What does a sauna cost? Purchase and running costs by type

What a sauna costs depends mostly on the type. An infrared cabin, a fixed outdoor sauna, a barrel sauna and a sauna tent sit in completely different price ranges, and what you pay per session afterwards differs a lot too. Here are the numbers side by side.

What does a sauna cost to buy?

• Indoor infrared cabin: roughly €1,500 to €3,000
• Barrel sauna: from about €2,300 for a compact model, wood-fired models for 2 to 4 people usually from €4,900
• Fixed outdoor sauna or sauna cabin: typically €5,000 to €12,000
• Built-in sauna at home: depends heavily on the renovation, often in the same range as a fixed outdoor sauna
• Wood-fired sauna tent: a complete MOOSSE sauna tent costs €1,349 to €1,599

What comes on top?

With a fixed sauna the purchase price is rarely the final amount. For an outdoor or barrel sauna, also budget for:

• A level, load-bearing base such as paving, strips or a concrete slab: €500 to €1,500
• Electricity to the garden for an electric heater, often three-phase: €400 to €1,200
• Delivery and placement, since a barrel sauna easily weighs 700 to 1,000 kilos
• Wood maintenance: €100 to €300 a year

A sauna tent needs no foundation and no electricity. You set it up yourself in five minutes.

What does a sauna cost in electricity?

A 6 kW electric sauna heater uses roughly 8 to 10 kWh for a session of an hour and a half, including heating up. At around €0.30 per kWh, that is €2.50 to €3 per session. An infrared cabin is more economical: roughly €0.40 to €0.70 per session.

A wood-fired sauna uses no electricity. You only pay for the wood, roughly €1.50 to €2.50 per session for a sauna tent.

What does a garden sauna cost in total?

Add up purchase, base, electricity and placement, and a fixed outdoor sauna easily comes to €6,000 or more in practice. A compact barrel sauna can work out cheaper, but a base and delivery come on top there too. A sauna tent costs €1,349 to €1,599, with no building costs on top.

The difference is in what you get back. A fixed sauna is always ready. A sauna tent goes up when you use it, and it comes with you when you travel.

MOOSSE packages and prices

• Essentials: €1,349
• Wellness+: €1,449
• Complete: €1,599

Every package includes the tent, a stainless steel (RVS 430) wood-fired heater and a chimney with spark arrestor. Setting up takes five minutes, and after about thirty minutes of firing it reaches up to 100°C inside.

Prices for other sauna types are indicative and based on typical prices in the Netherlands. They vary by supplier, garden and energy contract.