Find a trusted concreter in Brisbane

Clay, slopes and summer storms

Many Brisbane suburbs sit on reactive clay that swells when wet summers soak it and shrinks through the drier winter. That seasonal movement is hard on concrete. A firm, well-compacted base, the right reinforcement and control joints in the right places decide whether a driveway cracks neatly along its joints or splits across the middle. Ask any concreter how they’ll prepare the base and where the joints will go. On a driveway, it’s also worth asking about the finish: a light broom texture gives tyres and shoes more grip on a wet Brisbane afternoon than a smooth trowelled surface, and exposed aggregate grips well too.

Slope is the other Brisbane factor. Plenty of blocks in Brisbane’s hillier suburbs slope toward or away from the street, so a driveway or patio can need excavation, extra formwork and sometimes steps or a retaining edge. That’s why Brisbane quotes often include digging that a flat suburb wouldn’t need. Summer storms can wash out a prepared base the day before a pour, and on hot days concreters start early and keep the surface damp so it doesn’t dry out too fast.

Driveways, crossovers and under the house

Brisbane City Council requires a permit for a residential driveway, and the section crossing the footpath has to follow the council’s technical standards on width and distance from intersections. Owners are responsible for maintaining the driveway, including the kerb and channel next to it. Ask whether the quote includes the permit application and any kerb work, or whether that’s left to you.

Under-house slabs are a very Brisbane job. Raised Queenslanders often have a dirt floor underneath, and a concrete floor turns it into dry storage, a laundry or parking. If the slab is the first step toward enclosing the space as rooms, talk to a builder about approvals before the concrete goes in. The slab’s height, falls and any set-downs for future wet areas are much easier to get right now than to grind or patch later.

Checking a concreter’s QBCC licence

A driveway or slab that costs more than $3,300 all up, labour and materials together, has to be done by someone holding a QBCC Concreting licence or a builder licence, and many home jobs pass that mark. Search the business on the QBCC licensee register and check that the name on the quote, the licence class and the expiry date all line up. Our Queensland licence checks page walks through the other registers.

Concrete prices around Brisbane

Brisbane sits mid to high for concreting, with plain finishes at about $70 to $140 a square metre and exposed aggregate at $100 to $220. A plain single driveway usually runs $2,500 to $6,000 and a double $4,000 to $9,000, while a shed or patio slab is commonly $2,000 to $6,000. If the truck can’t reach the pour, pump hire adds about $450 to $800. Our concreting price guide breaks down more jobs; use the figures to sense-check a quote rather than as one.

Matched with one Brisbane concreter

Give us the rough size, the finish you’re after and your suburb. We’ll pass it to one Brisbane concreter after checking their licence, insurance, ABN and reviews. No bidding war, no list of numbers to call. See how concreter matching works, check other trades in Brisbane, or get a free quote.