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A lot of you know or have been following along with the pool and have asked questions about how much it costs, how we're budgeting, and some of the logistics behind it.
When we moved to North Carolina, we promised our girls that we would have a pool. That was the only thing we promised them. When we were looking at houses, we passed on homes that didn't have an option of adding a pool. In fact, before we put an offer in on our current home, we had our realtor check the land survey and with the HOA to make sure we could add a pool. Bottom line: Not being able to put in a pool was a deal breaker because it was a promise we made to the girls. We did see a few houses that already had a pool, but the rest of the house didn't really work for us, so we started thinking about what it would cost to add a pool.
Have you ever googled this question? I've never seen the cost MORE all over the map for a project. From $20K to $200K! Chris and I started with a budget meeting. We've been budgeting with You Need a Budget (YNAB) since 2016. If you're not familiar, YNAB is an award-winning personal finance software (and proven method to gain total control of your money.) It has been a life saver for us. This process is what makes every project possible, and we can hardly believe that at the end of this particular financial goal, we'll be wearing bathing suits. Ha! But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me back up...
How Much did the Pool Cost?
First of all — pool progress! Haha! But also, we're gonna get real with numbers here. It's something we really wish we could find on the internet when we were budgeting for a pool. We made more than $700K on the sale of our Idaho house. A lot of that money has gone to moving expenses, a down payment on this house, the kitchen renovation, and we assigned a big chunk of change to putting in a pool!
With YNAB, you assign every one of your incoming dollars with a job. So when we made money on the sale of the house, it was easy and exciting to put our dollars in each of those "buckets."
We've learned that a couple of things go into the cost of a pool, and one of them is Supply and Demand. It seems like lots of folks rolled over their vacation budgets from the last two years (during the pandemic) into putting in a pool at home. The demand for pools is so high that prices have definitely gone up. Where you live can also affect the price of a pool installation. In warm-weather areas, where pools are common and get lots of use throughout the year, there are more companies to install them. More competition = lower prices.
We have a general contractor for the backyard. There's a particular pool company that our contractor trusts and works with all the time. We eagerly took his recommendation, and there's synergy with the whole project.
The quote we got for the pool was $148,000. Our pool is 20x36 and goes to 6' deep. That includes permits and plans, demolition, digging, labor, the concrete shell, all of the plumbing, a filter system, a maintenance kit, a heater, pool pumps, umbrella sleeves, a pebble finish, steps into the pool, waterline tile, travertine coping, a hot tub, a tanning ledge, pool lighting, a hard cover, and even salt water to fill it up.
There are a few different types of in-ground pools — fiberglass, vinyl, and concrete — and then there are various finishes. Ours will be concrete (gunite) — 20' x 36' 8". It'll be 3.5 ft to 6 ft, estimated to hold 19,000 gallons.
The whole project is slated to take 20 weeks. We put $7,000 down to get started. After the digging was done, we paid another $50,000. We'll pay the balance when it's done. Most of the pool will be done by March. That's when the landscapers will start the rest of the yard (pavers, grass...) so that it's not a mud pit when it's time to fill the pool :)
This pool comes with a 25-year warranty, and that seems like a nice long time. But if we hadn't just sold our home, I can imagine saving for years for a purchase like this. I'm also still thoroughly confused as to how Clark Griswold, in Christmas Vacation, said he was going to use his Christmas bonus to put in a pool! (Haha)
Have you put in a pool? How much did it cost? If you're willing to share in comments, we'd love for this to serve as a forum so that we can all further educate ourselves on budgeting for a purchase like this. We know the price fluctuates a lot, based on location, so tell us where you're from, too!
How We're Budgeting For It
We don’t think of a budget as restrictive. Our budget actually gives us permission to spend money on the things that matter the most to us. I've always been a huge proponent of this: Whether you're putting in a pool or you're redecorating your powder bath, the first question is "What's your budget?". Some people think a budget means "I can't spend freely." It's just the opposite. You GET to spend that money on exactly what you want.
Because we budgeted for the pool, we have held off on buying lots new furniture the past several months and renovating the primary bathroom this year. Right now, our dollars are just assigned elsewhere. We had no idea how much an inground pool cost, so admittedly, we had to shift funds around between our goals after we got a quote.
Before we were setting budgets, I felt like I had to buy the cheapest of everything. Then the project comes off really lackluster. Realistically, if you set a budget — say, $500 — on redecorating a room, you get to spend ALL of that money on your project. You could "splurge" on the rug you always wanted and then use the rest of the money on fun finishing touches. Sometimes I can make a bigger impact in a room if I buy three things for $500, rather than 10 things for $50 each.
When we start working towards a goal, like the pool, one of the first things we do is create a line item in our budget. (below is a sample from YNAB)
Basically, we identify how much money we think we're going to need, and by when. Then, we set that up in YNAB as a goal, and it shows us a plan to actualize that goal. Because the pool costs more than we thought, we started shifting things around to afford it this year. I love that this is a flexible plan that doesn’t make me feel bad or guilty. It’s about looking ahead and actually making progress.
This speaks to our project calendar, too. Listing out our projects in YNAB allows us to see where the spending is going to happen and when. This is how we could see that there wasn't enough money left in our project budget to also do the bathroom this year. And that's okay! We have all of the peace of mind (and excitement) about budgeting for that next year.
Now, obviously our job is unique in that we can make money by spending money on projects. It's a bit of a brain-bender when we put it like that, but as content creators, some of our projects are sponsored. We make it a point to budget for the entire cost of the project, regardless, and if a portion of a project is sponsored — we gleefully reallocate funds toward a new or different goal.
Maybe you can relate to this if you're a freelancer or a small business owner? If your income fluctuates month to month, YNAB is a great tool to help you plan for your goals by chunking out the funds so the money is where you need when you need it.
I think a lot of us consider money a blocker when it comes to accomplishing certain goals, and one of the things I’ve learned is that having a clear financial picture really is the first step in accomplishing any goal, big or small.
YNAB’s Four Rules (Chris and I swear by these):
1. Give Every Dollar a Job. Know exactly how you want to spend the money you have available — and only the money you have right now — before you spend a dime. This helps ensure that you have money for the things that matter most to you — whatever it might be. Think of your money as working for you and don’t let it sit around idle.
2. Embrace Your True Expenses. Figure out what you really spend and treat those infrequent expenses (like twice-a-year car insurance or replacing your laptop every two years) like monthly expenses in your monthly budget. Breaking big or uncommon
expenses down means you won’t be surprised by them.
3. Roll With the Punches. Accept that things change and your budget needs to be flexible. You won’t spend the same amount on all categories every month, so be prepared to move money around. Moving money around doesn’t mean you are budgeting wrong, it
means you are actually budgeting!
4. Age Your Money. Break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle by aiming to reach the point of using the money you earned last month to pay this month’s expenses. This margin will create more peace of mind than you can even imagine.
One of my favorite things about budgeting with YNAB is that whenever we get a bonus or any "unexpected" money (the sale of our house, in this case), we already have a category for where that money is going. At first, it could feel like, "Aw, man — all of this money is already spent." So make a category for fun, too! This could be dinners out or makeup hauls or your "boot budget" — whatever you enjoy spending money on.
I feel like budgeting comes naturally when planning for a vacation. Like — it's going to cost $4,000, and it's happening this summer. How much do we need to save every month? Vacations are something we're used to budgeting for ahead of time. But I've heard of lots of people use YNAB to budget for Christmas. Imagine paying yourself $100/month for Christmas and then going on a festive gift-buying spree in December!
What are you budgeting for this year?
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It’s a great resource for managing pool expenses effectively! The transparency in your process is incredibly helpful for anyone planning a similar project.
We built our pool 15 x 50 a few years ago, very similar cost and set up as yours, gunnite, travertine coping, hot tub etc etc. A huge expense was the travertine pavers/labor for the pool deck. That was almost as much as the pool! Be sure to automate everything to your phone.
Hi,
We live in the western suburbs in Chicago. We built our pool in the summer of 2020. Ours cost around $130k plus another $25k for landscaping and hardscape. It’s gunite and goes from 3.5-7.5 ft with a built-in hot tub.
I’m on Long Island, NY. We got a quote in 2020… along with everyone else. It was $36,500 for a 14x24 vinyl-lined pool. That only included the excavation, pool and salt water filter. It didn’t include the permit or pavers. We ended up shelving the idea. For only three months of usage, we’d rather put our money somewhere else.
My parents put a state of the art gunite pool with saltwater in about 25 years ago. With the decking that wouldn’t burn your feet and a diving board and slide. It was like $25,000. The prices these days are crazy! And a year wait at least in our area! 😂
There is an existing concrete pool on our property (we tore down the old house) and it was able to refinished for about $92k. This includes all new pump, heater, having it refinished, adding lights and a tanning deck and converting to salt water. So your estimate sounds on par. And if our pool structure has already lasted 30 years, yours will we’ll outlive its guarantee!
I don’t have a pool, but I just have to say how much I love following you all and appreciate your transparency in every aspect of your projects. You do a good amount of your projects yourselves and you’re honest about the cost, the highs and the lows. It makes you feel like a close friend sharing your experiences, not some flashy influencer who just wants to show off their hired renovations and are expensive purchases to get followers and a paycheck. I have followed some of your tutorials and done projects in my own home and am loving my home more and more, so I just wanted to say thanks for being you! You’re making a difference, not just social media posts.
Wow, thank you for the kind words, Stephanie!!
We live in the Dallas area and finished our pool this past summer. Ours is 13x30, gunite, black pebble bottom, travertine decking, saltwater and a heater and cost $65000.
Thank you for sharing!! How much does YNAB cost after the free trial?
$15 a month. They have an annual rate at a discount, too
So our pool cost 105 it is a steel frame with a vinyl liner fiberglass stairs I am based in Ottawa Canada so we don’t do concrete pools and even fiberglass or sketchy with the -40 Fahrenheit winters we get. This didn’t include a spa because you would have to close a spa the same time you winterize your pool but when we did all of the landscaping around the pool it came to 155. It’s a pricey thing but it’s totally worth it even though we have terrible winters we still use it for six months a year 100% worth the money.
I love this outlook so so much! I find this so inspiring!
We live in Westlake Village, CA (LA Metro). We quoted two different pool sizes for different areas of our property - we have a rare double lot.
Quote 1: 20x36 gunite pool 3’ to 6.5’ deep with a tanning ledge and spa. Required hardscaping, plants and large deck to address ground slope. Also additional fencing for safety. TotL estimate was $160k. Quoted Fall 2020. Additional cost for a small entertaining pool house (bathroom, Outdoor kitchen, cover and seating) was $350k. Construction timing was 4 months for pool + 8 months for pool house. A girl can dream.
Quote 2: 12x20 and 3-5.5’ deep gunite pool. $108k. We went over budget by $2k for total of $110k bc I fell in love with handmade Japanese tile. Plus we added landscaping and safety deck railing $10k.
We paid $2k for detailed drawings required for our HOA and City.
Note: both quotes included permits, equipment, pebbletec, concrete
decking, all labor and guarantees.
We went with the smaller pool because it filled a space where we had a 100YO Oak tree removed (it was dead, and we had to remove per our Insurance co). Hope that helps!
Thank you for sharing this post! I love how transparent you guys are. Makes me feel like I’m catching up with a friend and just feels so relatable. Two questions for you though…$700K on the sale of a home in two years…AMAZING. Good for you guys with all the hard work you put in. Well deserved/earned! When you say $700K is that just price you sold for - price your paid? Or is that profit after renovating expenses and everything? Sorry to be nosy, I’m a realtor and dying to know the specifics on that because WOW. And 2nd question…how are things going with those con artists of a moving company? Making any headway? I hope you get every dollar back!
$700K is strictly what we paid vs what we sold it for. As for the moving company--they have changed their name and gone dark so unfortunately there's not much to report.
I didn’t put in a pool but we had to get ours resurfaced and we changed to a saltwater system. It was $7,500 total for a 15’ x 30’ pool in Florida. We also installed a heat pump and with electrical it cost about $5,000 total.
Thank you for sharing both the profit on your home sale and the cost of the pool. I find that both refreshing and helpful!
We’re in the design phase now for a 20x40, 3.5-8’ depth gunite pool with a water feature (grotto with waterfall). Our quote is $149k. We’re just outside of Buffalo, NY so we’ll only get use from May-Sep (if we’re lucky!) still not 100% sure it’s a wise investment…
Sacramento, CA- Gunite pool (6ft deep) and in ground spa with higher end pebble sheen surface (with abalone sparkle), Cabo shelf - $90k. Took 9 months to finish due to covid, supply chain, etc. Be sure to understand warranties - our new pool settled/cracked and drained & the owner tried to say it wasn’t his fault!
I wish they had asked people to also include whether or not they would do it again, for those of us who are considering!!! Hardly anyone said whether or not they’re enjoying the pool or if they would do it again, which makes me wonder…
We are 100% happy with our in ground pool and would do it again in a heartbeat! We use it from spring to fall !
We paid about 55k for a heated fiberglass pool that’s roughly 16ft x 12ft and 5 feet deep. It also has swim jets so it works like a swim spa. It was another $5k for an insulated hard pool cover so we could use it year round if we wanted. We are in Seattle, WA.
This is so interesting, as we are building almost the exact same pool as you, just deeper. The pool companies in our area quoted around 120-130, with a year wait to start. However, we decided to sub it ourselves and work with a consultant. Our final price is around 75. It is a pain to do it yourself, but it saves a ton!
Lisa..I would love to hear more about doing it yourself. Could you private message me? [email protected]
I’d love to know the stages as well to subcontract a pool.
$158k for a 34 x 48 ft pool - 2 sun shelfs, heated spa, 2 fire bowls, infinity edge, pool lights, bubblers, salt water, gunite, 3k sq ft of sandblasted marble pool deck . Jensen Beach, FL . Quoted 2021, will be completed 2022 .
I’m installing a plastic wading pool for me and my dogs this summer. 8.25” deep and 48” diameter, even better it’s green as it’s heated solely by the sun. $10 plus gas to run the car to get it home.
💘
Love it! We have a similar pool here in Alberta, Canada where winter reigns supreme for up to 6 months.
Haha! I love this. Always good to keep things in perspective.
Yes!! This has been our #poollife thus far. Ours is collapsible, very handy for off-season storage 🤣 Hoping to transition to something roomier and more permanent/concrete-y in the next few years 💗
We live in Northern California. We put in a 16x32 pool with a spa 3 years ago for $80k. It’s rectangular shape, plaster, with a sun shelf.
We are currently remodeling our pool. We live in Orange County, CA. We are changing our shape from large oval to a rectangle shape and adding a Baja shelf and jacuzzi. Our pool cost to remodel shape, add those elements, pebble tec, all new plumbing, heater, and pool equipment. We are doing limestone coping and pavers covering 1,000 sq ft around the pool. Our price for all of this is $135,000. We are also adding a patio structure that is $12,000 (24x16) and a bbq island that is another $14,000. Hope this helps someone get an idea on pricing!
We live in eastern Washington. Put in a pool almost 7 years ago. 20x40, 3 1/2 feet deep, down to 8 1/2 feet deep. Shallow deck with water bubblers, 2 waterfalls and water jets, and a diving platform. Cost about $150,000. Now-a-days I’m sure it would be way more!
We paid 65k in Florida in Feb of 2019. It included 20x35 with a back wall and five scuppers. It is Saltwater, concrete with pebble finish, with steps and a sun ledge. It also included 12x12 pavers and four huge palm trees with landscape lighting.
Gunite pool with that can be heated and a hot tub. It was at wound 60k and we live in Louisiana.
We began our pool install here in Georgia at the beginning of 2020 not knowing staycations were where it was headed!
We did a 18x36 vinyl liner salt water pool to an 8’ depth with a swim out bench in the deep end and steps the full width of the pool in the shallow end. Quite a bit of brushed concrete was added surrounding the cantilever edge. Including a 20x24 patio and 10x12 patio plus a large 6x8 pad for an outdoor shower. Our total was $46,000
Hi Pamela! Do you mind sharing what company you used? In ATL and considering installing a pool.
Reading all the pool cost comments I realized how great of a deal we got with our beautiful modern pool. We completed our salt water 13’X26’ pool for just under $40k! Our pool install company was amazing here in northeast Florida. It did cost us another 11k for all new landscaping which is always an added expense that some homeowners do not realize because your backyard will be destroyed!
Oh I forgot to say that our pool was completed January 2021.
In 2018 we put in a fiberglass pool and spa for $65k. We moved within the same neighborhood and are having the exact same pool put in but now it’s $85k.
Hi there! Thank you for sharing. We planned to put in a pool in 2020 when we lived in central FL. Our quote was $78k and the contractor wanted all cash up front. The quote was very similar to what you are getting, minus the hard cover and heater. We decided that it wasn’t worth the investment since we had already outgrown the house and ended up moving.
All cash up front seems like a big red flag!! 😬
We put in a 40 x 18 all natural, chemical free pool two years ago in Northern CA wine country. 4 ft deep to 9 ft deep. Pebble tech with plant regeneration zone, bio filter and UV light, custom step hand rail, tile water line, lighted for $130,000. Bluestone and brick coping and deck were extra. Every penny was worth it to be able to swim with our goldfish.
We want a pool but after our neighbour installed one last year our eyes were opened to the prices! We live in BC, Canada and our neighbours were expecting to spend $150k and it cost close to $200! That included a privacy fence, stone patio, the crazy electric cover that a bear could stand on. It looks likes it’s from a magazine. It is vinyl lined and because there’s only one place in Canada that makes them there was quite a delay. The hold was dug in Jan and the pool wasnt finished until the end of Aug😱 Thankfully they’re happy to let us use their pool until we can afford our own!
We live in Indianapolis, In. We did a finite pool with tanning ledge, deck jets, heater, deep end with diving board and ours was around 200k. We do have a fairly massive patio area too that was included. Pools are nuts depending what you decide to do but it was something that was really important to us as well!
We *love* YNAB and have also been using it since 2016! We built our first pool for an existing home in July of 2016 in Augusta, Georgia for $80k. It was 18’x36’ and included an inset hot tub plus tanning ledge, pebble finish, travertine coping, glass waterline tile, gas heater, salt system, pump, and automatic safety cover. We moved a couple miles down the road and are in the middle of a new home build and are right in the middle of the pool build as well. This time it was $108k - nearly same specs except we pulled the hot tub out so it is now separate with a spillover. We are also doing a slightly different waterline tile and coping. (Depth on both pools: 3.5’ to 6’). I am all for price transparency! We use a pool builder out of town as there is very little competition in our smallish city and he is AMAZING!
Wow! I'm a Triangle native and I feel like pools are not very common here. Maybe because of HOAs? Growing up, I didn't know anyone with a pool. Would definitely be jealous as a kid!
I think it's so awesome how transparent you guys are about everything you do! That has to be a little scary. Especially when it comes to talking about money. We love YNAB! We've been using it since like 2010.
Installed a gunnite pool in NJ in 2017 with pretty much all the same specs as you listed. 18x36 6 feet deep with a spa, bluestone coping etc. Total cost was $68,000 just for the pool itself. Hard scraping and landscaping was an additional expense.
Northeast Ohio here. We’ve put in two pools at two homes for just around $20k and that includes vroomed concrete finish, all equipment, dig and both were liners. They are resort style so 5’6” across, 14x28 with steps at one end. Chlorine system and heated. My husband built from dig to finish and we paid a concrete company both times. I have photos at @comeonindesigns on Insta if you want to see! Obviously if we had paid someone it would be at least $50k as those were the prices quoted by companies.
So nice is this.
We are also in the Raleigh area and living in NC we wanted a yard oasis of our own even though our community has a pool. We saved and felt most comfortable with a 16x30 kidney for our space, in ground but vinyl , salt water and all in for just the pool project was $48k. We should have hardscape and landscaping starting soon! Can not wsit to enjoy it this summer- and happy for you all as well!
Was curious to see how much yours is running you. I think it’s also important to talk about there’s so much more to it than just the pool… If you have any kind of slope or elevation change it becomes about hard scape work as well which adds up quickly! We are in Nashville and are paying $250k for our 12x24 pool, tanning ledge spa and pool deck.
Look lovely!! We put a pool in back I. 2017 and very glad we did it then before Covid. We did an 18 by 30 concrete /steel frame pool. We are in Ontario Canada. We had Stamped concrete coping and throughout. We went with salt water as well and definitely a heater for Canadian weather!! My brother and dad did our concrete which was one of the bigger expenses so by the time we were done with the pool,equipment , concrete and Roman end..oop and the rod iron fence that is required in Ontario we spent over 70000. No landscaping or pool house so had I known the cost of things today, I never would have waited and went for it! We were lucky with the concrete as we paid only for the material and not the labour so I’d hate to see the quote for that. Very excited to see your pool up and running!!!
Well, so I can’t afford a pool, lol ; but maybe can hopefully afford one or two of those beautiful plants you have in those light gray pots on your patio, by your pergola. Can you tell me what they are and the pot size needed if you would please. Thank you.
We are building in Eagle Idaho! Our pool & spa NOT including the pool deck is $105,000 it has arching pool jets, a Baja deck and is 20X40 ish @heycassiemichelle
Wow! I believe location varies the pool costs… we put in a 15,000 gallon concrete pool in Arizona - where they are very common… for $30k. And that was painful. But it has a 6x8 ft tanning ledge, 5ft at deepest- and deep end is 3 ft above ground as our yard is sloped. All concrete with mini pebble Tec. Black tile edge, and led color changing light. I wanted to do more but cost was high. We also had a “hard dog” meaning solid rock so that added another $2k in cost. This was in end of 2019 right before the huge boom in the housing market we have here- so I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s double that now down here.
Hey Rachel! Would you mind sharing the company you used? We’re in the Phoenix area and want to put a pool in our backyard! :)
-Emily
I don't have a pool but just want to say how much I appreciate your full financial transparency! I watch other influencers and all they do is constantly sell products. One day they show their favorite product and the next a different brand that is now their favorite product. I feel it's so manipulative and disrespectful to their followers. You truly help people and do it ethically. Its REALLY refreshing to follow your accout.
Mine cost about the same here in Charlotte, but in 2019.
One thing I regret not installing was some sort of water leveling mechanism. Here in NC the water evaporates fairly quickly, and then there are those storms that almost flood the pool!
our pool is 25x50, 12 foot tanning ledge, 6 foot max depth. we did salt water, pebble finish, heater, and auto cover. we paid our pool builder $210k then we paid our backyard landscaper - big techo bloc pavers around, coping, landscaping another $180k.
I had no idea going in that we'd spend close to this. We are in upstate New York.
Wow!! Is this relevant? We put a pool in our 3/2 home in south Florida in the year 2000! It was a basic smallish pool with chlorine filtration, and no hot tub. Everyone has pools there so lots of competition. But we did it for 15k! My how costs have gone up!
This post, all the comments, is extremely helpful. We just moved from San Diego to Wilmington, NC. We are planning on putting in a pool but have home reno project first.
I just want to add that you will not regret the investment. I grew up with a pool in Wisconsin. In ground, C
concrete, geometric shape & 9’ deep. We had what was called “cook deck” on the outside. I cannot imagine not having had it for my childhood. (I’m youngest of 4) we had gatherings and enjoyed it just ourselves. We had countless graduation, birthday parties, baby showers and wedding showers centered around the pool. It was chlorine with a skimmer, heater and lights. My Dad did the cleaning and maintenance and then thought each of us kids (this can save some cost!) We also hosted swimming lessons in the pool with a trained instructor and later on my Mom taught water aerobics in it.
Highlight of my childhood and I am Looking forward to it being the same for my boys.
So excited for you! Thank you for sharing all the details.
May I ask why you decided on 6’ deep? Do your girls not like to jump in? I’m just curious. I’m accustomed to pools with a deep end deeper than 6’.
You can still JUMP in at 6', just not dive. And we wanted more room to just play around.
Good point! Thanks for answering.
I live in SW Fort Worth. We initially planned to put a pool in this summer, but costs have skyrocketed due to supply/demand, so we may wait one more year. Nevertheless, neighbors quotes are coming in in the 120k -180k price range for a pool sized similar to yours. It’s such a big investment, but it’s also an investment in family memories, so I feel torn. I don’t believe prices will come down anytime in the near future either.
We are in a suburb of Nashville and put in a Barrier Reef fiber glass pool that is 13’x27’ and goes from 3’7”-5’6” and includes a tanning ledge. We did 800SF of broom finished concrete decking around the pool decking, 24” stamped concrete coping, 800SF of stamped concrete for a fire pit area, which is raise up by a step. Included in our pricing was a Pentair Prowler robotic cleaner, app pool controls, all concrete, electrical, start up chemicals, pool fill, skimmers, lights, and bubblers on the tanning ledge. We paid $66,758 and our fiberglass has a lifetime warranty. We did pay an extra $5,500 to resod our entire yard because a good portion of it was torn up from the construction. Total project took 6 weeks.
Thanks for sharing real info Kristen! We live near Nashville and are really interested in a pool. Would you be willing to share the company you used?
Dallas, TX. Our pool dig starts in about 3 weeks. Similar style to your pool but quite a bit smaller. 15x30 pool with travertine coping and decking, 8 person hot tub, tanning ledge, small water feature and self cleaning system for about $100K. We are also building a small pool house that adds to that considerably.
I’m in NC as well (down the road in Greenville) and we just finished our pool at $63k. It’s a 14’x30’ with a 6’ deep end and tanning ledge. 4’ of concrete around two sides, 8’ on the other two, plus the pool heater. I DID roll an extra $2400 in for a steal of a deal on a shed to house all the things (it was a model shed direct sold by the manufacturer).
NOT included- we did all of our own sodding after completion, added fencing, and ordered and installed our own code-compliant gate. A mix of DIY and contracted (as with everything we do).
Since completion, we have added a pea gravel fire pit zone and are budgeting for a large deck that will create an entertaining circle between the kitchen, fire pit, pool, yard, screened porch, back into the family room. It’s been a fun process!
We are in the process of starting a pool build here in Houston Texas. We have a large yard that we want to do several things with so we went to a landscape architect first and she designed the pool, spa, and all of the other features we want in the yard so that we can do things in phases as our budget allows. For building an approximately 20x40 pool with a built-in gunite slide and a 10-person spa, including all the bells and whistles, and then about 1000 sq ft of porcelain tile decking around it, we have received bids of $145-165K.
Our pool is coming in at $82k. It’s 40 x 13, Gunnite. Limestone coping with a brick wall and fountains plus hot tub and pebble plaster. That price also includes brick decking (400 square feet), electric, and everything else except re-sodding what was torn up. Random upgrade for us was a badu jet system which added about $10k to the price. We are in houston, TX.
Hi! I am in Houston as well and looking for someone to upgrade our current pool. Would you mind sharing who you used? Thanks so much!!
My husband and I own a pool cos friction company in southern CA. He’s a 3rd generation pool builder. The ads that tell you you can have a pool for $29,999 are LIES! There is so much that will be added making the price go up. If you want just a big hole in the ground, (an actual pool), MAYBE you are looking at $35k? But everyone EVERYONE, needs demo, concrete, or some kind of patio, and the rest ads up. Our average pool costs are at $70-$80k right now for a very simple pool and spa with some concrete around. Most people do additions and won’t some bells and whistles. Any walls, elevation changes, if you have big boulders under ground, it all adds up and most people go well over $100k. Prices HAVE gone up in the last 2 years. Labor shortages, equipment delays.. expect it to take more time that what your friend said it took them way back when. And we only do shotcrete/gunite pools.
And YNAB is LIFE CHANGING!!
We're in East TN, and we put our pool in 6 years ago when we bought our home. The deck needed to be replaced, so we budgeted for a screened porch (which we had at my husband's previous house and LIVED IN). We did an irregular shape with a waterfall, deck jets, tanning ledge. With pavers, plumbing, screened porch, etc... our total was $60K. Fast forward to 2022, and the same pool, etc would be well over $100K!
Currently waiting for early summer dig in southern central PA. Got quotes in budget for both gunnite and vinyl liner but gunnite contractor told us day deposit was due we were now outside his service area so we had to switch gears and lost out on earlier dig date because everyone is so backed up. Just under $70k for 10x24 vinyl, salt water, gas heated, retractable cover, includes coping, modest concrete patio/surround, set up first year and pool maintenance training, includes dig haul away, does not include landscaping after or having gas company come out to hook up the gas heater to existing line.
Not an installation but it cost $23,465 to renovate an 1988 pool in 2017 in a Dallas suburb. Scope:
-Add gunite bench and modify steps
-Replace brick coping with Buff Leuders Coping Eased Edge
-Replace old waterline tile with NPT Arctic glass 1x2 tile in lagoon on gray thinset with light pewter grout
-Replaster pool with French Geay PebbleSheen w/ Shimmering Sea abalone/mother of pearl shells added
-Replace Jandy 30-2511 500w Light
(All pool equipment had already been replaced)
We're in Richardson and are looking at a renovation similar to what you describe. These numbers are very helpful because I honestly had NO idea what to expect! Thanks for sharing.
We live in Western NY, put our pool in 5 years ago. Vinyl 18x36, concrete coping, 5ft deep end, heater, fence which cost $35k. The hardscape including a large retaining wall with stairs and large patio was another $35. Landscaping $8k.
Our pool begins next week. We live on the central coast of CA and our bids ranged from $90k-$125k.
Just outside of Nashville. We put our gunfire pool in 15 years ago. 20 x 13, 6 ft, with a shelf. We had a wide variety of quotes but eventually went with the company that had all in-house trades people. Most companies subcontracted out all the different jobs. We paid around $75,000, and have throughly enjoyed it.
Mine is being finished right now-hole was dug in March 2021. I live in southern Utah so it doesn’t have to be winterized so that saves a lot with cost. Mine is 16x32’, has a tanning shelf and 8x8 spa built in, waterline tile, plaster, travertine coping, heating and top of the line pumps and filters. $73K
Hi! What is the name of the company doing your pool? We’re also in UT
Ours is truly almost 100% identical to yours in northeast GA and we paid $70K in 2019
Would love to know who you used!
We’re finishing up a “spool” (spa pool) in north GA at our lakehouse. It’s small, 8’ x 18’ with seating all around, jets, hearing, etc. It’s only 4ft at the deepest. Cost is 80k before patio/ landscaping work.
We put in a small pool in New Orleans with gunite, heater, saltwater + travertine surround for about 45k in 2018. Seemed steep but I guess this is cheaper than other areas. Our contractor had told us even if it was bigger the cost would’ve been the same (with the exception of a few material line items). We were just confined by our lot size (tiny lots in the city).
Hi Haley, What was the size of your pool? I'm in the process of getting quotes for a small plunge pool (14x8) in old metairie!
Hi!!!
This post was great, thank you CLJ.
I’m 2017, in South Carolina. We payed 45k for a fiberglass. It was the same shape was yours without all the bells and whistles. We had a tanning ledge that was about 10 feet to walk. And it had water features (little raising water fountains) we also added a fountain on the side as a design to tie in our home for about $3k. It was a dream come true for me. And… people like to say that you don’t get the investment back. Not our case. We sold our house for $50k more than comparable homes in 2018, in under 20 hours! Mind you… the market was normal back then. So it was a huge win!
We built a pool last summer and I was asking everyone I knew how much it cost! We are north of Atlanta and spent $108,000. It’s a smaller gunite pool with a spa (34x21 and 8 feet deep) and a tanning ledge. Just enough space for kids to play and mama to lay. That included the salt water system, gas heater, lights, waterfalls, and all the other equipment (like a Polaris).
We are spending about $10,000 this spring landscaping and another $10,000 doing some deck work and under decking to make the pool area more usable. It sure adds up fast!
We added an 18’x36’ upgraded vinyl pool (very thick material called poolhide, looks like concrete due to dark charcoal color). We were intially quoted $65k here in Northern NJ. This number did not include interior lights, heater or elec to power lights. That was an additional $5k. Further, all elec work was subbed out and we had to pay the electrician separately. Finally, pool coping was not included, another $5k. To add an auto cover would have been an additional $15k, which we couldn’t afford. I wanted a ‘Hamptons’ pool, ie: 2’ of bluestone coping around the entire perimeter. While the auto cover is expensive and have been known to break, it would have been the preferred method for a cold climate like this where you have to close a pool each season. For now, we are using a tarp cover, which can be a dangerous option (our kids are old enough to not go near it) because the pins for the strong cover must be set 3’ off the edge of the pool. The next Summer we added a bluestone lounge pad on one side, another $5k. We wrapped the wood fence required by the town around the whole property instead of just the pool, $10k. All in: over $100K! (Significantly more than the estimated cost.) Also, be aware of pool maintenance costs. We spend around $1200/season for someone to clean and treat the pool each week.
We put in a pool about 4 years ago 15x30 6.5ft deep with a raised spa at the end and spillway into pool, added additional steps in the deep end, a retaining wall with stone surround, 3 copper scuppers from wall into pool, upgraded tile, a play shelf with umbrella sleeve, gunite with upgraded quartz, heater, lights, cleaning system, new concrete decking and concrete stamped to look like coping for about $60,000+. We hired a separate landscaper designer and for both pool and landscape we were at about $80,000 or so. That’s in central California but there are also a million pool companies here and having/building one is very common.
We're in Tampa and started quoting pools in Sept 2020. We are spending 77k for a gas heated pool with seemingly similar dimensions - 14x28 pool, 5x10 sun ledge and 5x7 spa. Gunite shell, pebble finish, travertine decking. Tack on another 20k for running a gas line, capping and reinstalling irrigation, replacing all the landscaping they destroyed along the way and landscape lighting. Prices have spiked wildly during covid thanks to increased demand and supply issues. Our neighbor has a pretty similar pool they paid 50k for in 2017.
Today, with Covid demand and inflation, our average pool construction in Austin, TX is $150k. Interesting since the cost also really depends on so many factors from the size to each material choice. But our builder says prices have gone way way up since the pandemic. 😭
We are paying ~$42,000 for a fiberglass saltwater pool in Charleston. That also includes the necessary concrete, equipment, etc. It is a 12'9" x 25' and has a depth range of 3'9" to 5'6". We got quoted for gunite pools in our area and they started at ~$60,000. I originally liked the idea of the gunite, but we lived through a painful back porch addition that took 4x longer than expected and I thought I was going to lose my mind not being able to use our back yard since we have 2 pups. The back porch is also right off of my home office. So, when we were exploring pool options the fiberglass option was most appealing since it is a VERY short timeframe for install.
We just built a saltwater pool in 2021. We live in Ohio and the total cost of the pool and surround was $165K. The pool is 20'x40' with steps all the way across and 6 ft depth. It was built with a liner (best for our wild winters), heater, automatic cover ($17K) and pavers for the pool deck and coping. The pool itself was around $90K due to the upgrades but it was the pavers, lighting, cover, etc. that cost much more than the pool. The heater and cover were non-negotiables for use and safety and then we had to make it look good. :)
This might be too much to ask but any chance you can give us the breakdown of the $148k? how much approx for each feature?
“…permits and plans, demolition, digging, labor, the concrete shell, all of the plumbing, a filter system, a maintenance kit, a heater, pool pumps, umbrella sleeves, a pebble finish, steps into the pool, waterline tile, travertine coping, a hot tub, a tanning ledge, pool lighting, a hard cover, and even salt water to fill it up.”
Texas-58k same size pool as yours 69k if we add a spa
We put a 18'x26' straight edge rectangular concrete in ground pool + an 8 person spa/jacuzzi (but frankly, there have been 11 grandkids in there at one time, so...) in our socal high desert home 3 years ago. We went very basic all one level (looks very much like yours, excepting the patio surround) 4' -6' depths, "white" plaster finish, ceramic tile below the coping. Everything we needed (pumps, filters, robot cleaner, heater, all the equipment, etc. was included). We went with a small local pool contractor who was recommended to us, and the end price was just under $40,000, start to finish on the pool was literally 5 weeks. Remember this was the summer before the pandemic. The patio decking and surround included 3 steps the length of the house/patio, and again, very similar to your patio size, although we went with basic textured cement, which cost right at $5,000. Another $5,000 was paid to a fencing company to surround the entire pool area and then some with privacy fencing, ->in CA "No fence, No fill." is the law. Because this home is in the Mojave Desert of So CAL the temps can get into the triple digits in the summer and below freezing in the winters, and LOTS of wind most of the year -we purchased a pool cover and a "rolling wheel" for an additional $175.00. (Although the pool came with a heater, we rarely used it for the pool, but it was lovely to use in the spa!) The cover was basic as well, but when used could bring the water in the pool up to about 89 degrees F on most days. We chose chlorine over salt water and purchased a solar copper ionizing float ($79 for the first year, with 2 $59 replacement rods every year afterwards) which kept our chlorine down to about 1 gallon a month.
Hi PC. Could you share which small pool contractor you used please? We’ve got a place in Morongo Valley and we’d love the name. Our dream is to put in a pool one day and we’ve got all the same issues with wind and freezing temperatures. I’d love a recommendation! Thanks so much!
My pool, which a lot of you saw being built in my Instagram page @reems_design costed roughly $120 just for the pool itself. I think what a lot of people don’t budget for are all the extras:
These are things we didn’t know were included (except the furniture🙂)
Pool surround $25k
Extra Landscaping $5k
Fixing sprinkler system 3k
Small built in grill $15K
Regrading the yard $5k
Pool furniture: kitchen ok
I would also love to hear from
people what the yearly cost is to
run and maintain their pool? Utilities, upkeep, etc especially in colder climates like Minnesota.
Almost an identical scope in Boise Idaho was $125k 2 years ago. With local demand and inflation it would be closer to $160k today.
We built our pool about 4 years ago. In a suburb of Atlanta. 18x36 vinyl, 8ft in the deep end, saltwater, vinyl covered steps & swimouts so it looks like gunite. The pool itself was slightly under $30k. By the time we added extra concrete patio space, a retaining wall to make the rest of our yard useable, a fence around the pool, DIY landscaping supplies (shrubs, egg rocks, etc, that we installed ourselves), a winter cover, umbrellas, and patio furniture .... It was right at $50k. I feel like we got a lot for the money, and we use the space literally every day from April to September.
We are in San Antonio, TX & haven’t pulled the trigger yet but we got a quote of $74,000. It will be a sport pool with the deepest part being 5ft & with a sun shelf as well.
Could you please explain what a ‘sport’ pool is? I’ve never heard that term. Thx!
Means the two ends are a bit deeper and the middle is more shallow so a net can be put up and have 2 equally deep sides on either side. Usually not deeper than waist-height tho.
We live in central Florida and built a sport pool about 29 years ago. The deep portion (6') is in the middle. It gradually gets more shallow to 3'-4' at both ends. We have sleeves in the deck for a net to be mounted across the middle of the pool so "sports" like volleyball can be played. Raising three children and having all of their friends constantly over, they loved it. Of course, you don't always have to have the net up. In that case, the sleeves have a cap that keeps them covered.
I'm in the hill country of Texas. I was just quoted $120k for a tiny pool. About 14x20 with 5' deep and a shelf. This did not include a spa which is another $25k. Nothing fancy either. It's expensive here - I am told- because we sit on limestone and digging is hard.
Ours is being installed now!
18x40 vinyl liner pool, auto cover, salt water, custom tanning ledge, gas heater. $72k
That price didn’t include concrete work. We went out 4 ft on two sides of the pool, 8 ft (on one 18ft end) and 10 ft (on a 40ft side). We did a textured/stamped concrete and that cost 12k for that.
We are also adding a vinyl privacy fence that will be $11,500 and we have to pay to have a final grade on our yard $3200.
I’d just warn anyone - there are always extra expenses! We may have to add a retaining wall at some point too and our quotes were $11-13k.
Not to mention now I want a shaded pergola area, outdoor furniture, landscape - we are just planning to cash flow those things add that a little bit at a time.
We are in southern Indiana!
Last tip: get an approx completion date. Our pool contractor bids several jobs out which has caused annoying delays. (We waited over 3 months for concrete!) Our pool was started Oct 1, 2021 and we don’t expect it to be finished up April 2022 because of the outsourcing of jobs. If we did it over again, I’d look for a company that does it all themselves - much quicker turn around!
I would say it depends on what you want (pool/bar, Baja shelf, bubblers, color lighting, salt water or chlorine, size not only side to side and front to back but also depth) We live in Arizona. Different areas in AZ also have different types of soil making some harder to dig and some ground here moves more than others (yellow or red zone) so they have to take all of that into account in addition to how far to run water and electric for the pool. We got 3 different bids from well known local vendors and they varied from $30k for the most basic to $100k to include Baja shelf, water feature, bubblers, lights, and a self cleaning feature. Of course I would love to get what we want but also understand that what you spend doesn’t exactly translate into 100% value added to the home when/if you go to sell.
Is the $148k just for the pool or for the entire backyard renovation? I’m guessing just the pool.
Love your blog and this post is so informative! I was surprised by how much a pool cost ranges.
We are in the process of putting a pool currently in San Diego, CA. The quote we got for the pool was $140,000. Our pool is 23'×50' and depth is between 3.5' - 6' - 3.5' (for water volleyball). It includes 8'x9' hot tub, 8'x14' baja shelf, permits and plans, demolition, digging, labor, the concrete shell, plumbing, filter system, maintenance kit, heater, wiring for solar (not getting solar yet), pool pumps, umbrella sleeves, pebble finish, steps into the pool, 1.5'x30' bench, waterline tile, travertine coping, LED pool lighting, salt water system.
Thought I would provide an alternate perspective here... we just got a quote to redo our extremely dated pool from the 80's and just the reno is going to be around $70k. Granted, it's a large pool and needs everything redone, but thought I would throw that out there in case anyone is wondering how much pool renovations run. This is in Dallas, Texas. Good luck on the rest of the project- it looks awesome!
I’m in northern Indians with an 80s pool as well. EVERYTHING needs updated - it’s going to be right around $30k.
In 2017, we had a 40 x 16, 5’6 depth fiberglass pool installed. Salt water, heat, 3 color changing lights, power safety cover, and several hundred sq ft of stamped concrete cost us 70k in Indiana.
Back in 2009, here in So. California, our salt water pool cost $60K for a 10 x 30, with a huge spa at one end and $10K for all the surrounding flagstone work. That included everything. It took 10 weeks start to finish. If we only had gotten a pool with coping and grass surrounding it, the quote was $30K.
Currently installing 12x28 (3’ to 6’) Gunite pool in Lex, Ky:
$81k pool only. Hardscape, very few plants $58k. Electrician, plumber, limestone coping, fence adjustments to be in compliance with laws were all separate line items. A surprise to me! Total pool cost now is at $148k.
We are just finishing up the design/pricing portion of our pool in Fort Worth, TX. It will be huge (husband’s dream), 25’x40’ with a 70’ lap lane extending of the side. Our depth will go from 42” to 96”, include a tanning ledge and a hot tub. Our total cost (minus permit fee and plants) will be $228,000 with a $40,000 deposit.
We purchased an almost 30 year home with an existing pool, no idea how much they paid or exact size. However, I can speak to the regular maintenance and it is for sure not cheap. Ours is approx 20,000 gallons and we live in Houston, lots of rain, damp/humid conditions and plenty of evaporation during the warmer months. With chemicals, evaporation refill, tools, and general parts and materials upkeep, we spend approx $200/mo at least to maintain. I’d say that’s a low estimate too.
We are rehabbing our 1990’s gunite pool. The price to sandblast, pebbletec, tile, bring drainage up to new code, repair lighting, fill the attached hot tub and make it a tanning ledge, replace the pool heater and pump is going to be around $50K. Putting in a pool is one thing but remember to ALSO budget for the ongoing care of the pool (chemicals, treatments, salt/chlorine, skimming tools), maintenance/break-fix and the rehab of a pool every 10-15yrs.
Between Houston and Austin, TX - We put in a pool last summer, 18x36, 7’ deep, elevated spa, gunite with quartz interior, travertine decking, heater and chiller, all premium equipment - $116k. We paid to have plans drawn separately and then got bids from 4 builders and they were all similar.
My parents are similarly installing a gunite pool at their home in California. The pool is 20’ by 45‘ long and 3’ to 8’ deep. They are paying $50K.
Wow! Sounds like a great price. Where in CA and who are they using? We are in beginning bid stage in Orange County.
I had a beautiful free form gunite pool with a connected spa and all the “stuff”…rock waterfall, sitting ledges, spa spillover edge, heater. The best feature was the pop up cleaner heads that swept the pool constantly, eliminating the need to vacuum more than once a week. An ionizer helped with chlorine. Initial install in the early 90s by the former owners was close to $200k, including 12 ft. of cool decking, landscaping, and curved brick walls/raised planting beds. We had the entire pool resurfaced in 2011, with new glass mosaic tiles, redesign of the spa, fiber optic lighting (so cool to be able to change colors!), new heater for a cost of over $12,000. Looked like a new pool! Here in NY, I was just quoted $50k for a vinyl liner plain rectangular 4ft depth pool with simple coping edge, nothing more. Prices have certainly gone up, but if you want quality, it will cost $90-150k here.
We started our pool install 7/20 and finished 4/21. We had a 12’x23’ fiberglass shell installed because it has a 50 year warranty. Our total cost was $45k. We are adding a heater this year, and that will add an additional $7k. We built a pool shed at the end of the pool because you need storage, and that was a self build which cost $6k. We’re in AL.
Franklin TN just outside Nashville. 60k for a 12x25 concrete and steel frame and vinyl liner. Included a bench and stairs, equipment and start up.
It did not include fill dirt, concrete, cover, hard scape (stone stair way) & landscaping. Which added 150K to the final area.
I think you bring up a really good point…. It’s all the other stuff that really ads up!
Our quote for 18x36 gunnite pool in WW WA this year is 140,000, no hot tub. Our current home in Portland OR 3 years ago pool with ledge and hot tub , saltwater, was 85,000. That’s how much supply and demand has changed since pandemic
We only did a remodel on an existing pool from 1960. We chose the most basic finishes and tile and hardscape. We did this because we were renovating an entire home and our budget was tight. Going light with our Pool remodel we still spent $35,000. We hope to add a slide and basketball hoop and maybe a hot tub someday! But we are so glad we have a working beautiful pool. Our pool is 4-8 feet deep and 22,000 gallons.
In Murfreesboro TN (35 minutes south of Nashville) we are putting in a 15x35 saltwater system fiberglass pool with a large tanning ledge. The quote includes the standard 4ft of concrete around the pool with chiseled concrete coping. $84,500 from a highly recommended local company.
Our gunite pool in Albuquerque with heater, spa, power cover, bubbler, fountain, ozone and UV sanitation, robot cleaner, quartz finish, tile, and tanning ledge was $60k.
We put a pool in in May 2021. Gunite, 20x48, 8ft deep, two chairs in the deep end, 10x20 sun ledge, umbrella holders, 2 bubblers, travertine coping, waterline tile, stairs off of the sunledge, turf & travertine patio, retaining wall & landscaping/lighting
$135,000. Atlanta, Georgia
Hey Jess, fellow Atlantan here; who did you use? I’m getting quotes now:) I would be so appreciative!
These are helpful tips. Your pool looks huge you and Chris look so small. Pools are such a great way to bring friends and family together nights swims and BBQs -so much to look forward to. One question why salt water? And how did you come to that decision
We are currently building a pool in Bentonville, Arkansas for $46,000. It is 16’ x 32’. Salt water, 8 feet deep. It took 3 months to build. There was a 9 month waiting list perioyto get started from the time we put down a deposit.
We put in a 43x18 gunite pool with 8x8 spillover spa, upgraded tile, plaster finish and 1500 square feet of concrete pool decking. Came in right at 100k in Northern CA. (2019) we payed cash we had saved for a master bath renovation for about 3 years. We decided to sell that property (it had a pool) and so we used the money we had saved and some of the profit form the sale to pay for it. Whatever you do DON’T TAKE OUT A LOAN against your house to put in a pool. You only get about 25% of the cost back on an appraisal so it really should be something you buy for the enjoyment of your family and not a home investment.
Central FL. Our pool was completed in December 2021. It is a 15x25 gunite salt water pool with pebble finish, tanning ledge, 3.5ft-6ft, travertine coping, paver deck, and screen enclosure over everything. The pool includes a filter system, 2 color changing lights, and a bubbler on the tanning ledge. Total price for everything from engineering plans, materials and construction of everything was $55,900.
We just moved from central Florida to Raleigh and had a quote for a pool at our old home in Orlando- $50k for a decent sized pool with gunnite and travertine surround. Tanning ledge, salt water, 2 bubblers. My mouth drops at the prices of pools here in Raleigh. Our neighbors here have paid similar prices for their pools- $120-160k
So Cal put it in a pool in spring 2020. 15x20 Gunite with integrated spa, small ledge with umbrella for splashing. Natural stone and tile finishings, two water features, and solar heat system. Not including any of the other work the company did in our backyard, the pool itself cost us ~$85k
Would you mind sharing the name of your contractor?
Can you share who your pool contractor was? We are also in SoCal.
It’s my dream to one day have a house where we can add a small pool (also in Raleigh) so thanks for doing this and all you folks in the comments.
We are currently putting in a pool in Colorado. 17x34 with a tanning ledge and integrated hot tub. Gunite, coping, plaster, tile and waterline tile, salt water, pool equipment, automatic safety cover and it came to $126,000. Running electrical and gas was a separate cost. Sadly we had to completely move all of the main power/gas lines as they ran through the middle of our yard where we were putting in the pool. A pain but so worth it to finally get a beautiful new pool! We broke ground the beginning of December and should have an up and running pool by spring- fingers crossed!
I’m not exactly sure what a finite pool is but we as well had the “we-promised-the-kids-a-pool” deal breaker. We needed up finding a property her in Quebec that we could put in a pool and being a very tall family (ha!) we went for a 16x36 pool - biggest we could do without the added expense for a retaining wall - and it’s 8 feet deep at one end. It’s concrete with a liner and a 3 foot sidewalk around and steps leading in. Saltwater and heated of course. We kept the lights and ditched the diving board when a special machine was needed to dig that cost more ($1500, the cost of the board.) in the end the whole project cost us $34,000 approx. - hole, liner, steps, lights, sidewalk, saltwater pump, heater and concrete pad for the equipment (and that’s Canadian dollars - so even less American ones haha)
We got bids for a pool in Minneapolis in early summer 2019 and got it installed in spring 2020. We were fortunate to get pricing in 2019 RIGHT before the huge demand and price increases happened here. At that time, the bids for a 6' deep 20' x 40' concrete pool were $250K - $325K. Concrete pools are really expensive here and can be risky with our extreme climate. The pool companies we talked to would not warranty concrete. I'm not sure if they just wouldn't warranty concrete for our lot (which has a glacier stream deep under it = more likely to crack a concrete pool) OR if they never warranty concrete pools here. That said, we settled on a stainless pool with a dark vinyl liner. It has a 25 year warranty. The pool not including coping, pool deck, landscaping was $80K. It is 20' x 40' and the deep end is 6'6". It has a sitting ledge that runs the length of one side (which is awesome!) and corner steps. We wanted to leave plenty of room for our kids to do flip turns. It has an automatic hard cover. We also have a separate inground 7' x 7' stainless spa with an automatic hard cover. The inground spa was $70K. It's crazy it was almost as much as the pool. We have a bluestone deck and outdoor fireplace. With the pool, inground spa, pool deck, fireplace we were just under $300K all in. Or we could have done just a concrete pool for that and it likely would have cracked within 7 years! Link included if you want to see what that buys in Minneapolis and see that stainless pools with vinyl can be gorgeous too. It's also soft underfoot which is nice. We got our pool in just in time. Most if not all pool companies here now have a 2 year+ waiting list. Can't wait to see your pool!
Local Minnesotan and would love a reference to the company you used! Thx!
We actually used 2 companies and recommend both for pools. Custom Pools did the pool and did a great job. I'm off a year in original comment above - what is time anymore? Ha! :) They bid our pool early summer 2020 and installed in spring 2021. We added the inground spa after the initial design, but before install and Custom does not do spas, so we ended up with 2 pool companies. We used Performance Pools for the spa because they carry Bradford. Bradford also does beautiful stainless pools. Custom Pools is small and has great customer service. Performance is a bigger company with more options and likely has a shorter waitlist. Good luck!
Oooo I would love to see this as we are exploring a stainless pool (smaller than yours), bluestone patio, and hot tub. I can’t see a link?
If you go to my original comment, my name (MK) is underlined. Click it and it will link you to our landscape architect's photos. Also seeing if I can add the link to my name in this one. So if MK is underlined here, that should work too. Good luck!
Local Minnesotan and had similar pricing for an 18x42 (vinyl). Thanks for sharing.
This sounds lovely. I am exploring a stainless pool too. Very helpful info, but I don't see your link? Also would love to know your stainless manufacturer? THANKS!
Thanks for sharing! Fellow Minnesotan here! :)
New Orleans - same pool as yours excluding cover for $55K.
Yes in Nola as well. We put one in a few years ago for 40k (minus the hot tub) slightly larger. Wondering how much that pool cover is? Maybe the decking material too?
Raleigh NC
Patio - 55,000 - NC Turf Care
Gunite Pool 16x35 with tanning ledge + Spa 7x7 - 95,000 - Rising Sun
Things I didn’t get- pebble and auto cover
We just signed a contract for a 40x16ft 7ft deep fiberglass pool with tanning ledge, led lighting, heater, salt water, 1500sqft of hardscape and includes all land clearing for $91,500. After much research, we decided on fiberglass due to cost of maintenance and the ability of holding water temps better than gunite. We are located in Oklahoma City.
The pool in our vacation home in SWFL (Cape Coral) was around 40k but here in Germany (Berlin) the cost for a pool like yours would be more at your price point. Assuming it would be possible to find a (good) contractor 😅
We bought a Villeroy & Boch hot tub/whirlpool 2 years ago for about 30k.
We got quotes to put in a custom liner pool in a unique, organic shape with a tanning ledge - we also need a retaining wall and pretty significant landscaping around it and it was $80-100k (we’re in NC too). Fiberglass was a little cheaper as far as install but more tricky to get the pool onto our property. Gunite was completely out of our price range. Our neighbors down the street have a very nice gunite pool and the actual pool only cost about $60k, but they also have a large retaining wall, landscaping and fencing that weren’t included in that number. We decided to forego a pool for now and do what needs to be done with the landscaping.
Phoenix Az - Gunite Pool with Pebble Sheen coating. Overall 16x35. In ground spa and tanning ledge. 16wk build. 70K. 7’ depth.Includes excavation, plumbing, electrical, double wall rebar, pool equipment, three lights, bubbler, built in bench at deep end. Coping is 5,000 of the 70k budget. 3k in materials, 2k in labor. No pool decking surrounding the coping.
Hey, would you mind sharing your pool builder if you liked them? I'm in the Phoenix area as well looking to do a reno to a 20 y/o pool. Thanks!
We paid about $80k for a 40 foot long, 8.5 feet deep, free form pool in Texas in 2018, with a waterfall and grotto, and jumping rocks, & tanning ledge. No spa or heater.
We are also in the Wake County area. Our pool was installed back in 2008. It was a fiberglass salt pool and hot tub combo. The pool itself was small at 11 x 21 3ft to 5.5 ft. The pool and all the equipment as well as the poured concrete patio and the layered stone around the hot tub cost about $40K. This included the electrician's fee. The landscape design and the trees/shrubs themselves were not included in that price.
Yes those numbers are all over the place! So many different factors and also depending on what part of the country you are in. I had to comment on your Clark Griswald comment…my parents put in a pool a few years before they movie came out. Beautiful pool and jacuzzi and diving board —$14,000. Times have changed!
I had no idea it cost so much more to put in a pool in other states. We live in Phoenix and you can put in a basic play pool for around $20k. We wanted a diving board so we put in a nice big, deep saltwater dive pool with in ground cleaning system, LED light, an iron pool fence, and extended travertine pavers on our back porch that wrap around a path out to the front yard for around $40k. You could get really crazy with water features, a rock slide, more upgraded materials etc but still get a really nice pool for under $60k here.
We are getting ready to put in a pool, and got a couple quotes. We are going with the one that is $48,000. It includes everything, but we have a small backyard, so it's only about 15 x 30 ft. It has a jumping Ledge with a couple of water sheers, a Baja ledge, umbrella sleeves, LED lights, and travertine tile around it. We're in AZ. (No need for a pool heater here, lol!)
We just finished our pool construction in Fulshear TX (right outside of Houston). Our pool is 16x36 with a 8x12 tanning ledge and a 8x8 raised spa. We added a raised back wall with 3 scuppers, bubblers on tanning ledge, and upgraded lighting. To reduce expense we chose white plaster and spray decking surround. We are on a sloped lot so that increased the expense of our pool and we added steps down to yard from pool in back. We chose to do our own landscaping to further reduce expense. We have travertine coping and travertine on steps as well as upgraded glass tile on the spa spillover and raised back wall is stacked stone. We got 3 estimates before choosing our builder (all gunite). Our pool cost $86k but our estimates ranged from this to $110k. We chose a reputable builder local to our area and in business for a long time. So glad we did.
Hi Angie!! I’m in the Woodlands. Would love the name of your contractor as we’re looking for quotes trying to get a pool put in. Thanks!!
Hi Taylor. Our pool contractor was Caseys pools of Katy. He told us if we built the exact same pool we just finished installing the price is 20% more. Crazy times. Best of luck to you with your construction
We put in a pool in SoCal at the beginning of the pandemic. Our layout is the same, with an auto cover (best decision EVER) and you will be so thankful when it comes to Fall leaves (we moved here from the Raleigh area so we know that struggle). I think the hardest part about budgeting for projects, for me, is my lack of knowledge in what things SHOULD cost. We are in the midst of an interior reno now and one of the struggles was that many contractors wouldn’t even give us a price until we got engineering done. When you’re blind to the costs and whether HOA will play nice, paying for engineering first was not an option. Thankfully, we found an amazing contractor but this seems to be the norm lately, and we lucked out. Any advice for setting reasonable budgets for projects in the pre-planning stage? (And in the end, part of our project was taken off the table due to unforeseen challenges so I’m glad I didn’t pay for engineering up front!).
We put in a gunite pool in the DFW area last year. You are so right about supply and demand, prices have definitely gone up in the past three years. We put a covered patio in at the same time and did turf in the entire backyard as well. Our yard is pretty small so it’s all pool. Our pool is 15x35 and 5’10” deep (it was a $3000 jump to go 2 more inches) we did travertine coping and a pebble finish. Our spa is inset. We didn’t do the tanning ledge because of a lack of space. We added umbrella sleeves and upgraded our drain system. We did do just concrete decking so we saved quite a bit there. Our initial
quote was $98,000 but after adding things along the way, we ended up around $105,000. All in by the end of the project, including a new fence and furniture, a shed to store stuff, sod to replace the front yard that they tore up during install(which died again and will have to be redone again)….all in we were at about $125,000. It was a painful process but we are so grateful and have loved having it!!
Ok showing my age here. I thought post in comments meant the Instagram site, OOPS sorry. So..I retired a year ago as a Landscape Architect in Northern Alabama. I can say after reading your article that the cost of gunite pool, that your cost is very close to the price point when I retired in 2021. Yours was actually cheaper than it would be here, if that price included all the landscaping. I always priced that separately. My clients had a hard time usually with plant materials before the pool was in. Some on the other hand just would tell me do what you think is best. I did this 25 years. I have my masters in Landscape Architecture. It is a different level than a designer. I actually, in my earlier years, did only development work of large scale residential communities or commercial properties of 100 acres or more. I am also a Civil Engineer. I do some very low key projects now. A vinyl liner pool will run around $50000 in Alabama. They are a good solid pool but the liners need replacing every 7-8 years, sooner if you have dogs clawing the sides. I would say if you are putting a pool in do your HOMEWORK. You do not want that pool to leak!! Or crack!! Salt water pools are easier maintenance but the downside it is harder on the plumping. You still can get cloudy water and have water issues if you get very heavy rain or a neighbor is having any digging done in dry weather. Me personally had a vinyl liner pool, when we were young with our boys, and then a gunite pool as the boys turned to teens. We now have lived in this home, our forever home, ten years and no longer have a pool. I chose to keep our back acre more "natural"
Living in Malmö, Sweden! We put a pool in last Summer, 3x6 meters (~10x~20ft), thermo pool (heavily insulated plastic prebuilt) with heater, pump, digging and pool roof! Pool roofs are AMAZING things that allow you to extend the pool season in colder climates as you can swim under them. All of this was around 450.000SEK, or around $49k.
Reading some other comments, we got a deal!
We are in the Dallas, TX area and got several quotes during summer 2020, the height of COVID when everyone was stuck at home in the Texas heat. Waiting lists for companies to come out to just quote us we’re months long. For about a 14x25’ rectangle chlorinated “play pool” (no deeper than about 5 feet) and spa with minimal decking we received quotes from $55-85k. For how basic and small we wanted we felt like anything above $65k was pretty high. For being in Dallas where summers can be long and extremely hot, we didn’t find that the local competition drove prices down at all. My father-in-law put in a pool (no spa) during the same time period in central California for about $30k
We aren’t building a new pool but we are remodeling a pool. We live in Phoenix and the quotes we have gotten range from $30-45k. Which is what I thought a new pool would cost? So I was pretty overwhelmed. Unfortunately, our pool desperately needs the work because the plaster is peeling badly and the equipment is old. $10k is for the demo and install of the pebble finish. Another huge chunk is for tile and replacing parts line lights and filters. The rest is for new equipment and bringing our spa back to life. We just moved into this house in September and didn’t expect this enormous cost so soon. Devastating, especially when my three year old is daily staring at a pool he cannot use. Likely the work won’t start until June.
It’s important to budget in YNAB the extra cost to run and maintain a pool. We did not account for the added electricity to run the pump during the hot months (extra $2000), the extra water costs as water has increased in our area by 10 fold in 10 years, the cost of maintenance and pool service. We’ve replaced our pool pump three times in 20 years. And now we need new gunite and tile. Kids are grown so we looked at filling in with dirt but that’s about $40k. Pools are fun but also a constant cost to keep up! I don’t think I would do it again after weighing the cost vs benefit.
Love the informative post! Also am glad you guys are open enough to sharing real numbers. It’s understandable as your business grows, your budget does too and I think it’s pretty rare to see an influencer at your level showing the real costs, so thank you.
Ditto! The actual costs are so helpful!
In Florida we paid $48k for a 14x22 gunnite salt water pool. 6” shallow end with tanning ledge and umbrella hole (that could also be a sprinkler). We had travertine coping and a regular paver patio 15’x15’. We financed it for $500 month. Florida is probably the most affordable state to put a pool in though :-)
I live in Buffalo (where you only can swim June-early September lol) and my parents put in a 9 foot pool in 96 and it cost about 15k. Now, I believe it’s closer to 70k for a very basic inground pool. We have a lot of
clay and bedrock here!
An average pool about the size you are putting in is running about $75,000 in Arizona. 20 years ago, we put a similar sized pool in for 25,000! Times have changed! 😳
Thank you for sharing! When talking about how much you made on the sale of your Idaho house, how did you calculate? Were the renovations and improvements you made included or was it from strictly from a mortgage (what you paid vs. what you sold it for) standpoint?
Strictly mortgage! Sorry I should have been more clear.
We live in SW Missouri. During the summer of 2020 we got 30 estimates for a gunite pool. They ranged from 250-325. That didn’t include any landscaping or changes that needed to be made to our septic system. This was WAY more than we were willing to spend. When we asked what we could do for 150k they basically told us ‘good luck’…needless to say, we don’t have a pool. 😕 For comparison, we have some good friends who put in a really nice concrete pool with a built in spa about 8 years ago. It was $65,000 in Oklahoma.
Woopsie!!! 3 estimates, not 30. 🤦🏻♀️
That is amazing! Looks like the price is all over the place. I'm guessing that doesn't include the landscaping. You definitely will be using it nearly the whole year. Can't wait to see the transformation.
We are currently putting in a 16 x 32 ft gunite saltwater pool with a heater and two waterfalls in Maryland. The pool project also includes travertine coping and decking along with quartz interior finish. The decking is approximately 1,700 sq ft with some retaining walls due to grading. The
total cost is around 180k.
I'm just curious what made you decide on a salt water pool vs. a chlorinated pool.
We've heard they are a lot easier to keep clean and balanced
Did you consider a magnesium at all?
Oh! No we didn't.
I have swum (?) in salt water pools and they’re not salty, like the Atlantic Ocean where I live near Boston. I was pleasantly suprised.
I only ask because I wasn’t sure if the health benefits of a magnesium pool would be beneficial to you.
Las Vegas resident here - we put in a gunite pool 2 years ago. One of the biggest expenses in this area of the desert is the actual "dig" because the ground is so hard. They even include warnings that your price may increase based on how much rock they have to jackhammer out (yes, this happened to us!). Our pool cost $30,000 including a spa with spillover into the pool, a small sun deck, some concrete decking, the pool vacuum, and color-changing lights for both the pool and spa. Landscaping was an entirely separate cost. Pool dimensions are 15 x 21 feet, and goes from a 3ft in the shallow end to 5.5ft depth in the deeper end.
I would keep in mind that Christmas Vacation was released in 1989. My parents had a pool put in at our house in Austin, TX in the early 80s and I'm pretty sure it cost around $12,000 - and that was for an in-ground, fully plastered (no plastic liners), kidney shaped pool with a wide stone skirt and a wrought iron security fence. And a diatomaceous earth filter system, which was not normal in a residential pool at the time.
We live in St. Louis and put in a free-form upgraded finish Gunite pool, with limestone coping, ceramic tile border, a large waterfall that cascades into the pool, boulders built into the pool decking, and a diving rock, 3-6 feet. It's salt water and has a heater. All of that came in at just over $110K. Tripling the size of our concrete patio (it's massive now--we have room for an outdoor kitchen; dining area with 10 chairs; a living room area; multiple sun chaises and raised herb garden beds) and adding a cool coat textured finish (so worth it!) was another $30K. Then adding a landscape berm for privacy, plantings, fixing our destroyed after pool installation sprinkler system etc. was another $35K. And finally, putting in an integrated outdoor speaker system that you could hear over the waterfall but not hear in our neighbor's yard was another $6K. It all added up, but it's been so, so worth it!
Your house sale is every seller’s dream, haha!
I love budgeting. I didn’t grow up being taught how to handle my money. As I became an adult I couldn’t figure out how I could be working so hard very day and have no money to show for it. Behind on bills every month, living on Top Ramen. I started budgeting in my mid/late 20’s and couldn’t believe how much money I had for everything. My husband and I became debt free last year thanks to budgeting! And now saving to become homeowners!
We built our pool 15 x 50 a few years ago, very similar cost and set up as yours, gunnite, travertine coping, hot tub etc etc. A huge expense was the travertine pavers/labor for the pool deck. That was almost as much as the pool! ALso a heater is a must. You will be able to extend the months you use the pool and the kids are much more likely to get in and enjoy it if it's warm. Be sure to automate everything to your phone. You don't want to have to get out after you've gone to bed to turn down the hottub temperture etc. Enjoy it!!
We put in a gunite salt water pool/hot tub combo about 4 years ago, in Houston, TX. I don't remember the exact dimensions but overall its ~16,000 gallons, 6ft deep at the deep end, a 10-person hot tub, 4 scuppers, travertine tile/coping, "upgraded" color of pebble finish and the standard pool-concrete surrounding (stained a pretty color!). We also included landscaping in our budget since that was a huge part of the overall ascetic for us. Total it was about $90k.
Here in TX the kids will swim without the heater on even as late as December (too cold for me, but the kids love it!). We made a choice as a family to put in a pool now while they are young so we can really get some good mileage out of it and we use it so, so much!
We live in Central FL. We put in a gunite pool 4 years ago. The dimensions are 16x24. Our depth is 7'. We have a sun ledge and built-in seating in the deep end, salt water, pebble finish, pavers surrounding, landscaping, etc, etc. I think ours was $30k total.
San Diego resident here, and we have a pool that's original to our 1978 custom ranch home. We've done extensive renovations inside (just have my girls' bathroom left to do, and this is the year!). We re-surfaced our pool two years ago, and that was $20k. It was an additional $8k to do the coping (the tile/pieces that line the outer edge of the pool), and we skipped that. And filling the pool in summer months (when the water evaporates more quickly) definitely adds to our water bill. But for those 6 months/year when my girls are swimming, I love it. I grew up with a pool, and when we moved here five years ago, having a pool was one of my non-negotiables too. Pools are wonderful!
PS: I think it's cool you shared the profit figure from the sale of your last home, and that figure is SWEET! (PS: I'm guessing some of it also went to taxes?)
$700k profit on your last house! Wow! Congrats!
Hey Julia!
We live in Virginia (hey neighbor!) and also started putting in a gunite pool last fall ($82,000). Ours is roughly the same size as yours (36 x 18), with a tanning ledge. We chose to upgrade the gunite finish ($3,000), add a heater ($7,000), and buy our own travertine pavers & coping from a wholesaler ($11,000). We also have to have a fence ($4,500) by code, so we bought that, too. We also need to buy a cover ($4,000) and vacuum. All in all, ours will be about $100,000. We are so excited to have this for the upcoming summer so that our kids can have endless fun in the sun :)