Gravel driveway cost in Virginia Beach, VA
Local estimate from BLS wage data and BEA price levels. Reviewed Nov 4, 2026.
- Typical range (1,000 sq ft)
- $2,250 – $9,250
- Per sq ft
- $2.25 – $9.05
- before permit
- Versus US midpoint
- −9%
- US $6,350
- Rank of 300 metros
- #240
- 1 = most expensive
A gravel driveway in Virginia Beach, VA usually costs $2,250 to $9,250 for 1,000 sq ft. That works out to about $2.25 to $9.05 per sq ft before permits. Compared with the national midpoint that is $600 less. Construction laborers earn a median of $18.51 an hour in the Virginia Beach area, 18% below the US median of $22.66.
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Estimated cost for 1,000 sq ft in Virginia Beach, VA, standard level
$4,350 to $7,150
About $4.30 to $7 per sq ft before permits. Labor is about 46% of the bill.
| Part | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | $2,250 | $3,750 |
| Labor | $2,050 | $3,300 |
| Permits and fees | $60 | $140 |
| Total | $4,350 | $7,150 |
Cost breakdown for 1,000 sq ft in Virginia Beach, VA
| Part of the job | Low | Midpoint | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Materials | $1,150 | $3,000 | $4,850 | 52% |
| Labor | $1,100 | $2,650 | $4,200 | 46% |
| Permits and fees | $0 | $100 | $200 | 2% |
| Total | $2,250 | $5,750 | $9,250 | 100% |
Where the Virginia Beach price comes from
Labor is 46% of the midpoint bill here, against 50% nationally. The mix of trades behind this job is construction laborers (50%), operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (50%). We weight each trade's local median wage by that share and compare it with the national median. In Virginia Beach the blended ratio comes out at 0.84.
Materials are scaled with BEA's regional price parity for goods. Virginia Beach is at 96.8 against 100 for the US, so a materials line of $3,100 nationally becomes $3,000 here (midpoint, 1,000 sq ft). Permits follow the all-items index of 97.9: $0 to $200.
Related projects, priced for Virginia Beach
Jobs that often go together with gravel driveway are priced below at their usual sizes, using the same Virginia Beach wage and price inputs. Compared with national midpoints, sod installation comes out highest (−6%) and concrete driveway lowest (−11%); the gap comes from the trades each job uses.
| Project | Size | Range | vs. US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asphalt driveway | 600 sq ft | $2,850 – $6,800 | −8% |
| Concrete driveway | 600 sq ft | $3,300 – $8,150 | −11% |
| French drain | 60 linear ft | $550 – $1,900 | −9% |
| Sod installation | 1,500 sq ft | $1,400 – $3,100 | −6% |
| Concrete slab | 400 sq ft | $2,250 – $4,800 | −8% |
| Paver patio | 300 sq ft | $2,650 – $4,850 | −11% |
Cost by quality level and size in Virginia Beach
The cited range is split into basic, standard and premium bands, then scaled to Virginia Beach. Bands overlap, because plenty of standard jobs cost as much as a light premium one. Sizes run from single car (500 sq ft) to long rural (2,000 sq ft).
Basic
$2,250 to $5,050
Crusher-run spread and compacted on firm ground
Standard
$4,350 to $7,150
Excavated base plus top course, fabric, light grading
Premium
$6,450 to $9,250
Deep multi-layer build, edging, culvert or drainage
| Size | Basic | Standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| single car (500 sq ft) | $1,150 – $2,550 | $2,200 – $3,650 | $3,300 – $4,700 |
| two car (1,000 sq ft) | $2,250 – $5,050 | $4,350 – $7,150 | $6,450 – $9,250 |
| 100 ft x 10 ft (1,000 sq ft) | $2,250 – $5,050 | $4,350 – $7,150 | $6,450 – $9,250 |
| long rural (2,000 sq ft) | $4,500 – $10,000 | $8,650 – $14,200 | $12,800 – $18,300 |
Virginia Beach weather and the gravel driveway calendar
Climate numbers on this page come from NOAA's 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals at the nearest suitable station, Oceana Nas (5 miles from the city center). They are 30-year averages, so any one year can run hotter, colder or wetter.
For digging, grading and setting material in the ground, the comfortable months in Virginia Beach are February through December: 11 of 12. Outside them, January has an average overnight low at or below freezing (32°F).
In January the average low is at or below freezing, which means frozen ground and slower digging, compaction and sod or stone placement. NOAA counts about 50 days a year with a low at or below 32°F at this station.
Virginia Beach gets about 47 inches of precipitation in a normal year, including roughly 3 inches of snow. The wettest months are July, August and September (5.8 inches in July). Inside the workable window, February and November are the driest, at 2.8 and 3.1 inches. The station averages about 32 days a year at 90°F or above.
We do not adjust the estimate by month, because we have no reliable published data on seasonal pricing. It is still worth asking contractors whether an off-peak start date changes their bid.
| Month | Avg high °F | Avg low °F | Precip (in) | For this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 50 | 32 | 3.2 | Cold |
| Feb | 53 | 33 | 2.8 | Workable |
| Mar | 59 | 39 | 3.6 | Workable |
| Apr | 69 | 48 | 3.4 | Workable |
| May | 76 | 56 | 3.6 | Workable |
| Jun | 83 | 66 | 4.2 | Workable |
| Jul | 87 | 70 | 5.8 | Workable |
| Aug | 85 | 69 | 5.1 | Workable |
| Sep | 80 | 64 | 4.5 | Workable |
| Oct | 71 | 53 | 4.2 | Workable |
| Nov | 61 | 42 | 3.1 | Workable |
| Dec | 54 | 35 | 3.3 | Workable |
Optional extras in Virginia Beach
Add-ons start from national price ranges and are scaled by 0.91 for Virginia Beach, which is the average of the area's wage index (0.84) and goods price index (0.97). The estimator above can add them to your total.
| Add-on | Local range |
|---|---|
| Add edging (approx. 1 ft per 10 sq ft) | $450 – $1,650 |
What local crews earn in Virginia Beach
The labor line is built from BLS wage data, one trade at a time. This job draws on 2 trades. We compare each trade's local median with the US median, weight the ratios by how much of the job each trade does, and apply the blend to the national labor cost. For Virginia Beach the blend is 0.84.
For construction laborers (47-2061, weighted 50%) the local median is $18.51 an hour, which is 18% below the national $22.66. The middle half of them earn between $17.29 and $21.90 an hour. BLS counts 5,660 of them working in the area, 74.2 for every 10,000 jobs (US: 70.5), so the local bench is about average.
Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073), 50% of the weighting: a median of $25.03 an hour, 13% below the US median of $28.78. The middle half of them earn between $23.01 and $29.38 an hour. About 2,150 work in the metro. That is 28.2 per 10,000 jobs, compared with 30.7 nationally, so the supply of crews looks typical.
A quick sensitivity check: moving the lead trade (construction laborers) from the median to the 75th percentile wage adds about $240 to the midpoint estimate; the 25th percentile takes off about $85. That is a swing of roughly 1.5% to 4.1% of the total, which is useful for judging whether a bid reflects wages or something else, such as scope or margin.
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk has 763,060 jobs in total (BLS, May 2025), ranking 40th by size among the 300 metros on this site.
| Trade | Weight | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | US median | Ratio | Level used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Construction laborers (47-2061) | 50% | $17.29 | $18.51 | $21.90 | $22.66 | 0.82 | metro |
| Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073) | 50% | $23.01 | $25.03 | $29.38 | $28.78 | 0.87 | metro |
| Blended | 100% | 0.84 | |||||
Gravel driveway: what moves the price in Virginia Beach
Grading and edging
Grading runs $1-$3 per sq ft. Edging to keep the stone in is $5-$18 per linear foot.
Stone is sold by weight
Stone is priced by the ton, so every extra inch of depth or foot of width adds loads of delivery.
Permit
A driveway permit is typically $50-$200 where one is needed for a new curb cut or connection; plenty of rural counties require none.
Is Virginia Beach cheap or dear? The local comparison
Same job, same size (1,000 sq ft), priced for the nearest metros. Lexington Park is the priciest of the group at $6,300.
| Area | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia Beach, VAthis page | $2,250 – $9,250 | $5,750 | |
| Richmond, VA70 miles | $2,350 – $9,600 | $5,950 | +4% |
| Greenville, NC100 miles | $2,250 – $9,250 | $5,750 | level |
| Lexington Park, MD100 miles | $2,500 – $10,100 | $6,300 | +10% |
| Raleigh, NC135 miles | $2,350 – $9,600 | $5,950 | +4% |
| Charlottesville, VA145 miles | $2,450 – $9,950 | $6,200 | +7% |
| Virginia (statewide) | $2,450 – $9,900 | $6,150 | +7% |
| United States | $2,500 – $10,200 | $6,350 | +10% |
Out of the 300 metros we cover, Virginia Beach ranks #240 for the cost of this job (#1 is the most expensive). Statewide, Virginia Beach is 7% below the Virginia figure.
Elsewhere in Virginia
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond, VA | 660,350 jobs | $2,350 – $9,600 | $5,950 | +4% |
| Roanoke, VA | 153,980 jobs | $2,200 – $9,100 | $5,650 | −2% |
| Charlottesville, VA | 114,780 jobs | $2,450 – $9,950 | $6,200 | +7% |
| Lynchburg, VA | 97,190 jobs | $2,250 – $9,150 | $5,700 | −1% |
| Blacksburg, VA | 74,070 jobs | $2,300 – $9,300 | $5,800 | +1% |
| Winchester, VA | 67,740 jobs | $2,300 – $9,400 | $5,850 | +1% |
Metros of a similar size
Big cities and small ones price differently, so here is Virginia Beach against the 4 metros with the closest total employment.
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville, FL | 765,930 jobs | $2,300 – $9,350 | $5,800 | +1% |
| Raleigh, NC | 743,120 jobs | $2,350 – $9,600 | $5,950 | +4% |
| Milwaukee, WI | 820,780 jobs | $2,800 – $11,200 | $7,000 | +22% |
| Providence, RI | 714,120 jobs | $2,750 – $11,100 | $6,950 | +20% |
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Gravel driveway in Virginia Beach: your questions
+How much does it cost to install a gravel driveway in Virginia Beach?
For 1,000 sq ft, expect $2,250 to $9,250 in the Virginia Beach area. A standard-spec job lands at $4,350 to $7,150. Small jobs usually cost more per sq ft and large ones less.
+What is the price per sq ft for gravel driveway in Virginia Beach?
About $2.25 to $9.05 per sq ft for materials and labor, plus $0 to $200 for the permit if one is needed. The US range is $2.50 to $10.
+Is gravel driveway cheaper in Virginia Beach or Richmond?
Richmond is 70 miles away. The midpoint for 1,000 sq ft there is $5,950, which is 4% more than Virginia Beach ($5,750). Wage and materials indexes both feed that gap.
+How much of the bill is labor in Virginia Beach?
About 46% at the midpoint, or $2,650 out of $5,750. Materials are 52% and permits 2%. Nationally, labor is 50%.
+What would 100 ft x 10 ft (1,000 sq ft) cost in Virginia Beach?
$2,250 to $9,250. Pick a different size in the estimator above to get your own number.
+Does gravel driveway need a permit in Virginia Beach?
Often, but rules are set by your city or county building office, so call before you hire. Budget $0 to $200 for fees in the Virginia Beach area (our national range of $0 to $200 scaled by the local price level).
+Is Virginia Beach expensive for gravel driveway compared with the rest of Virginia?
Virginia Beach is 7% below the Virginia statewide estimate ($6,150 at the midpoint). We cover 8 metros in Virginia; see the state page to compare them.
+What do construction laborers earn in Virginia Beach?
The BLS median is $18.51 an hour in the Virginia Beach area, compared with $22.66 nationally. The 25th to 75th percentile range is $17.29 to $21.90.
+What do basic and premium gravel driveway work cost in Virginia Beach?
For 1,000 sq ft, basic work runs $2,250 to $5,050 and premium work $6,450 to $9,250. Basic means: crusher-run spread and compacted on firm ground. Premium means: deep multi-layer build, edging, culvert or drainage.
+When is the best time to install a gravel driveway in Virginia Beach?
Based on NOAA 1991-2020 normals, the comfortable months for this kind of work are February through December. February and November are typically the driest of those months. Local contractors' schedules matter as much as the weather, so book early for the busy months.
+What does "add edging" add in Virginia Beach?
$450 to $1,650 for 1,000 sq ft, from a national range scaled by the local wage and goods indexes.
Gravel driveway near Virginia Beach
Where these numbers come from
Base prices are national ranges from the sources below. We scale labor by local BLS wages, materials by BEA goods prices and permits by the BEA all-items price level. Full method on the methodology page.
- HomeGuide: How Much Does a Gravel Driveway Cost? (2026) (accessed November 4, 2026)
- CalculateGravel: Gravel Driveway Cost in 2026 (accessed November 4, 2026)
- HomeGuide: 2026 Building Permit Costs | Fees & Cost Calculator (accessed November 4, 2026)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991-2020
Note on derived figures: Installed range spans a basic spread-and-compact job ($2.50/sq ft low, CalculateGravel) to a full build with excavation ($10/sq ft high, HomeGuide). Materials low end is DIY stone ($1.20/sq ft, CalculateGravel); high end is half of HomeGuide's $10 because it says labor is about 50% of the project.