How much does concrete removal cost in Louisiana?

One national cost guide puts the average concrete removal job at $1,139 in 2026, based on 1,330 projects. Most homeowners pay between $542 and $1,744. By area, removal runs $2 to $6 per square foot, and that rate covers labor and dumping fees.

Those are market numbers, not our price list. The guide ties the spread to thickness, rebar and disposal fees. Dupree’s Dirt and Excavation is based in Bastrop and handles concrete removal across northeast Louisiana. Our excavator breaks the concrete out, and our dump truck hauls it away.

What does concrete removal cost by project?

A second national guide prices the common jobs by project. These are its average ranges to remove each one.

The same guide puts the average driveway removal at $1,200 to $4,500. The first guide’s project list runs lower on driveways, at $1,000 to $2,500. It also says urban contractors charge more than rural ones.

What makes concrete removal cost more?

Thickness comes first. The first guide says contractors treat 4 to 6 inches as the standard thickness. A slab just 1 or 2 inches thicker can lead contractors to double the price. The second guide says slab removal costs the least under 4 inches thick with no steel inside.

Steel comes next, as rebar or wire mesh cast in the slab. The second guide adds $1 to $3 per square foot for reinforced concrete. That covers cutting the rebar and getting rid of it.

Access and distance add more. Hard to reach or steep spots often run $6 a square foot or more in the first guide. The second guide adds mileage fees when the concrete has to travel farther to be dumped.

Size works the other way. The second guide says smaller jobs cost more per square foot than large ones.

Is concrete removal priced per square foot or per ton?

The first guide calls the square foot rate the most reliable starting point. Its $2 to $6 rate includes dumping. Still, it says some contractors add $0.50 to $2 per square foot for disposal. On large slabs, some contractors price by the ton instead.

Dumps charge by weight. A highway engineering standard figures reinforced concrete at 150 pounds per cubic foot. At 4 inches thick, that is about 50 pounds for every square foot of slab. A 10 by 10 slab comes to about 5,000 pounds, or 2.5 tons.

The second guide puts dump fees at $90 to $160 per ton, depending on the landfill. At those rates, dumping that one small slab runs about $225 to $400. Ask whether a quote includes the dump fee.

How long does concrete removal take?

The second guide says most slabs take 1 to 2 days to remove. It puts 100 to 200 square feet of sidewalk at 2 to 4 hours. Size, thickness, steel and access set the time, the same as they set the price.

What does Louisiana add to a concrete removal job?

Louisiana law requires an 811 notice before any excavation or demolition. It goes in at least 48 hours and no more than 120 hours ahead, not counting weekends and holidays. The law defines demolition broadly, so breaking out a slab falls under it. We file the 811 ticket before any concrete comes up.

Wet ground is the other Louisiana factor. A NOAA weather station near Winnsboro averages about 58 inches of precipitation a year. Winter is the wettest season there, at about 16.4 inches, with spring close behind at 16.2. Fall is the driest, at about 12.7 inches.

Perry clay, a soil whose sample profile comes from Morehouse Parish, drains very slowly. Gigger, a loess soil from Franklin Parish, holds water above a dense layer for short spells, January through March. A loaded truck ruts soft, wet ground, so a rainy stretch can push the start back. The first guide warns that winter conditions can slow the work and raise the final bill.

Permits vary by parish and town. The first guide says to plan on $25 to $200 where a permit applies. The second guide puts a removal permit at $50 to $400.

That guide says you need one when the concrete sits in the public right of way. Check with your parish or city permit office before work starts.

Where does the broken concrete go?

Our excavator lifts the concrete in pieces and sets each one in our dump truck. Rebar or wire mesh comes up with the broken pieces. Then the truck hauls the load off your property. One guide says contractors haul it to a local dump or a recycling center.

Sometimes the slab or an old foundation sits under a house, shed or mobile home that is coming down. Then it can come out with the building as one demolition job.

What happens to the ground after the slab comes out?

With the concrete gone, we look at the dirt it sat on. Soft spots get dug out and refilled, compacted in lifts. When the hole needs more dirt than the site has, we haul in fill dirt for the backfill.

Then the spot gets graded to drain, so rain runs off instead of pooling where the slab was. If the spot goes back to grass, the sod or seed comes after the grading. That part is yours or a landscaper’s.

What does concrete driveway replacement cost?

Tearing out a slab and pouring a new one runs $8 to $18 per square foot in the second guide. The first guide puts replacing a concrete driveway at $2,700 to $9,700. The new pour is a concrete contractor’s job. We break out the old drive and grade the ground for whatever comes next.

Some owners rebuild the drive in gravel or crushed limestone instead. We build gravel and limestone driveways on the same strip, with the crown and edges graded so water runs off. Our gravel driveway cost post has the market numbers for that choice.

What will concrete removal cost on your property?

Every dollar figure above comes from national cost guides or plain math on them, not our price list. We look at the concrete before we price it, and the estimate is free. That look covers the thickness, any steel, the way in for the truck and what the ground needs after.

Dupree’s is based in Bastrop and works across northeast Louisiana, from Minden to Tallulah. Call (318) 614-2073, or read how we break out and haul off old concrete.