2 Inch Pavers

Thickness is the one spec on a paver that is difficult to correct later. Everything on this page is cut at 2", which the trade also calls 5cm. The thinner option is 1-1/4" (3cm), and the two are not interchangeable.

Specify 2 inch when

• Vehicles drive on it. Driveways, parking aprons, turnarounds and any path a truck might back over. This is the non-negotiable one.
• The pavers are sand-set. With no slab beneath, the paver itself spans the base. 2" has the mass to do that; 1-1/4" does not, and will crack at the corners over time.
• The ground freezes. Freeze-thaw cycling lifts and drops a deck all winter. 2" tolerates the movement; thinner stone fractures at the weak points.
• The format is large. A 24x48 or 36x36 has more unsupported span in the middle, so the thicker section matters more as the piece gets bigger.

1-1/4 inch is enough when

The pavers are mortar-set over a sound concrete slab, foot traffic only, in a climate that does not freeze hard. That covers a great many pool decks and patios in the South, and it is the cheaper and lighter option, with more colors and sizes available. See 1-1/4" pavers for that range. If you are between the two, 2" is the one that is never wrong; it costs more and weighs more, but no installation fails because the stone was too thick.

What 2 inch changes on site

Because 2" stone is heavier, a pallet covers less ground than the same pallet in 1-1/4", so check the coverage figure on each product page rather than assuming. Height also matters at thresholds and around an existing pool beam: swapping 1-1/4" for 2" raises the finished deck by three quarters of an inch, which can be the difference between a door that opens and one that does not.

Materials and matching coping

2" is available across travertine, marble and limestone. Most colors carry matching 2" pool coping so the deck and the pool edge sit flush, and 24x72 treads at 2" cover steps and seat walls. Browse by color at ivory, beige or the full stone pool coping range. The buyers guide covers base build-ups for both thicknesses, and it is worth ordering a sample before committing a pallet.