Backyard Patio Landscaping Ideas

Here’s an extensive gallery of 88 outdoor patio design ideas including brick, flagstone, covered, courtyard, cobblestone, concrete and balcony patios.

While it may appear easy to build a patio, it’s not. I saw my dad create a brick patio growing up and while it’s easy to fit bricks together, the tricky part is ensuring they’re level (and will stay level).

Professional patio builders have tricks of the trade to ensure a level patio, which is critically important.

Whether you decide to tackle the job yourself or hire it out, having a patio (or deck) is one of those must-have home features if you have any backyard space.

This article explains the many types of patios you can create – each style illustrated with photographs as an example. We also provide links to our other patio pages featuring many examples of specific types of patios such as brick, flagstone, covered and garden patios. We also encourage you to check out our and our photo gallery of .

Below we explain and organize by types of patios according to materials, structure type and additional features (pool, garden, etc.). Please keep in mind that many patios fit more than one categorization.

Brick Patios

There are many brick patterns as well as different types of bricks used for patios. Below is a large gallery featuring many types of brick patios. For close-ups of the many types of brick patterns that include explanations of each type of brick pattern check out our brick pattern page.

Flagstone Patios

Flagstone is a flat stone often used for patios. They vary in shape. Some are cut into squares and rectangles while others are used without being cut. We profile all types below.