Infrared sauna vs dry sauna is a comparison between two products that share a category name and almost nothing else. One heats the air and the room heats you. The other radiates onto your body and leaves the air cool. Everything downstream, including the circuit, the install and the price, follows from that.
How the heat reaches you
A dry traditional cabin heats air and timber with a stove, and you sit in hot air. An infrared cabin runs panels that radiate onto your skin directly, so you sweat at an air temperature that would feel merely warm. People who find a hot room hard to breathe in usually prefer infrared; people who want the enveloping heat usually do not.
Power and installation
This is the practical difference. Most one and two seat infrared cabins run on an ordinary household circuit and need no site work, which is why they are the common indoor purchase. A traditional heater of any size usually needs a dedicated higher current circuit and an electrician, and that cost sits on top of the cabin.
No steam, ever
You cannot pour water on an infrared panel, so there is no loyly and no humidity control. If the burst of steam off hot stones is what you want from a sauna, infrared will not give it to you at any price, and that is the single most common disappointment among buyers who chose on convenience alone.
Cost and heat-up
Infrared is cheaper to buy at small sizes, quicker to reach working state and cheaper per session. A traditional cabin costs more to buy, more to install and more to run, and lasts longer with good timber. Choose infrared for convenience in a house; choose traditional if you want steam and are building outdoors anyway.
Questions people ask about infrared sauna vs dry sauna
Is an infrared sauna a dry sauna?
It is dry, but it is a different machine. A dry sauna heats the air with a stove; infrared radiates onto you and leaves the air cool.
Which is cheaper to run?
Infrared, clearly, at comparable sizes. It draws less, heats faster and there is no air mass to bring up to temperature.
Can you get steam in an infrared cabin?
No. There are no stones and you must never pour water on a panel. If steam matters to you, buy traditional.