Ready-Mix vs Bags: Which Is Cheaper?
Compare the cost of ready-mix delivery against bagged mix for the same pour, using your own quoted prices, and see which wins.
Calculator
For 2.00 yd³, ready-mix is $400.00 vs $540.00 for 90 bags — Ready-mix wins here. Bagged mix usually beats ready-mix only on very small pours.
Bags feel cheaper because each one is only a few dollars — until you count how many you need. This calculator settles the argument with your real prices: it converts the pour to a bag count, totals the bags, totals the ready-mix (yardage plus delivery and short-load fees) and tells you which is cheaper and by how much. All prices are the ones you enter from a quote or a shelf tag, so the answer stays honest anywhere and any year.
Formula
bags = ceil((yd³ × 27) ÷ bag yield)
bags cost = bags × price/bag
ready-mix cost = yd³ × price/yd³ + delivery & short-load
The lower of the two totals is the winner, and the difference is the gap.
Worked example
For 2 yd³ (54 cu ft) at $6/80 lb bag vs $160/yd³ + $80 delivery:
- Bags = ceil(54 ÷ 0.60) = 90 × $6 = $540
- Ready-mix = 2 × $160 + $80 = $400
Ready-mix wins by $140 here — typical once the pour is a couple of yards, because the per-bag premium adds up fast.
Where the crossover sits
Bagged mix tends to win only on genuinely small jobs — a few post footings, a small pad — where a delivery’s short-load fee dominates. As soon as you are into a couple of cubic yards, ready-mix is usually cheaper and saves hours of mixing and a more uniform slab. Watch for the short-load fee plants charge on orders under about 4–5 yd³: enter it in the delivery field so the comparison is fair. Labor is not priced here — hand-mixing 90 bags is real work, and that is worth something too.