Site preparation
Set-out, excavation, disposal, base material and compaction.
Why square-metre rates vary
Concrete volume is only one part of the delivered job. Small projects can carry fixed mobilisation costs; difficult access can require pumping or additional labour; demolition adds cutting, loading and disposal; and weak or variable ground can change excavation and base preparation. Decorative finishes add materials and timing that plain concrete does not.
Ask each quote to show the same boundaries
Structural scope
Thickness, reinforcement, edge details, joints and any engineering reference.
Placement
Concrete supply, pump or barrow access, labour, finishing and curing provisions.
Completion
Saw cutting, sealing where applicable, clean-up, crossover work and exclusions.
Use dimensions to obtain an initial comparison, but do not treat an online range as a commitment. The cheapest number may exclude the work that determines whether the slab performs. For driveways, read the two-council permit guide before finalising the crossover scope.