Outdoor & home saunas

Plan the sauna before you buy it

Barrel, cabin or cube — the heater, the breaker and the foundation decide what a backyard sauna really costs. Work them out first, with every figure traced to a manufacturer manual or a public cost guide.

Paper-cut style illustration of a barrel sauna on a concrete pad with its front cut away to show benches and an electric heater, and a power line running underground from the house — Size, heater, circuit and foundation: the four things that set what a backyard sauna really costs.

Illustrations on this page are AI-generated to help you picture the situation. They are not photos of real homes, jobs or people.

Open the Sauna Planner

Heater size

Room volume adjusted for solid-wood walls and glass, matched to a 240 V heater range from a published spec table.

Circuit & breaker

Amps, breaker and wire gauge that the heater maker lists — a starting point for the conversation with your electrician.

Running & total cost

Monthly electricity at the current U.S. average rate, plus pad and circuit costs on top of the kit price you were quoted.

From the library

2-Person Outdoor Saunas: Sizes, Heaters, Circuits and Prices ComparedRoundup
Eight real 2-person outdoor saunas compared on interior size, bench size, heater kW, breaker amps and listed price, from makers' own pages (Nov 2026).
Barrel vs Cabin Sauna: Volume, Heater Size, Base and Price ComparedComparison
Barrel and cabin saunas compared with makers' spec sheets at the same seat count: air volume, heater kW, amps, foundation, delivery and listed price.
Best Outdoor Saunas: How to Compare Models on Their Spec SheetsOverview
Eight real outdoor saunas from six companies, compared on their own listings: interior size, heater kW and amps, wood, warranty, delivery and price (Nov 2026).
DIY Sauna vs Kit: Cost, Time and What to Hire OutDecision
Build a sauna from scratch, line your own shell with a material kit, or assemble a prefab: costs, hours, skills, and the work that goes to a licensed pro.
Home Sauna Cost: Indoor, Outdoor, Traditional and Infrared (2026)Cost
What a home sauna costs to buy, install and run in the U.S., indoors or outdoors, traditional or infrared, from two cost guides side by side.
How Hot Should a Sauna Be? Temperatures from Heater Makers and the Code LimitExplainer
Traditional sauna temperatures from heater manuals (about 150–185°F), the 194°F code limit, infrared settings, humidity, and why a sauna may not get hot.
Infrared vs Traditional Sauna: Heat, Power, Warm-Up and Cost ComparedComparison
How infrared and traditional saunas differ as equipment: how they heat, room temperature, humidity, warm-up time, volts and amps, price and outdoor use.
Outdoor Barrel Sauna Buying Guide: Size, Wood, Heater, Base and UpkeepGuide
What to check before buying an outdoor barrel sauna: seats and inside size, wood and stave thickness, heater kW and amps, base, assembly and band upkeep.
Outdoor Sauna Cost: Kit, Foundation, Electrical (2026)Cost
What an outdoor sauna costs in the U.S. once the kit, base, 240V circuit, delivery and assembly are added up, with each number from a named source.
Outdoor Sauna Kits: What's Included and What You Still NeedGuide
What comes in an outdoor sauna kit box (staves, benches, heater, stones) and what you still buy or hire: base, electrician, delivery, assembly, extras.
Sauna Dimensions Guide: Ceiling Height, Benches, Room Size and Heater kWReference
Standard sauna dimensions from heater makers and the North American Sauna Society: ceiling height, bench height and depth, room size per person, doors.
Sauna Electrical Requirements: 240V Circuit, Amps, Breaker and Wire by HeaterGuide
What a sauna heater needs from your panel: 240V, amps by heater kW, and the breaker and wire sizes makers list, side by side. Wiring is an electrician's job.
Sauna Foundation Options: Concrete Pad, Gravel, Pavers or DeckGuide
What an outdoor sauna needs underneath it, per the makers' manuals, and what concrete, gravel, pavers and piers cost per square foot. Call 811 before you dig.
Sauna Stones: Which Types to Use and How Many Pounds Your Heater NeedsGear
Which sauna stones to use, how many pounds each heater takes (from Harvia and HUUM specs), how to load them and when to replace them.
Sauna Ventilation: Where the Intake and Exhaust Go, Vent Sizes and Air ChangesGuide
How sauna ventilation works, per heater manuals: fresh air in low near the heater, out on the opposite wall, 5–6 air changes an hour, and what barrels do.
Wood-Burning vs Electric Sauna: Heat-Up, Running Cost, Chimney vs CircuitComparison
Wood-burning and electric sauna heaters compared: heat-up, firewood vs electricity cost, chimney vs 240V circuit, clearances, permits and upkeep.

How we work. We do not sell saunas and we have not lab-tested any. We read manuals, spec sheets and public price data, show the source next to every number, and say plainly when something is our arithmetic rather than a published figure.

Safety and permits

A sauna heater needs its own circuit sized to the maker's manual — have a licensed electrician wire it and pull the permit. Wood-burning stoves need the clearances and chimney in the stove's manual and local code approval. Before digging for a foundation, call 811. This site doesn't give medical advice: if you're pregnant or have a health condition, ask your doctor before using a sauna.