Six surfaces cover almost every British driveway, and the honest comparison is not which is best but which is best for your ground, your budget and how much maintenance you will actually do. The most expensive mistake in this trade is not picking the wrong surface, it is laying any of them on an inadequate base.
The base matters more than the surface
Every driveway is a structure: excavation to a firm formation, a compacted sub base of crushed stone of a depth suited to the ground and the vehicles, then the surface on top. A driveway that sinks, cracks, rutts or grows weeds through it has almost always failed in the base rather than the surface. That is also why quotes differ so much for the same finish: one has excavated and built a proper sub base and the other is laying over what is already there. Ask what depth is being dug out and what sub base depth is being laid, and get it in writing.
Different types of driveways: the six surfaces, honestly
Tarmac is quick, cheap per square metre, good on large areas and can soften in extreme heat. Block paving looks good, can be lifted and relaid over a service, and needs weeding and occasional resanding. Resin bound is smooth, permeable when laid on a permeable base, and depends completely on the quality of the base and the installer. Concrete is durable and cracks if not jointed properly. Pattern imprinted concrete looks striking when new and cannot be lifted for repairs. Gravel is much the cheapest, drains freely, migrates, and needs edging and topping up.
Stone, brick and cobblestone driveway cost: the most expensive surfaces
Clay pavers, setts and cobbles are the traditional surfaces and they are the most expensive per square metre by a distance, because the material costs more and laying them is slow. On a period house they are frequently what the building deserves and sometimes what a conservation area requires. Reclaimed setts vary in depth, which adds labour. If budget is the constraint, using an expensive surface on a small visible area with a cheaper one elsewhere is a more honest compromise than a cheap imitation of an expensive material.
How each of the driveway types looks in ten years
This is the question nobody asks and everybody regrets. Tarmac fades from black to grey and can be resurfaced. Block paving gets weeds and sand loss in the joints and can be individually replaced, which is its real advantage. Resin can discolour with ultraviolet exposure depending on the resin type and is hard to patch invisibly. Imprinted concrete is the hardest to repair because a patch never matches the pattern or the colour. Gravel needs topping up. Stone improves. Ask any installer what a repair looks like, because that answer is the most useful thing they will tell you.
A paved driveway's edges, levels and the bits that are not the surface
A driveway needs an edge restraint or it spreads, which on block paving and gravel is the commonest visible failure. It needs a level that falls away from the house and keeps the damp proof course clear, because a drive built up against a wall bridges the DPC and causes damp inside. It needs a crossing over the footway that the highway authority has approved. And it needs somewhere for the water to go. Those four cost money and appear on some quotes and not others.
Questions people ask about driveway materials UK
What is the best driveway surface?
It depends on the ground, the budget and how much maintenance you will do. Tarmac for large areas at low cost, block paving for repairability, resin for a smooth permeable finish, gravel for the cheapest option, stone where the house deserves it.
Why do driveway quotes vary so much?
Almost always the base. One quote has priced excavation and a proper sub base and another is laying over what is there. Ask for the dig depth and the sub base depth in writing.
Which driveway is easiest to repair?
Block paving, because individual blocks can be lifted and replaced, including over a service trench. Pattern imprinted concrete is the hardest, because a patch never matches.
Do I need an edge to a driveway?
Yes, on anything other than a fully bound surface contained by existing structures. Without an edge restraint, block paving and gravel spread and the surface fails at the perimeter first.