Asphalt or Cement Driveway?

first are you going to place and finish the concrete yourself??
if yes, cost should be comparable to having someone lay asphalt.
concrete will be more expesive if you have either done by a contractor
concrete is superior to asphalt in lifespan
concrete does not like salt, unless sealed and finished properly
concrete will withstand the occasional large truck
i have put much thought into this, being my driveway is 400 feet long
i am placing concrete this supring -summer in multiple sections so i can finish myself
the concrete materials will be 40% less than having asphalt done
concrete will be 4" asphalt 2.5"

I sure like concrete. Much longer lasting with the temperature cycling and the loads most of us put on them.

I don't have current numbers but I have assisted in pouring several driveways. With the economy the ay it is seems like bids might be running lower.

Good luck!
mike

Go on service magic.com and get both quotes. I would also prefer concrete, but it is always more expensive.

Consider prep costs as well. If the asphalt and subgrade you currently have is pretty good then an asphalt overlay is the cheaper and better way to go. If you need to remove all of the old asphalt and subgrade to lay a new section down then you are into big money and concrete might be a better investment.

Lay your own concrete, bury some PEX tubing and get a small OWB (or add a zone if you have a big one already) and keep the slab heated...or at least the section closest to your buildingd and walkways.

I love the look of those old-fashioned concrete driveways from the 1920's. That is, the ones with two narrow concrete strips with grass in the middle. Price would probably be a lot less than a full concrete driveway and would be more ecologically friendly. However, I suspect that the center grass section would take a beating each winter with snow removal. Oh well, just a thought.
ChipTam

I used to live in Northeast wisconsin and everything was concrete, out in northern new england with the same weather conditions, there is very little concrete and what there is tends to get affected by frost heaves and salt damage. That observation aside, you need to do the prep work for anything to last, if you have poorly draining soils (new england clay), you need to dig it out to frost line and replace it with soil that drains and make sure the area you excavated has a drain to go to. I do like asphalt as the sun melts it off when its covered with snow better, the trade off it when its hot out, asphalt is a lot softer.

if you can afford the concret that would be the route i would take no questions asked

Just a thing to keep in mind is that sometimes a concrete drive will raise your property taxes.

Concrete driveways don't do well in Alaska. Frost heaves & cracking.
Once they crack, water get in, freezes, crack get bigger & so on. Even with screen & rebar.
My neighbor did concrete in front of his garage & 1/2 way down the driveway then asphalted the rest.
Asphalt is in good shape, concrete cracked, heaved & chunks are falling out of it.
So if you have any frost heaves in the winter, asphalt is better, it gives a little & the cracks can be sealed fairly easy & the heaves go back down in the spring/summer.
But Alaska has longer harsher winters & worse soil conditions.
Anyone that has ever driven the AlCan can attest to that. Lots of "whoopty-do's" "Caution "dip" ahead" signs, respect em.

As I pondered the same a buddy told me he went with blacktop because it heats up in the winter and melts the snow and he had a few other reasons . This was significant why ? He was VP of a building contractor and his FIL was was the owner and they specialized in concrete construction so he could have had concrete for nothing but paid to have Blacktop. After all that then seeing the damage oak leaves leave in blacktop I chose concrete because I have about 15 oaks that drop leaves on the driveway and so far( 5 years) I am happy with the concrete. The cost was reasonable because you guessed it I had it done by a buddy who now owns a concrete contracting company.

concrete is the winner. also other good reason for concrete is that if you have a gas or antifreeze leak it won't hurt concrete. blacktop will get chewed up and not swallowed just left get worse as time goes on. some guy's don't install blacktop like they should and after a few hot days you got indents from the car tires that is hell in the winter. if you like the the idea of dark color for winter for the sun the heat up and melt ice then have the concrete colored darker. like dark gray.