Ring six concrete suppliers and ask the price. Five will say "it depends" and ask for your postcode. It does depend — but that's no excuse for hiding the numbers. Below is our full guide price list, where the wider UK market sits in 2026, and the extras that catch people out. No form to fill in first.
Our Guide Prices Per Cubic Metre (2026)
| Mix | Typical jobs | Our guide price (per m³) | Typical UK range* |
|---|---|---|---|
| C8/10 — what builders call GEN1 | Strip and trench-fill foundations in normal ground, oversite, mass fill | from £99 | £95–£120 |
| C20 — what builders call GEN3 | Unreinforced shed, garage and workshop bases | from £105 | £100–£125 |
| C25 | Reinforced foundations; the air-entrained version is our driveway recommendation | from £110 | £105–£135 |
| C30 | Reinforced slabs and harder-wearing external work | from £115 | £110–£140 |
| C35 | Structural work to an engineer's spec | from £120 | £115–£150 |
| C40 | Industrial floors and heavy-duty work | from £128 | £120–£155 |
All prices per m³, +VAT, guide prices — confirmed when you book. VAT is never included in concrete pricing, ours or anyone's, so add 20%: a £105 cubic metre is £126 on the invoice. *National ranges from 2026 market guides.
"GEN" and similar designated names may only be sold under those names by producers holding third-party certification. We batch equivalent designed mixes by strength class, to the strength and durability requirements of BS 8500 / BS EN 206, and every load comes with a batch ticket. The concrete grades guide breaks down what each mix is actually for.
Where the UK Market Sits in 2026
2026 market guides put typical UK ready mix between £100 and £160 per cubic metre ex VAT. The Midlands runs roughly 15–20% below London prices — a London C25 goes for £110–£139 ex VAT, which is why national price articles can read high if you're ordering in Birmingham.
Our list sits where a fair Midlands price should: not a race to the bottom, because the cheapest headline number usually claws itself back somewhere else. More on that below.
What Moves the Price
- Grade. More strength means more cement, which costs more. It works the other way too: if C20 will do the job, don't pay for C35. We'll tell you when you're over-speccing.
- Volume. Bigger pours spread the cost of getting a truck to you, so the per-m³ rate works harder on 5m³ than on 1m³.
- Distance. Further from base means more travel time in the price.
- Day and hour. Across the market, Saturday and out-of-hours pours typically add £50–£150 to a job, or £15–£35 per m³. Any surcharge on your pour is confirmed when you book.
- Waiting time. If the site isn't ready when the truck arrives, waiting beyond around 30 minutes may be chargeable — confirmed when you book. The fix is free: read our guide to preparing for a concrete delivery.
The Part-Load Trap
This is the one that stings small jobs. A drum mixer is loaded at a static plant, and the economics want the truck full. So drum suppliers commonly set minimum loads of 2–6m³ — some with minimum charges of £500 or more — and when they do deliver less, they add short-load fees of £50–£200, or charge for the empty space: typically £15–£40 for every empty cubic metre, depending on supplier. Send surplus concrete back and that can be chargeable too.
We run volumetric trucks that batch on site, so there is no empty drum space to bill for. Our minimum is 0.5m³, the volume is metered as it's poured, and there's no part-load penalty, ever. For the small-job end of things, see our mini mix and small load service.
Two Worked Examples
These use our guide prices and sensible assumptions to show how the totals behave. Your job gets its own price, confirmed when you book.
1m³ shed base
A 3.6m × 2.8m base at 100mm deep is right around 1m³. As an unreinforced base that's C20 territory: 1m³ × £105 = £105 + VAT = £126, poured and metered. Order the same 1m³ from a drum supplier running a 6m³ truck and the concrete itself may be priced similarly — but part-load charges on five empty cubic metres at £15–£40 each can add £75–£200, or a flat short-load fee lands on top. The small pour is where the pricing model matters most.
5m³ of footings
Roughly 18.5m of trench at 600mm wide and 450mm deep comes to 5m³. As unreinforced trench fill in normal ground that's a C8/10 job: 5m³ × £99 = £495 + VAT ≈ £594. From a fixed-load supplier you'd sensibly order 5.5m³ so you don't run short — and pay for all of it, poured or not. With a metered volumetric pour we carry spare material as a matter of course: if 5.0m³ goes in the trench, 5.0m³ is what's on the ticket.
Why the Cheapest Cubic Metre Isn't the Cheapest Job
- Over-ordering. Fixed loads force you to guess high. Trenches are never as neat as the drawing, and every guessed-high cubic metre is money in the ground — or a disposal fee.
- The wrong mix. A bargain C20 driveway can scale and flake in frost; the right call is an air-entrained C25-strength driveway mix, and it's worth the difference. Cheap concrete in the wrong place is the most expensive kind.
- No paperwork. Every load of ours comes with a batch ticket — mix and strength class, consistence, aggregate size, cement type, batch time and metered volume. If a cheap quote can't produce one, you're not buying the same product.
Get It Sorted
Work out your volume with the concrete calculator — length × width × depth in metres — then see how concrete delivery across Birmingham works, or just call with the measurements and we'll price it while you're on the phone.