How to Build a Pea Gravel Patio

By
Lee Wallender
Lee Wallender
Lee Wallender

Lee has over two decades of hands-on experience remodeling, fixing, and improving homes, and has been providing home improvement advice for over 13 years.

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Updated on 11/07/22
Reviewed by
Deane Biermeier
Deane Biermeier
Reviewed by Deane Biermeier
Deane Biermeier is an expert contractor with nearly 30 years of experience in all types of home repair, maintenance, and remodeling. He is a certified lead carpenter and also holds a certification from the EPA. Deane is a member of The Spruce's Home Improvement Review Board.
Learn more about The Spruce's Review Board
Fact checked by
Jillian Dara
Jillian Dara
Fact checked by Jillian Dara
Jillian is a freelance journalist with 10 years of editorial experience in the lifestyle genre. She is a writer and fact checker for TripSavvy, as well as a fact-checker for The Spruce.
Learn more about The Spruce's Editorial Process
Pea gravel surrounding circular gray-stoned fire pit with wooden furniture and plants nearby

The Spruce / Margot Cavin

Project Overview
  • Working Time: 2 - 3 days
  • Total Time: 3 - 4 days
  • Skill Level: Beginner
  • Estimated Cost: $800 to $1,000

Pea gravel is one of the most economical and simple materials to use for a patio. This outdoor project is simple to complete, and long-term maintenance of the patio is a breeze. For very little money and a few days of work for an average-sized area, you can have a graceful and gorgeous patio with a look that lends itself perfectly to many other cool, fun elements: string lights, do-it-yourself firepits, outdoor furniture, and more. 

Note: The difficulty of excavating depends on what’s in the soil. If you find a lot of rocks and tree roots the project will be a lot more difficult. The more people you have to help, the quicker it will go. Project metrics are based on two people working.

Pea Gravel Patio Basics

Pea gravel is the easy-to-handle material that makes all of this happen. While hardscaping materials like poured concrete, concrete pavers, and natural flagstone are solid, reliable patio surfaces, they are expensive and can be backbreaking and/or technically challenging to install.

As suggested by the name, pea gravel is about the size of 3/8-inch-diameter peas. Each piece of gravel is rounded and smooth, making it nice to walk on and less prone to clumping up and retaining footprints than gravel with angled sides. 

Pea Gravel Project Details

This project will help you create a gravel patio that is 16 feet long by 16 feet wide, with a gravel depth of 2 to 3 inches. You can adapt the dimensions to fit your patio's size. Because pea gravel is loose and tends to shift, you will need to build a wooden frame with pressure-treated landscape timbers or lumber to contain it. Note that the wood must be rated for ground contact to forestall rot.

Call Before You Dig

Call 8-1-1, the national "Call Before You Dig" hotline, to have all utility lines marked on your property. This is a free service, but it can take a few days, so be sure to call several days before you plan to break ground on your new patio. While you won't be digging deeply within the patio area, you will be driving 12-inch-long stakes into the ground, and these could potentially run into buried electrical or plumbing lines.

In addition, the stakes could hit sprinkler system piping, so do your own investigative work to locate irrigation lines in the patio area.

Tip

Fenceless pet containment systems (Invisible Fence) use low voltage wiring at or near the ground surface. The wire can be damaged during shallow excavations. If you have a pet containment system, be sure you know where your border wire is located. Turn off power to the system and use caution when digging nearby.

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Watch Now: How to Build a Pea Gravel Patio

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What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

  • Measuring tape
  • Shovel
  • Mattock or pickax (optional)
  • Bow rake
  • Drill and 1/2 inch wood bit
  • Hand sledge
  • Wheelbarrow or garden cart
  • Garden hose and spray nozzle (optional)

Materials

  • 3 cubic yards Pea gravel
  • 8 Pressure-treated 4x6" or 3x4" landscape timbers, 8 feet long
  • 24 #4 rebar pieces, 12 inches long
  • Landscape fabric
  • Landscape fabric pins (garden staples)

Instructions

Materials and tools photo composite to build a pea gravel patio

The Spruce / Michela Buttignol

Instructions

  1. Select the Patio Space

    Confirm that the patio location will work for gravel. Steep places will not do well with this project. Because pea gravel is rounded and smooth, its angle of repose can be as low as 20 degrees; at steeper pitches, it will begin to shift. Heavy foot traffic can disturb gravel and create a mess. If an unusual amount of water is coursing through the area, the water can easily wash away the gravel.

    Lawn and wooded area location selected for pea gravel patio

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  2. Order the Gravel

    Order your pea gravel from a local supplier. For a 16-by-16-foot area, 3 inches deep, you will need 1.58 cubic yards of pea gravel. Depths more than 3 inches can be difficult to walk in; depths less than 2 inches will become exposed after time. You should order a full 2 yards of gravel, both to facilitate the order and to have extra on hand to replenish gravel that gets lost over time.

    Mounds of pea gravel in local supplier with shovel laying in front

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  3. Square the Perimeter

    With twine, mark off the perimeter. Square up the frame by measuring between the diagonally opposed corners and adjusting the timbers as needed. The frame is square when the two diagonal measurements are equal.

    Pea gravel perimter being measured on lawn with yellow twine

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  4. Excavate the Area

    Use a shovel to remove all vegetation, rocks, and debris from the patio area, including where the timber frame will go. If necessary, cut away roots with a mattock or pickaxe.

    Shovel removing vegetation, rocks, debris for excavation of patio area

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  5. Rake and Tamp

    Rake the soil so it is level, then compact it thoroughly by walking repeatedly over the ground or by tamping it with a hand tamp.

    Excavated area with loose soil being raked

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  6. Lay Out the Frame Timbers

    Arrange the eight landscape timbers to form a 16-foot square. Overlap the timbers at the corners so that the end of one timber butts up against the side of the neighboring timber. When you're done, each side of the frame should have one butted end and one overlapping end, resulting in a perfect square.

    Frame timbers laid out on raked soil for pea gravel patio

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  7. Secure the Timbers

    Drill three 1/2-inch holes through each timber, one a few inches from each end and one in the center. Drive a 12-inch length of #4 rebar into each hole to secure the timbers, using a hand sledge. Drive the rebar so it is flush with or slightly below the surface of the wood.

    Rebar hammered into timbers to secure patio frame

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  8. Install Landscape Fabric

    Roll out strips of landscape fabric to cover the entire patio area inside of the containment frame, overlapping each strip of fabric by 4 inches. On the sides, the fabric should extend up the containment frame by an inch or two. Thoroughly secure the fabric with landscape fabric pins around the perimeter and at all seams.

    Landscape fabric laid over soil for pea gravel patio

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

  9. Add the Gravel

    Load up a wheelbarrow or garden cart with pea gravel and bring it to the side of the frame. Begin by lightly tossing shovelfuls of gravel at several places throughout the patio to further secure the landscape fabric. Be careful not to tear the fabric with your feet or the shovel.

    Add more gravel to fill in the bare spots with a shallow layer. Continue adding gravel and spreading it with the rake until you reach the desired depth. Smooth the gravel with the rake so the surface is flat and level. If desired, spray the surface with a garden hose to clean the gravel. The patio is now ready for use.

    Pea gravel added over landscape fabric within timber frame

    The Spruce / Margot Cavin

When to Call a Professional

Creating a patio from pea gravel is generally a do-it-yourself project, rarely requiring the assistance of landscapers or contractors. At most, if heavy loads are difficult for you to manage, you may wish to have one or two assistants for a day to help you pour and spread out the pea gravel.

FAQ
  • Does gravel make a good patio?

    Gravel can make an inexpensive and simple patio that’s relatively easy to construct yourself. It’s also easy to maintain.

  • What type of gravel is best for patios?

    Pea gravel is one of the best choices for patios because its small stones are easy to work with and can fit into most areas. Plus, they can withstand the elements, aren’t prone to cracking, and allow for drainage. 

  • What do you put under a gravel patio?

    Use landscape fabric under a gravel patio. This will suppress weeds but still allow for drainage.

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