New Orleans metro
Asphalt Services across the New Orleans metro
- $3 to $7per sq ft, overlay on a sound surface
- $7 to $13per sq ft, new install, labor and materials
- $8 to $15per sq ft, full replacement
- 2 to 5 yearsbetween sealcoats
Six services, and the distance between three of them is the distance between a patch and a repave. Every figure on this page is a national estimate carrying its source and the date it was read.
What Is the Difference Between Asphalt Repair, Sealcoating and Asphalt Installation?
The difference is how much of the existing surface stays: asphalt repair fixes a local failure and leaves the sound surface around it alone, sealcoating protects a surface that is already structurally fine, and asphalt installation builds a base and paves where no asphalt exists yet.
Asphalt repair
No sourced figureOne pothole, one split, or a patch that has let go, with the surface around it still sound. Nobody publishes a per square foot price for a patch, because a patch is priced by the patch, so no number is quoted here.
Sealcoating
Every 2 to 5 yearsProtection for a surface that is structurally fine, on the interval the sources give. It will not rescue a failing base, and it does not go on a mat that is only a few weeks old.
Asphalt installation
$7 to $13 / sq ftWhere there is no asphalt yet. The base is built and compacted, then the surface is paved over it, and the sourced band covers labor and materials on a new driveway.
Cost figures are national estimates for planning, not a quote, and no acceptable Louisiana or Gulf South index was found. For a real number on your own surface, dial (504) 576-9561.
Which Asphalt Service Does Your Surface Need?
Match what you can already see to the job that fixes it, then go straight to that page.
| What you can see | The service | What happens on site | Sourced cost per sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bare ground, gravel or a new build. No asphalt there yet. | Asphalt Installation | The base is built and compacted, then the surface is paved over it. | $7 to $13 |
| Worn and tired, but under 15 years old and free of deep potholes. | Asphalt Paving, as an overlay | A new layer of asphalt goes over the existing surface. | $3 to $7 |
| Cracking everywhere, sunken areas, potholes that keep coming back. | Asphalt Replacing | The old surface is demolished and hauled off, then the area is repaved. | $8 to $15 |
| One pothole, one split, or a single patch that has let go. The rest is sound. | Asphalt Repair | The failed area is dealt with and the sound surface around it is left alone. | No sourced figure, so none is quoted |
| Grey, dry and chalky on top, but the surface underneath is still solid. | Seal Coating | A protective coat over a surface that is structurally fine, on a two to five year interval. | No sourced figure, so none is quoted |
| Nothing wrong yet, and you would like to keep it that way. | Asphalt Maintenance | Crack filling and routine upkeep, before water gets down to the base. | No sourced figure, so none is quoted |
Three of the six carry no cost figure. That is because no acceptable source was found for a patch, a sealcoat or a maintenance visit priced by the square foot, and a number nobody can check is worse than no number at all. For a real figure on your own surface, dial (504) 576-9561.
What Does Each of the Six Asphalt Services Cover?
Each one answers for itself, so you are not reading a page written for all six at once.
Installation
Where nothing is there yetBare ground to finished surface. The base is built and compacted first, and how well that is done decides more about the next twenty years than the mix laid over the top of it.
See installation
Maintenance
The only one you book earlyCrack filling and routine upkeep on a surface that has not failed. It is the one service on this list you call about before anything is wrong, and it is what keeps the other five further away.
See maintenance
Paving
The mat itselfDriveways, parking lots and roadways, with the mix matched to the traffic the surface actually carries, whether that is over a new base or over a surface sound enough to keep.
See paving
Repair
While the failure is still localPotholes, splits and patches that have let go, dealt with in place. The moment water gets past them and reaches the base underneath, a repair stops being a repair and turns into a repave.
See repair
Replacing
When an overlay is no longer honestThe old surface comes out and is hauled off, then the area is repaved. The demolition and removal is what separates this from an overlay, and it is where much of the extra work sits.
See replacing
Seal Coating Paving
Protection, not structureA coat over a surface that is still structurally sound, on the two to five year interval the sources give. It will not rescue a failing base, and it does not go on a mat that is only weeks old.
See seal coatingWhat Does Each Option Cost per Square Foot?
The whole difference is how much of what is already there gets to stay.
The failure is local and the surface around it is sound. The failed area is dealt with and everything still doing its job is left where it is. Nobody publishes a per square foot figure for a patch, because a patch is priced by the patch, so no number appears here.
No sourced figureA new layer of asphalt goes over the existing surface. The source calls this the smartest move when the driveway is under 15 years old and free of deep potholes, which is the honest test for whether an overlay is buying a real surface or covering a failing one.
$3 to $7 / sq ftThere is no asphalt to keep, so the base is built and the surface is paved over it. The figure covers labor and materials on a new driveway, and it sits between the two on either side of it for the plain reason that there is nothing to take away first.
$7 to $13 / sq ftThe existing surface is demolished and hauled off before anything new is laid. The source attributes the whole step up from an overlay to that demolition and removal, which is why the cheapest option and the dearest one can leave a surface that looks identical on day one.
$8 to $15 / sq ftThese are national ranges. No acceptable Louisiana or Gulf South cost index was found, so nothing on this page is presented as a New Orleans price.
How Long Should Asphalt Last, and How Often Does It Need Sealcoating?
How long a surface should last, how long an overlay stays honest, and how often the top needs sealing.
Service life
Up to 20 yearsThe conservative figure, from an association technical brief dated November 2005. A second acceptable source puts a driveway properly installed over a solid base at 25 to 30 years. The two disagree, both are recorded here, and neither is averaged into a number that came from nowhere.
Resurfacing window
Under 15 yearsUnder 15 years old and free of deep potholes is where the source calls resurfacing the smartest move. Past that, or once the base underneath has gone, an overlay stops buying you the same surface and the honest answer moves along to replacement.
Sealcoat interval
Every 2 to 5 yearsA well built low traffic surface should not need sealing for roughly the first two to five years. One source narrows it by climate, at about every three years in a mild climate and every other year in extreme heat or cold. Sealer does not go on a driveway that is only weeks old.
Figures are estimates for planning, not a quote, and they are national rather than New Orleans specific. What your own surface has left in it depends on its base, its drainage and the traffic it carries.
What Do People Ask When Choosing Between the Six Services?
Eight answers, each traced back to the source it came from or to our own published wording.
Still not sure which one?
Describe what you can see, and the crew that would do the work will tell you which of the six it is.
Call (504) 576-9561What is the difference between asphalt repair and asphalt replacing?
Repair deals with a failure that is still local, so the sound surface around it stays exactly where it is. Replacing means the existing surface is demolished and hauled off before the area is repaved. The dividing line is the base underneath. Once water has got past the surface and the base has failed, patching the top is treating a symptom.
Is resurfacing cheaper than replacing?
Yes. The sourced figures are $3 to $7 per square foot for an overlay against $8 to $15 per square foot for a full replacement. The source puts the difference on the demolition and removal that a replacement needs and an overlay does not. Both are national estimates for planning, not a quote on your surface.
My parking lot is just faded and grey. Which service is that?
If the surface underneath is still solid, that is seal coating rather than any of the paving services. A sealcoat is protection, not structure. If the greying comes with cracking that runs deep, sunken areas or potholes that keep returning, sealing over it hides the problem for a season and the real answer sits further along the list.
What does a new asphalt driveway cost?
The sourced figure is $7 to $13 per square foot for a new asphalt driveway including labor and materials. That comes from a national cost index, not a Louisiana or New Orleans index, and no acceptable regional figure was found. Treat it as a planning number, then dial (504) 576-9561 for a real one on your surface.
How often should asphalt be sealcoated?
Every two to five years. A well designed low traffic pavement should not require sealing for roughly that first two to five year window, and sealer should not go on until the surface is at least several months old. One source narrows the interval by climate, at about every three years in a mild climate and every other year in extreme heat or cold.
How long does an asphalt surface last?
Two acceptable sources disagree, and both are recorded rather than averaged. An association technical brief gives up to 20 years for a well designed driveway. A national cost index gives 25 to 30 years when the driveway is properly installed over a solid base with quality materials. The conservative figure is the one this page leads with.
How long before I can drive on new asphalt?
Asphalt does not have a cure time. It gains full strength as it cools and can typically carry traffic within minutes of construction, and hours only in rare cases depending on lift thickness and conditions. Association guidance still advises waiting a few days before a new residential driveway is opened to normal use, and keeping a heavy moving truck off a fresh mat. That wait is best practice advice, not a curing requirement.
Do you run all six services everywhere you work?
Yes. The same six services are what we do across the New Orleans metro, and thirteen areas around the city each have a page of their own. New Orleans itself is where we are based. If your job sits somewhere that is not on that list, say so on the form and we will tell you plainly whether it is ours.
Ready to Get a Free Asphalt Estimate?
Tell us what the surface is doing and we will tell you which of the six it is.
Not sure which service?
That is the normal starting point. It is a two minute conversation rather than a form you have to get right the first time.
Thirteen areas have their own page
From Baton Rouge to Slidell, each area page is written from its own facts rather than one page with a different city name dropped into it.
Licensed, bonded and insured
At TurnKey Asphalt, we are fully licensed, bonded, and insured. That is our own published wording, and it is the only credential claim on this page.
- $3 to $7 / sq ftOverlay on a surface still in good condition. HomeAdvisor, read 2026-09-04. A national estimate for planning, not a quote.
- 2 to 5 yearsBetween sealcoats on a well built low traffic surface. Asphalt Institute engineering FAQ, read 2026-09-04.
