Deck vs Patio Calculator
Cost and ROI comparison for outdoor living spaces.
About this calculator
This calculator runs two independent cost models side by side — one for a deck, one for a patio — over the same square footage, then compares them on total cost, ongoing maintenance, lifespan, and resale value. The deck side prices decking material per square foot (from $8/SF pressure-treated to $30/SF tropical hardwood), then adds a substructure cost (joists, posts, beams) that scales with deck height rather than material, since a deck 8+ feet off the ground needs meaningfully more structural framing than one at ground level. Footings are counted by dividing the deck area by 64 (an 8x8-foot bay) and rounding up, then priced per footing by height tier. Railing cost (only applied if you toggle it on) is estimated from a perimeter approximation — assuming three open sides since one side attaches to the house — at a per-linear-foot rate matched to your decking material tier. The patio side is simpler: material cost per square foot, a flat site-prep cost for grading and gravel base, and an edge-restraint/border cost based on the same perimeter approximation.
Labor is 55% of materials for decks versus 45% for patios, reflecting the greater complexity of elevated framing work. Annual maintenance is modeled per material — composite decking is cheapest to maintain ($0.15/SF/yr) while wood needs regular staining/sealing — and multiplied by your comparison window to get total maintenance cost, which is added to installation cost for a full cost-of-ownership figure. Resale value uses fixed recoup percentages by material (roughly 60-68% for decks, 48-60% for patios) applied to installation cost alone, not total ownership cost. The perimeter estimates assume a roughly square footprint, so an unusually long, narrow space will have more actual edge/railing length than modeled.
Deck total cost ($)
$21,898.00
Patio total cost ($)
$9,939.00
Inputs
Comparison
Deck cost/SF ($)
$72.99
Deck cost per square foot installed.
Patio cost/SF ($)
$33.13
Patio cost per square foot installed.
Deck annual maintenance ($)
$45.00
Yearly deck maintenance cost (staining, sealing, washing).
Patio annual maintenance ($)
$60.00
Yearly patio maintenance cost (sealing, weed control).
Deck total ownership ($)
$22,573.00
Deck cost + maintenance over comparison period.
Patio total ownership ($)
$10,839.00
Patio cost + maintenance over comparison period.
Deck resale value ($)
$14,891.00
Estimated value added at resale.
Patio resale value ($)
$5,963.00
Estimated value added at resale.
Deck lifespan (years)
30
Expected lifespan of deck material.
Patio lifespan (years)
30
Expected lifespan of patio material.
Savings choosing patio ($)
$11,735.00
Total ownership savings if choosing patio over deck (positive = patio cheaper).
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter your desired outdoor area in square feet.
- Select deck material (pressure-treated wood, composite, PVC, or hardwood) and deck height above grade.
- Select patio material (concrete, stamped concrete, pavers, or flagstone) for comparison.
- Toggle deck railing inclusion to add railing costs to the deck estimate.
- Review and compare total cost, cost per square foot, and long-term maintenance estimates for each option.
How the result changes with Outdoor area sq ft
| Outdoor area sq ft | Deck total cost ($) | Patio total cost ($) |
|---|---|---|
| 150 | $12,600.00 | $5,136.00 |
| 225 | $17,302.00 | $7,547.00 |
| 450 | $31,219.00 | $14,687.00 |
| 750 | $48,846.00 | $24,108.00 |
What each input means
- Outdoor area sq ft
- Square footage of the outdoor living space.
- Deck material (0-3)
- 0 = Pressure-treated ($8/SF), 1 = Cedar ($14/SF), 2 = Composite ($22/SF), 3 = Tropical hardwood ($30/SF).
- Patio material (0-3)
- 0 = Poured concrete ($8/SF), 1 = Stamped concrete ($14/SF), 2 = Pavers ($18/SF), 3 = Flagstone ($25/SF).
- Deck height (0-3)
- 0 = Ground level, 1 = Low (2-4ft), 2 = Elevated (4-8ft), 3 = High (8ft+).
- Deck railing (0/1)
- 1 = Include railing (required by code if deck > 30 inches high).
- Deck stairs (0/1)
- 1 = Include stairs from deck to ground.
- Years to compare
- Number of years for total cost of ownership comparison.
- Home value ($)
- Current home value for ROI context.
What each result means
- Deck total cost ($)
- Total installed cost of the deck.
- Patio total cost ($)
- Total installed cost of the patio.
- Deck cost/SF ($)
- Deck cost per square foot installed.
- Patio cost/SF ($)
- Patio cost per square foot installed.
- Deck annual maintenance ($)
- Yearly deck maintenance cost (staining, sealing, washing).
- Patio annual maintenance ($)
- Yearly patio maintenance cost (sealing, weed control).
- Deck total ownership ($)
- Deck cost + maintenance over comparison period.
- Patio total ownership ($)
- Patio cost + maintenance over comparison period.
- Deck resale value ($)
- Estimated value added at resale.
- Deck lifespan (years)
- Expected lifespan of deck material.
- Patio lifespan (years)
- Expected lifespan of patio material.
- Savings choosing patio ($)
- Total ownership savings if choosing patio over deck (positive = patio cheaper).
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersOutdoor area sq ft = 300, Deck material (0-3) = 2, Patio material (0-3) = 2, Deck height (0-3) = 1 = 8 input(s) provided
- Calculate Deck total costDeck total cost = deckMaterialTotal + deckLaborCost21898 = $21,898
- Calculate Patio total costPatio total cost = patioMaterialTotal + patioLaborCost9939 = $9,939
- Calculate Deck cost/SFDeck cost/SF = round((deckTotalCost / max(172.99 = $72.99
- Calculate Patio cost/SFPatio cost/SF = round((patioTotalCost / max(133.13 = $33.13
Engine last updated . Checked against 2 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the resale value calculation use installation cost instead of total cost of ownership?
deckValueAdded and patioValueAdded are computed by applying the recoup percentage (60-68% for decks, 48-60% for patios, varying by material) to deckTotalCost/patioTotalCost — the installed cost — not to deckTotalOwnership/patioTotalOwnership, which also includes years of accumulated maintenance. That's intentional: resale value at a home sale reflects what a buyer sees installed, not the cumulative maintenance spend behind it, but it does mean a high-maintenance material's ongoing costs don't reduce its resale credit in this model.
How are deck footings counted, and why does that matter for cost?
The calculator divides the deck's square footage by 64 (treating an 8x8-foot area as one structural bay) and rounds up to get a footing count, then multiplies by a per-footing cost that scales with deck height ($150 at ground level up to $500 for a high deck). Because it rounds up, small area increases can occasionally push you into needing one additional footing, causing a small jump in substructure cost rather than a smooth linear increase.
Why is deck labor priced at a higher rate (55%) than patio labor (45%)?
Decks require elevated framing — joists, beams, posts, and footings assembled to code — which is more labor-intensive per dollar of material than patio work, where a hardscape sits directly on a prepared base. The calculator reflects that by applying 55% of materials as labor for decks versus 45% for patios, so two projects with identical material costs will still show different total costs once labor is added.
Does the perimeter estimate for railing and patio borders account for an L-shaped or irregular space?
No — both the deck railing length and the patio border/edge-restraint length are derived from the same square-footprint approximation (perimeter ≈ √(area) × 3.5 for a three-sided deck, or × 4 for a patio), so an L-shaped, wraparound, or otherwise non-square space will have more actual edge length than the calculator assumes, understating railing and border costs for irregular layouts.
Does the Home Value input affect the cost or resale numbers?
No — Home Value is collected but isn't currently used anywhere in the calculation. Deck and patio resale value are estimated from fixed recoup percentages applied to installation cost, not from a percentage of your home's value.
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