Most plants deliver a cubic yard for $143 to $181. The mix strength sets the base price. The size of your order sets the rest.
A cubic yard of ready-mix concrete costs about $143 to $181 delivered. The spread comes almost entirely from mix strength, according to LawnStarter's September 2026 concrete price data.
The national average sat just under $180 a cubic yard in 2025, based on ready-mix figures published by Concrete Network. Five years earlier it was $125.
That price is the concrete alone. It does not cover the crew, the stone base, the forms, the steel, or the finish.
This post covers what the plant charges by the yard. It also covers the fees on top and how many yards a pour takes. For how a slab gets built, see our concrete slab installation page.
Three things move the number on your quote. The strength you order, how far the truck drives, and the market you are in.
A 3,000 psi mix runs about $143 to $158 a yard. A 4,000 psi mix runs $161 to $173. A 5,000 psi mix runs $178 to $193, per LawnStarter's 2026 breakdown by strength. That is roughly $35 a yard between the weakest common mix and the strongest.
Strength is not a luxury upgrade. It is specified by what the slab has to survive. In New Jersey that means freeze and thaw cycles plus road salt.
Most plants quote a delivery radius. Inside it, delivery runs about $18 to $20 a cubic yard. Past it, expect roughly $9.75 for every extra mile.
This is why two neighbors can get different numbers for the same pour. The closer plant almost always wins on price.
Ready-mix has climbed steadily. National averages went from $125 a yard in 2020 to $137 in 2022. They hit $160 in 2023 and about $180 in 2024 and 2025. Federal producer price data for ready-mix concrete shows September 2026 running about 2 percent above a year earlier. It sits about 31 percent above five years ago.
The steep part of that climb is behind us. Prices are still rising, just slowly.
A short load fee is what the plant charges when your order does not fill a truck. It is the single biggest surprise on a small pour.
A full truckload is usually about 10 cubic yards. Order less and the plant adds roughly $43 a yard, according to LawnStarter. Some plants charge far less. Fixr puts the short load rate at $15 to $17 a yard, so it pays to ask before you order.
The truck, the driver and the trip cost the plant the same whether it carries 3 yards or 10.
Delivery itself often lands around $55 a load. A Saturday or holiday pour adds about $7 to $8 a yard. A winter mix adds another $5 to $7.
You get about 7 to 10 minutes per cubic yard to unload. After that the plant bills standby time at roughly $70 to $75 an hour.
A crew that is set up before the truck arrives never pays that. A crew still building forms when the chute swings out usually does.
There is no single industry minimum. Some plants will send a single yard. Most residential suppliers prefer at least 3 yards before they load a truck.
The ticket in the driver's hand tells you exactly what you bought. Most homeowners never ask to see it.
Papaneri & Sons Concrete has been pouring in Cherry Hill and across South Jersey since 1987. We have placed more than 5.7 million square feet of concrete in that time.
We order a 4,500 psi mix on every residential pour. Most crews in this area order 3,000 to 3,500. That choice costs us more per yard on every single job.
Every load arrives with a ticket. It lists the mix design, the strength, the volume and the batch time. It takes ten seconds to read.
Say the ticket reads 3,000 psi and the estimate said 4,000. You found a problem before the concrete hit the ground. After the pour it is too late.
Fresh concrete has a shelf life. The Federal Highway Administration's deck review checklist sets discharge at 90 minutes or 300 drum revolutions. That drops to 60 minutes once the concrete reaches 80 degrees.
That batch time on the ticket is what the clock runs from. A truck that sits in traffic is burning part of your window.
If somebody runs a hose into the drum to loosen a stiff load, the strength drops. You paid for one mix and the slab gets a weaker one.
Under about half a cubic yard, bags win. Past that, the truck wins, even with a short load fee on top.
It takes 45 eighty-pound bags to make one cubic yard. Mixing that by hand is a long, hard day for one post footing's worth of concrete.
If your pour lands between 3 and 9 yards, ask the plant two questions. What is the short load threshold, and what is the charge per yard under it?
Then look at whether you can combine pours. Pour a patio and a shed pad the same morning. Together they can cross the full truck line and drop the fee.
Order 5 to 10 percent more than your math says. Running short mid-pour means a cold joint, and a second truck costs more than the extra yard would have.
Thickness drives volume faster than width does. Our post on concrete driveway thickness covers where 4 inches is enough. It also covers where 5 or 6 is the right call.
Finally, remember that the per-yard price is not your project price. Labor, tear out, base stone and finishing are the larger half of most quotes. Our basement floor cost guide shows how those pieces stack up on a real job. Our guide to 4,500 psi concrete explains why the strength line is worth paying for.
Buying the concrete is only part of a job. For the installed price of the whole thing, see what a full concrete driveway costs.
A cubic yard is 27 cubic feet of concrete. At 4 inches thick it covers 81 square feet. At 5 inches it covers about 65 square feet, and at 6 inches it covers 54.
It takes 45 eighty-pound bags, 60 sixty-pound bags, or 90 forty-pound bags to equal one cubic yard. Bags make sense for post footings and small repairs, not for a slab.
A full truck holds about 10 cubic yards. That puts the concrete near $1,430 to $1,810, with no short load charge. We give free on-site estimates in Cherry Hill and across South Jersey. Call (856) 354-9338.
We pour driveways, patios, slabs and foundations across South Jersey. That includes Cherry Hill, Marlton, Mount Laurel, Moorestown and Haddonfield. Tell us what you are building and we will come measure it.