. The 3/4-inch pieces are big enough to leave voids and small enough to shovel. - **Concrete.** #57 is the standard coarse aggregate in ready-mix concrete. - **Pipe bedding and backfill.** Utility crews bed water and sewer lines in #57 because it flows into voids around the pipe and never needs compaction. - **Foundation and slab base.** A 4-inch layer of #57 under a slab is a capillary break that keeps ground moisture out of the concrete. - **Septic drain fields.** Washed #57 is the usual stone around leach lines. - **Parking and construction pads.** Works as an overflow parking surface on firm ground, though it stays loose under tires. ## How #57 Behaves Angular pieces interlock, so a layer of #57 spreads loads well. Without fines it does not "set up" the way crusher run does. Compaction is only about 8 percent. That means a #57 driveway surface always feels a little loose, stone rolls to the edges under tires, and you will rake it back once or twice a year. It also means water goes straight through, which is the reason to use it anywhere drainage matters. Walking on #57 is not pleasant. The pieces are big enough to turn an ankle and hard to push a wheelbarrow through. For paths and patios go down to [#8 gravel](/gravel/types/8-gravel) or [#89 stone](/gravel/types/89-stone). ## #57 Versus Nearby Sizes - **#57 vs #4 stone.** [#4 is 1 to 1.5 inches](/gravel/types/4-stone), one step bigger. Use #4 for base layers and deep drainage beds, #57 for anything closer to the surface. - **#57 vs #8.** #8 is 3/8 to 1/2 inch. It is the top-layer stone, smooth enough to walk and drive on. - **#57 vs crusher run.** Crusher run has the dust left in and packs hard. #57 is clean and drains. Use crusher run for a driveway surface, #57 under it or in a drain. - **#57 vs #411.** #411 is #57 blended with fines. It drains a bit and packs a bit, a middle ground for driveway resurfacing. ## How Much to Order One ton of #57 covers about 80 square feet at 3 inches and 60 square feet at 4 inches. A 12 x 40 ft driveway layer at 4 inches needs about 9 tons; order 10. A 50-foot French drain 12 inches wide and 12 inches deep needs about 3 tons. A 10-ton single-axle truckload costs $200 to $350 before delivery. The planner below measures your area from a satellite photo and does the tonnage. ## What to Avoid Skip #57 as the only layer of a driveway on soft ground. It will sink and rut. Do not use it as a patio or path surface, under pavers (use stone dust or #8), or in play areas. And do not order "57 gravel" from a landscape yard without confirming it is clean stone. Some yards sell a "57 blend" with fines that will not work in a drain. Yards also call it #57 Stone or Number 57 Stone. GoodGravel lists 120 suppliers that stock #57 gravel across 36 states. 42 of them deliver and 28 are pits or quarries that sell straight from the stockpile.

Expect #57 gravel to run $20 to $35 per ton at the yard, or $25 to $45 per cubic yard. A 10 ton load is $200 to $350 before delivery. The most widely stocked aggregate in the United States. Every quarry and most landscape yards carry it. Quarry delivery usually starts at 5 to 10 tons; a 10-ton single-axle load is the common residential order. Pits sit at the low end of that range and landscape yards at the high end, since the yard bought it from a pit and trucked it in.

#57 Gravel works well for french drains and drainage beds, driveway middle layer, concrete aggregate, and pipe bedding and utility backfill. Skip it for walkways and patios and paver base. The upside: cheapest useful stone at $20 to $35 per ton and stocked at every quarry in the country. The catch: too coarse to walk on comfortably.

#57 gravel is angular crushed stone screened to 3/4 inch to 1 inch, with a few pieces down to 1/2 inch. Color depends on the quarry: gray or blue-gray limestone through the Midwest and Northeast, gray, white, and pink granite in the Southeast, tan limestone in Texas, and dark basalt in the Northwest. One cubic yard of #57 gravel weighs about 1.45 tons. A 3 inch layer over 500 square feet takes 4.6 cubic yards, which is close to 6.7 tons. Add 10 percent for settling and the odd low spot.

Press the location button at the top of the page and the list sorts by distance from you. Call the closest yard and ask for #57 gravel by name and by size. Ask if it is washed or still has fines in it, because that changes how it drains and how it packs. If the nearest yard is out, the next one is usually within 20 miles when you are near a city.

Under 2 tons, pickup with your own truck or a trailer is the cheaper route. A half ton pickup takes about a third of a yard per trip. Above 5 tons, delivery starts to pay for itself because the fee spreads over more stone. Either way, get the total price for your exact tonnage from two yards and compare those totals, not the price per ton.

Read more about the material on the #57 gravel guide.