A concrete bid is a specification with a price attached. Read it as a spec first: scope, thickness, steel, base, joints, finish, cure and permits, each on its own line. Then look for what is missing, because a missing line is where the price was cut. Only after that compare the numbers.
Updated November 10, 2026 · Metroplex Concrete & Stone
The first thing to find is the drawing or the written scope: which panels, how many square feet, what gets torn out, what gets protected. Two bids that do not describe the same work cannot be compared, and most bid confusion starts here. If there is no drawing, ask for one. Even a hand sketch with dimensions and a north arrow is enough.
Check that the scope says where the new concrete meets old concrete (garage slab, existing walk, the street approach) and what happens at those lines: expansion joint, dowels, saw cut.
A bid should give the slab thickness in inches, and if the job has more than one kind of section (driveway and approach, field and thickened edge, drive lane and dumpster pad) it should give each. The common reference points are 4 inches for cars on a compacted base and 5 to 6 inches for trucks, trailers and RVs, with edges thickened by an inch or two. A bid that says "standard" or "to code" has not told you a number.
Source: ConcreteNetwork, how thick should a concrete driveway be
Look for a bar size and a spacing: #3 rebar at 18 inches on center both ways is a common residential call, and it is exactly what Fort Worth requires for approaches and sidewalks in the parkway, set on 3 to 3½-inch chairs and tied at every crossing. Wire mesh is acceptable in thinner slabs. What you are checking is that the steel is named and that the bid says it is supported in the middle of the slab; steel on the dirt does nothing.
Source: City of Fort Worth, Parkway Standards (driveway approaches and sidewalks)
The base line should name a material (crushed stone, select fill), a depth, and compaction. Fort Worth's standard, as an example of a complete spec, calls for subgrade compacted to 95 percent of standard Proctor at optimum moisture. On North Texas clay the base is the difference between a slab that lasts and one that does not, and it is the line most often missing from a cheap bid.
Source: City of Fort Worth, Parkway Standards (driveway approaches and sidewalks)
The bid should give joint spacing and whether joints are saw-cut or tooled. The Portland Cement Association's rule of thumb is spacing of about two times the slab thickness in feet (8 feet on a 4-inch slab, 10 feet on a 5-inch slab), up to 2½ times with larger aggregate, and no more than about 15 feet on thick, heavily loaded slabs. Expansion or isolation joints belong wherever the slab meets a structure.
Source: Portland Cement Association, FAQ: joints, what type are used and where
Broom, exposed aggregate, stamped, colored: the finish should be named. So should the curing method. The Portland Cement Association notes that most strength gain happens in the first month and that the longer concrete is kept moist, the stronger and more durable it becomes; a bid that mentions curing compound or wet cure is a bid from a crew that plans to do it.
Source: Portland Cement Association, curing in construction
The bid should say which permits the contractor pulls and which are yours. In Dallas, paving on city property needs a permit issued only to a bonded paving contractor; in Sachse, all flatwork including patios needs a permit and a pre-pour inspection. Ask for the certificate of insurance before work starts and for lien releases with each payment.
Source: City of Sachse, residential flatwork permits
The Texas Attorney General's consumer guidance is plain: get bids from more than one contractor, get them in writing with detail about exactly what will be done, be wary of the low-ball bidder, never sign a contract with blanks, and do not pay in full before the work is finished and inspected. For a homestead improvement over $5,000 the contractor must deposit your payments in a construction account. Hold every bid to that.
Source: Texas Attorney General, how to avoid home improvement scams
With the spec lines filled in for each bid, the price difference usually explains itself: one bid is thicker, or includes the base, or includes the permit. Use the printable bid checklist on this site to lay them side by side, and if one bid is missing lines, ask for them before you decide.
Ask for the spec in writing. A reputable contractor will add it; one who will not is asking you to buy a slab without knowing what it is.
The Texas Attorney General recommends more than one. Three is common; more than that and the spec drift makes comparison harder.
Sometimes, when it is for the same spec. The point of reading the spec is to find out whether it is.
Tell us the job and where it is. One independent, insured North Texas contractor will look at it and send a written quote with thickness, steel, base, joints, finish, permits and dates on it.
Residential and commercial, in all eleven DFW counties. No price on this site, because the lot decides the price.
One vetted, insured North Texas contractor will call or text within one business day to set a time to look at it. You get a written quote with the full spec.