Home › Guides › Exposed Aggregate vs Plain Concrete
For most Ballarat driveways it comes down to this: plain grey concrete is the cheapest option and does the job on a flat, sheltered area, while exposed aggregate costs more but gives real grip on frosty winter mornings and hides marks far better. In a cold climate with regular hard frosts, that grip is the reason a lot of local driveways go decorative.
Both start with the same slab underneath. The base, the steel, the thickness and the joints are identical whichever finish you pick, so the choice is really about the top few millimetres: how it looks, how it grips, how it wears and what it costs. Here is how the two stack up for a Ballarat block.
Plain grey concrete is finished with a steel trowel or a broom straight off the pour. A broomed surface has a light texture from the brush; a trowelled surface is smoother and can be slick when wet. It is the most common driveway finish in the country because it is straightforward and cheap.
Exposed aggregate starts the same way, then the top layer of cement paste is washed back before it fully hardens to reveal the decorative stone mixed through the concrete. The result is a hard, textured, speckled surface. You choose the stone, so the colour and look are yours to set, and the texture is what gives it grip. It takes more labour and a careful eye on timing, which is why it costs more.
This is where the two finishes separate for local conditions. Ballarat sits around 435 metres and is one of the coldest cities in Victoria, with hard overnight frosts right through winter. A smooth, trowelled plain slab that has a film of frost or melt-water on it on a July morning can be genuinely slippery, especially on a sloped drive or a shaded path down the southern side of a house. The texture of exposed aggregate keeps you surer underfoot in exactly those conditions, which is a large part of why it is such a popular choice for driveways and paths around town.
The cold matters for durability too. Ballarat's freeze-thaw cycling, where water in the surface freezes overnight and thaws by day, works away at any concrete over the years, and a poorly finished or unsealed surface is what spalls first. Both finishes handle it well when they are made properly, cured well and kept sealed. The texture of exposed aggregate has the side benefit of disguising the minor surface wear that a cold climate brings, where the same wear shows up more obviously on a flat grey slab. Whichever you choose, sealing is not optional in a freeze-thaw climate: it keeps water out of the surface so repeated freezing has less to work on.
On indicative market ranges, plain grey concrete supplied and laid sits around $80 to $120 per square metre, while exposed aggregate runs higher at roughly $120 to $170. Coloured and stencilled finishes fall in between. Those are figures to read a quote by, not a price from us, and the full breakdown is in our Ballarat driveway cost guide.
A simple way to decide: if the area is flat, sheltered and you are watching the budget, plain grey on a well-built concrete driveway is a sound call. If the drive slopes, sits in shade, or you want it to look like a considered part of the house, the grip and appearance of exposed aggregate usually earn the extra. If you like the idea of colour without the stone, a decorative coloured finish is the middle path.
The finish is a personal call, but a concreter who works Ballarat can show you samples and tell you what suits your block and its aspect. Call to talk it through, or send the details on the contact page and we will line up a local quote. It is free and there is no obligation.
For grip it is. Exposed aggregate has a textured surface that stays surer underfoot on the frosty winter mornings Ballarat is known for, where a slick trowelled plain slab can get slippery. Plain grey is cheaper and perfectly good for a flat, sheltered area. On a sloped or shaded driveway, the extra grip of exposed aggregate is usually worth it.
As an indicative guide, plain grey concrete tends to sit around $80 to $120 per square metre supplied and laid, while exposed aggregate runs higher, roughly $120 to $170. You are paying for the decorative stone, the extra labour to wash the surface back and expose it, and the sealing. These are market ranges to read a quote by, not a price from us.
A well-made and properly sealed exposed aggregate surface copes with Ballarat's freeze-thaw cycling as well as a good plain slab, and its texture disguises the minor surface wear that cold weather brings. What matters most for both finishes is a sound mix, good drainage so water is not sitting on the surface, and keeping the seal up to date.
Sealing matters for both, and it matters more in a freeze-thaw climate like Ballarat's. A seal keeps water out of the surface so repeated freezing has less to work on, and it helps a decorative finish hold its colour and stone. Exposed aggregate is usually sealed as part of the job and resealed every few years.
Talk it through with a local concreter and see some samples first.