A patio creates a beautiful and functional space for you and your family and friends to enjoy. This could be during a quiet morning retreat with your eggs, bacon, and French press coffee or during a lively grilled steak and game night with friends on a weekend evening.
As you’re dreaming of your perfect patio installation in Kansas City, you might be wondering what kind of budget you need to plan to get the space you want. We understand that. It’s easy to think of all of the options available when cost isn’t an issue. But let’s face it: price matters. And knowing what factors influence patio choices can help you better decide whether you want a larger patio for all of your entertaining needs or a smaller one with an intricate and unique design pattern that’s reminiscent of your European vacation.
Let’s explore the different costs involved with patio installations.
Factors That Influence the Cost to Install a Patio
There are a lot of variables to consider when it comes to patio installation costs — from the slope of your yard to drainage issues to property access challenges.
The cost can even vary based on the type of patio material you choose.
Let’s dive a bit deeper into these pricing differences and what can push them up or down in any category.
1. Patio Type
Patio costs are certainly impacted by the type of material you choose. And this is typically done on a per square foot basis, so your size will obviously change your price, too.
In our comprehensive budgeting guide, we detail square foot pricing for 5 different types of patio materials:
- Concrete patio – $6 to $16 per square foot
- Colored or stamped concrete patio – $15 to $19 per square foot
- Paver patio on aggregate – $30 to $35 per square foot
- Premium paver patio – $35 to $48 per square foot
- Natural stone patio – $38 to $45 per square foot
For most of these types, choosing a simple design and simple shapes fall to the lower end of those ranges, while more complex designs, colors, and patterns will increase costs.
There are also fun ways to customize your patio by adding more colors or contrasting details, incorporating borders, using larger slabs, etc.
Today, you also have to factor in shipping and supply chain challenges, which can alter prices between 2% and 30%, depending on the material. Because product prices and availability are so volatile currently, you should know that many companies are keeping quoted estimates active for approximately 15 days, so customers can make their patio building decisions.
2. Pre-existing Conditions in Your Yard
Your yard can dictate some cost differences when it comes to building a landscape element like a patio.
For instance, maybe you have established tree roots that you need to work around when putting in the patio. Or possibly you have an expensive irrigation system that needs saved or retrofitted to ensure the patio can be put into place.
Obstacles like this add to the construction elements of the entire installation, and that’s why they may increase patio installation costs.
3. Unusual or Complicated Terrain
No yard is perfectly flat and fit for a seamless patio installation. Some yards have slopes and varied terrain.
These types of yards may require additional work or structures, such as retaining walls, to ensure the patio is supported and installed correctly. Alternatively, to get a level, stable patio on an area with challenging terrain might require significant excavation.
The ultimate goal is to build a long-lasting, enjoyable, and beautiful patio, so patio costs may rise if your terrain is sloped to ensure a solid structure.
4. Poor Machinery Access
The installation of a patio is a detailed process that requires building a proper base for a long-lasting, level, stable, and enjoyable space.
If your property has logistics challenges that prevent us from easily getting equipment and materials in to create this space, then your patio installation costs could rise. The reason this happens is because we may be using extra physical labor to move materials into your site versus being able to use a truck or trailer, for example.
5. Drainage Issues
Another condition on your property that can add to patio installation costs is the presence of a natural spring or other drainage-related issues.
People with natural springs on their property require different mitigation techniques and a different patio base to avoid potential sagging, separation, settling, or premature breakdown of the jointing compound.
You may not even know you have one of these on your property, but your landscape professional should be able to alert you to this fact while they are inspecting your yard and pricing your patio. Tactics for dealing with a natural spring include installing drainage and opening the patio’s cell structure or possibly choosing a different patio location, depending on what your property allows.
Understanding All of the Costs Involved With Building a Solid Patio
You want a patio that’s going to hold up your favorite table and chairs and urns overflowing with gorgeous flowers. You don’t want a patio that you’ll be tripping over within a year because it’s falling apart from shoddy construction.
The main reasons patios fail are weak foundations that cause buckling and rippling or weak edges that cause separation.
Better understanding the installation process that the landscape company you hire uses to install your patio can help you become more comfortable with how the patio will turn out.
There are two main ways to install a patio base:
- Conventional – The International Concrete Paving Institute certifies a standard for patio installation that includes a 4-inch compacted base with an edge.
- European Hybrid – This method is the reason stone roads built hundreds of years ago still look good and are intact. These patios have a 6-inch base with tross betting and concrete, as well as double reinforced edges.
We like to use the European hybrid method on Kansas City’s clay soils. Your specific soil impacts your patio installation costs quite a bit, in fact, and we find this method works great on our soils. There are more than 2,000 soil types across the country, and each type requires a different base to create a stable patio. Our significantly high clay content means our patios can shrink and swell more, particularly during freezes and thaws. This means patios built on this soil will cost more than patios built on sandier soils.
This is also a reason why you should be careful to not put too much stock into the random patio building price ranges you find on general home improvement websites since they don’t take these soil differences into account in their pricing.
The Patio of Your Dreams is Waiting
Hopefully this helps give you a better idea of patio installation costs involved in the style, type, and design you want to add to your backyard.
You want a space that’s going to work best for you and fit your specific needs. The right landscape design professional will be able to guide you to make a decision you’re happy with, as well as educate you on materials, space considerations, and your site’s specific challenges — all relevant to how you’re planning on using your yard.
If you want to better understand your patio options, we can help. High Prairie Landscape pros can show you what different patio materials look like and share some design options and project photos with you, so you can get a better understanding of what will work best to meet your needs.
Ready to see how High Prairie Outdoors can install the patio you’re hoping for in your Kansas City landscape? We’d love to share our design and installation expertise with you and deliver an outdoor space that matches your vision. Get started today with a free consultation. Together, we can create a solution your neighbors will envy.