How Much Does a Pool Cost?

How much a pool costs is a question I often see on forums and one I wanted to know myself when I first started researching pools. I realise now it is hard for any pool business to give exact figures on the spot. This is because every pool location is different and every pool is different. It's like building a house - where you build, how big your block is, what soil conditions you have, what house design you choose, whether you do the driveway later - all these things contribute to the final cost of your house. 

Below is a breakdown of the cost of our pool. It came to $39,010 which does not include any landscaping, coping (tiling around the edge of the pool on the bondbeam) or permanent pool fence. It also doesn't include any accessories like pool blanket or automatic pool cleaner. 

The cost of the pool can be broken into five sections: 

Section 1: Approvals 

Home owners warranty insurance - $600

Building permits (CDC) including building site plan - $1,600

TOTAL: $2,200

Section 2: Installation

Flat fee for installation of filter, pump, lights, heating provision and spa jets as well as filling pool with water

TOTAL: $5,000

Section 3: Excavation

Bobcat - $800

Soil removal - $2,300

Excavator - $1,100

TOTAL: $4,200

Section 4: Concrete Bond Beam

Flat fee for installation of bond beam

TOTAL: $1,550

Section 5: Supply Agreement

Fibreglass pool shell with crystal granite colour finish, 1 hp pump, salt chlorinator, cartridge filter, heat provision, manual cleaning kit and 1 LED light - $20,000

Crane hire - $770

Temporary fence hire - $450

9kw electric heat pump - $2,990

3 speed pump - $550 

Extra LED light - $450

4 spa jets - $850

TOTAL: $26,060

We wanted to have the pool heated and looked at solar heating, gas heating and electric heating. All the pool builders we spoke to leaned us towards electric heating as the best way to go. The three speed pump will also help save on power bills. 

There are lots of extras you can get but the extras we settled on were the spa jets and one more LED light. The lights are multicoloured ones which add to the ambience during the evening.