Mudjacking vs. Polyjacking: Which One Should You Choose?

What's Actually Different Between Them?

Both methods do the same job the same basic way: drill holes through the sunken slab, pump material into the void underneath, and raise the concrete back to level. The difference is the material.

Mudjacking (also called slab jacking) pumps a slurry of cement, soil, and water under the slab. It's the older method — contractors have been doing it for decades — and the material is cheap and dense.

Polyjacking (also called polyurethane foam leveling, foam jacking, or polyleveling) injects a two-part polymer that expands into rigid structural foam within seconds, filling the void and lifting the slab.

The Side-by-Side

	Mudjacking	Polyjacking
Cost per sq ft	$3–$6	$5–$25
Typical job cost	$500–$1,300	$600–$2,000
Injection holes	~1⅝" (quarter-sized or larger)	~⅝" (dime-sized)
Material weight	~100+ lbs per cubic foot	~2–4 lbs per cubic foot
Cure time	24–72 hours before vehicle load	15 minutes–a few hours
Water resistance	Can erode with water movement	Waterproof, doesn't wash out
Typical lifespan	5–10 years	10+ years, often slab lifetime
Best fit	Large exterior voids on a budget	Interior slabs, garages, unstable clay

Read the per-square-foot row with three caveats. Rates apply only to the sunken area actually being lifted, not the slab's whole footprint — replacement prices the entire slab, which is why a lifting quote lands lower than the per-foot rates alone suggest. Most contractors charge a minimum job fee — roughly $300 to $700 — so a small slab costs more per square foot than the table implies. And square footage is only a rough guide: what actually drives the price is how deep the voids are and how much lift the slab needs. Structural or interior slabs run toward the top of the range and beyond.

When Mudjacking Wins

Price, mainly — and it's not a small difference on big jobs. If you have a long driveway with substantial voids, slurry fills that space at a fraction of foam's material cost. The dense slurry also provides solid, heavy support under large exterior slabs where added soil load matters less. If the slab is concrete you expect to replace within a decade anyway, paying the foam premium for a 15-year material can be money wasted. A 5–10 year mudjacking lift on a 30-year-old driveway is a perfectly rational purchase.

When Polyjacking Wins

Three situations make foam the clear call:

• Tulsa's clay soil. Our expansive clay is the reason your slab sank in the first place. Pumping a hundred pounds per cubic foot of slurry onto soil that's already moving adds load to the problem. Foam lifts at a fortieth of the weight.
• Anywhere cure time matters. A garage floor you need to park on tonight, a front walkway, an interior slab — foam takes vehicle weight within hours. See our garage floor leveling page for how this plays out on the most common indoor job.
• Water-prone areas. If the void formed because water moves under that slab, cement slurry can eventually erode along the same path. Foam doesn't wash out.

How to Decide in Two Minutes

Skip the sales pitch and answer three questions about your own slab:

• Where is it, and when do you need it back? An interior slab, a garage floor, or anything you need to park on tonight points to foam. A long exterior run where a day or two of cure time costs you nothing keeps mudjacking in play.
• Is the soil still moving? If the slab sits over backfill that is still compacting, or the ground keeps cycling wet and dry, the lighter material is the safer bet. If the settlement traced to a one-time event that has since been fixed, slurry holds fine.
• How long do you need the lift to last? If you expect to replace the concrete within a decade anyway, mudjacking's 5-to-10-year window may outlast your interest in the problem. If you are staying put, foam's longer hold usually justifies the premium.

What to Ask Whoever Quotes You

A good estimate answers these without being pushed:

• Do you offer both methods? A crew with one pump on the truck only ever recommends one method. Ask what they would do if they carried both.
• What caused the void? If nobody looks at the downspouts, the grading, or the irrigation line, nobody is fixing the actual problem.
• How much lift, and how will you measure it? "We'll level it" is not a spec. Ask how far the slab dropped and how they will know when it is back where it belongs.
• What happens if it settles again? Get the warranty terms in writing, and read what voids them.

The Question That Matters More Than the Method

Whichever material goes under the slab, the lift fails if the water problem that created the void keeps running. A good contractor will point at the downspout, the grading, or the drainage issue and tell you to fix it — even though that advice doesn't earn them a dime. That's exactly the kind of honesty an estimate should include, and it's what we look for in the local pro we refer Tulsa homeowners to.

For real numbers on what your specific surfaces are likely to cost, see our concrete leveling cost guide. Or skip ahead: call (918) 321-4446 or send the form on this page, and we'll connect you with one local concrete leveling contractor — one pro, not a call list — who works with both methods and will recommend the one your slab actually needs. The estimate is free, and there's no obligation.