Pool types

Gunite vs fiberglass vs vinyl: what each inground pool costs and how long it lasts

HomeAdvisor's 2026 guide puts vinyl at $40,000 to $75,000, fiberglass at $55,000 to $100,000 and concrete (gunite or shotcrete) at $65,000 to $120,000. Vinyl has a liner to replace, fiberglass limits the shape, and concrete takes longest to build and bends to any design. These are planning ranges, not quotes.

See your yard with a pool Inground pool cost, line by line

Last updated October 11, 2026

The table

Vinyl, fiberglass and concrete side by side

One row per question, one column per type, and each cell names the guide that printed it. Where two guides print different numbers, both are shown, because the honest answer is a range.

Vinyl, fiberglass and concrete inground pools compared
What you compare	Vinyl liner	Fiberglass	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)
Installed price (HomeAdvisor, 2026)	Vinyl liner$40,000 to $75,000	Fiberglass$55,000 to $100,000	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)$65,000 to $120,000
Per square foot (This Old House, 2025)	Vinyl liner$130 to $240 a square foot	Fiberglass$175 to $330 a square foot	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)$200 to $350 a square foot
Build time	Vinyl liner4 to 8 weeks (HomeAdvisor), 2 to 3 weeks (HomeGuide)	Fiberglass2 to 4 weeks (HomeAdvisor)	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)about three to six months (HomeAdvisor), 6 to 8 weeks (HomeGuide), 3 to 12 weeks (Fixr)
What wears out	Vinyl linerThe liner: about 10 years (HomeAdvisor), 6 to 12 years (HomeGuide), 7 to 8 years (This Old House).	FiberglassLasts 25 years or more (HomeAdvisor). HomeGuide says the gel coat may need refinishing about every 10 years.	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)Plaster: 5 to 10 years (HomeAdvisor resurfacing page), 10 to 15 years (its inground page). Pebble lasts 15 to 20 years (Shasta; its Arizona cost page says 15 to 18 years). Fixr says resurface every 10 to 15 years.
Upkeep over time (This Old House)	Vinyl liner$11,000 to $17,000 over 10 years.	Fiberglass$5,000 to $15,000 in long-term upkeep. The page does not give a period.	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)$27,000 to $40,000 over 10 years, with a professional acid wash every 3 to 5 years.
Shapes allowed	Vinyl linerAny shape a builder can frame, with a liner over it.	FiberglassOnly the shapes and sizes a maker has molds for.	Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)Poured to your drawing, so any shape and depth.

A planning range from published sources, not a quote. This page uses concrete, gunite and shotcrete for the same family: a pool built on site from concrete. The guides group them, so ask any builder which method the quote means and what the price includes.

Sources: HomeAdvisor, in-ground pool cost, HomeAdvisor, pool resurfacing, HomeGuide, inground pool cost, This Old House, inground pool cost, Fixr, gunite and concrete pool, Shasta Pools, plaster versus pebble, Blue Haven Pools, how long a gunite pool takes.

Price: vinyl is lowest, fiberglass sits in the middle, concrete is highest

On HomeAdvisor's numbers the three bands overlap: the top of the vinyl band, $75,000, is above the bottom of the fiberglass band, $55,000. The type matters less than the size, the site and what the quote counts. HomeGuide prints $35,000 to $80,000 for vinyl, $45,000 to $100,000 for fiberglass and $50,000 to $120,000 for concrete, and This Old House prints per square foot rates in the same order.

One builder shows the spread for a single size. Thursday Pools estimates a 16 by 32 foot pool at $61,500 in vinyl, $64,000 in fiberglass and $89,600 in gunite. Thursday makes fiberglass pools, and its three numbers come from three different rate sources, so read them as a spread, not a verdict.

For the lines a full quote carries, see inground pool cost, line by line. For what your state does to the total, see the Florida, Texas, Arizona and California pages.

Sources: HomeAdvisor, in-ground pool cost, HomeGuide, inground pool cost, This Old House, inground pool cost, Thursday Pools, 16x32 inground pool cost

Build time: fiberglass and vinyl are quickest, concrete takes longest

HomeAdvisor puts fiberglass at 2 to 4 weeks, vinyl at 4 to 8 weeks and concrete at about three to six months. HomeGuide prints shorter times for vinyl (2 to 3 weeks) and concrete (6 to 8 weeks), and Fixr prints 3 to 12 weeks for concrete, which needs time to cure.

Those times start when digging starts. Permits, design and a builder's waiting list come before it, and weather comes during it, so ask for a schedule in writing.

Sources: HomeAdvisor, in-ground pool cost, HomeGuide, inground pool cost, Fixr, gunite and concrete pool

Surface life and upkeep: each type has one part you will pay to redo

Vinyl has a liner, and This Old House says it can turn brittle in the sun; it prints a relining every 7 to 8 years, where HomeAdvisor says about 10 years and HomeGuide 6 to 12 years. Concrete has a plaster or pebble surface that gets redone: HomeAdvisor prints 5 to 10 years on its resurfacing page and 10 to 15 years on its inground page, and Fixr prints 10 to 15 years. Fiberglass has a gel coat, and HomeAdvisor expects the shell to last 25 years or more.

Upkeep follows the same order. This Old House prints $11,000 to $17,000 over 10 years for vinyl and $27,000 to $40,000 for concrete, which it says is porous and needs regular brushing and special water chemistry. For fiberglass it prints $5,000 to $15,000 without a period. Those are one guide's numbers, so use the order and not the dollars.

For the yearly bill of running any pool, see what a pool costs to run.

Sources: HomeAdvisor, in-ground pool cost, HomeGuide, inground pool cost, This Old House, inground pool cost

Shapes: concrete can be drawn, fiberglass is chosen from a catalog, vinyl sits between

A concrete pool is built to your drawing, so any shape and depth is possible. A fiberglass pool comes from a factory mold, so you choose from the shapes and sizes a maker offers. A vinyl pool is framed on site, so any shape a builder can frame works, with a liner over it.

To see a shape in your own yard before you pick a type, use the free pool visualizer, and check a size against your lot with Will it fit.

Sources: HomeAdvisor, in-ground pool cost, This Old House, inground pool cost

Climate: sun is hard on vinyl liners, and every outdoor pool needs winter care in the cold

Shasta Pools, an Arizona builder, says concrete and fiberglass resist the state's heat and sun and that vinyl liners are more likely to fade and wear, and that vinyl is rarely built there. Its Arizona bands are $40,000 to $120,000 for concrete, $55,000 to $110,000 for fiberglass and $30,000 to $60,000 for vinyl, which shows how far one state sits from the national numbers.

Fixr notes that a pool outside generally needs winterizing in the colder months, whatever the type. That means balancing chemicals, adding algaecide and shock, and covering it. We found no source that ranks the three types by cold-weather performance, so ask local builders what they see in your ground and winters.

State by state, the Florida, Texas, Arizona and California pages add the soil, season and licensing notes that matter for each.

Sources: Shasta Pools, Arizona costs, Fixr, gunite and concrete pool

Our reading

Who should pick what

This is our reading of the sources on this page, not a builder's advice. Your lot, your soil and your town's rules decide more than the type does, so ask two or three local builders to price the same size in the same type.

Vinyl liner

Pick it if

The up-front price is the hard limit and you accept paying for a new liner every several years.

Think twice if

Your yard gets strong sun all day, or you want a surface that never needs replacing.

Fiberglass

Pick it if

You want the shortest build, lower upkeep and a surface with no plaster, and a catalog shape suits your yard.

Think twice if

You want a custom shape or depth.

Concrete (gunite or shotcrete)

Pick it if

You want a custom shape or depth, and you have the time and budget for a longer build and more upkeep.

Think twice if

You want the lowest price or the fastest start, or you do not want to resurface it every decade or so.

Questions people ask

Which is cheapest, gunite, fiberglass or vinyl?

Vinyl, on every guide we read: HomeAdvisor prints $40,000 to $75,000 against $55,000 to $100,000 for fiberglass and $65,000 to $120,000 for concrete. The bands overlap, and a vinyl pool needs a new liner later, so compare the cost over the years and not only the first quote.

How much does a gunite pool cost?

HomeAdvisor prints $65,000 to $120,000 for a concrete pool, HomeGuide $50,000 to $120,000 and This Old House $200 to $350 a square foot. These are planning ranges, not quotes. See where the sources disagree.

How much does a fiberglass pool cost?

HomeAdvisor prints $55,000 to $100,000, HomeGuide $45,000 to $100,000 and This Old House $175 to $330 a square foot. The shell is made in a factory, so the shape and size come from a maker's catalog. A planning range, not a quote.

How long does each type take to build?

HomeAdvisor puts fiberglass at 2 to 4 weeks, vinyl at 4 to 8 weeks and concrete at about three to six months. HomeGuide and Fixr print shorter concrete times, so ask for a written schedule. Permits come before any of it.

Which type lasts longest?

Fiberglass shells and concrete shells last the longest, with fiberglass at 25 years or more on HomeAdvisor and concrete shells at 30 years or more on Fixr and 50 to 100 years on HomeAdvisor. Each has a surface to redo: a vinyl liner, a concrete plaster or pebble finish, or a fiberglass gel coat.

Sources and date checked

Links checked October 11, 2026. If one has moved or no longer says this, tell us (see our editorial policy) and we will fix it.

A planning range from published sources, not a quote. Pictures on this page are AI concept images from our pool ideas, not photos of built pools. HomeGuide's live page blocks automated checks, so its figures were read on the Internet Archive copy. See how we write and check pages in our editorial policy.