Up until now I had never layed the Sagar Black natural Indian sandstone despite being offered by the same suppliers as the more popular paving slabs I have written reviews on. I wouldn’t necessarily say that it’s because they aren’t as nice, but more to do with the fact that the Sagar Black paving comes with a higher price tag compared to the Raj Green, Camel Dust, Mint Fossil and Kota Black.

The Sagar Black Indian sandstone paving slabs are hand split meaning that they have a natural riven surface and despite being called “Sagar Black” these are not actually black in colour like the name suggests. Unlike the Kota black paving slabs where the slabs are more grey when dry but a beautiful black when wet, the Sagar Black paving slabs look light grey when dry and a darker charcoal grey when wet although the description from our suppliers suggests that you may get some tones of red and brown.

Being natural paving, the Sagar Black does have unique colour tones and patterns from one slab to the next just like our other reviewed Indian sandstone paving and is available in a few different size options and styles.

Firstly you can choose whether you want a natural edge or a machine cut sawn edge. The ones you see in these pictures are that of a natural hand split edge. Once you’ve chosen your edge, it’s time to choose your sizes. Oh  and before I forget, a tumbled version is also available if your feeling brave!

If your having a large area covered then I would recommend having the mixed size patio pack which covers 17.5 squared meters and includes 4 different sized paving slabs. These sizes include 900x600mm (large rectangles), 600x600mm (large squares), 290x600mm (small rectangles) and 290x290mm (small squares).

Alternatively you can get the Sagar Black Indian sandstone paving in packs of single sizes which cover a slightly larger area of 18.5 squared meters. These packs come with the choice of just 900x600mm, 600x600mm and 600x290mm.

Is the Sagar Black Indian sandstone paving good value for money?

With prices ranging from the £520 to the £590 mark depending on whether or not you want the natural or machine cut edge, the Sagar Black isn’t as cheap as other natural sandstone from the same suppliers which start from around £400 for the same 17.5 squared meters.

This works out to just under £34 per squared meter for the Sagar Black which although isn’t ‘as cheap’ as other natural sandstone, I certainly wouldn’t call it expensive either.

How easy are the Sagar Black Indian sandstone to lay?

Out of all the natural sandstone and limestone paving slabs that I’ve layed, the Sagar Black definitely have the most uneven riven surface yet and so I would recommend getting a professional landscape gardener do the work unless your a very hands on person. I mean really…when I first started unloading the slabs from the pallet I was in shock and also worried what the customer would think.

The trick is to ignore the corners to some extent and just lay them to an overall average. Luckily, once layed and pointed/grouted they looked so much better as you can see from the pictures.

In short, they have a very uneven surface making them hard to lay, but look good once done!

What do I think about the appearance of the Sagar Black Indian Sandstone paving?

If I’m being totally honest, I don’t think they are as nice as the pictures shown by the companies selling these slabs but then they are natural paving so I understand that you have to expect some differences between patio packs, and on this job I only used 2 pallets out of the thousands likely currently for sale. But I still think these pictures are a good way of seeing what you might get.

Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t horrible. In fact they are lovely paving slabs. These ones in particular just didn’t look like the ones that were illustrated is all and the customer noticed it too. Luckily they were still in love with them anyway!

Forgetting the advertising pictures, I would say the Sagar Black are a beautiful natural paving slab(s) and have a sort of medieval/castle look about them both with the colours and tones and the natural riven surface.

My overall thoughts on the Sagar Black Indian sandstone paving…

I’d say the Sagar Black paving whilst not as cheap as some other natural paving on the market is still good value for money compared to other manufacturers, especially if you go for the natural edged hand split option with prices starting from around the £520 mark covering approximately 17.5 squared meters.

The natural riven surface is a little too uneven for my liking making laying them quite difficult and having to swap slabs here and there, but once layed and pointed you end up with a beautiful natural patio and all comes together lovely.

Unlike the Kota Black limestone where I prefer them when wet, I actually prefer the Sagar Black when dry giving off a beautiful light grey colour with the unique patterns on display. When wet they turn to a dark charcoal colour, which although not as much to my taste, doesn’t mean you will have the same opinion as me, and if you do have the same opinion as me then your not going to be in your garden much when wet anyway!

Overall a good value for money natural paving slab which would make a lovely addition to any garden!