Home sauna buying, indoors and out

Starting prices, checked

How to choose

1. Decide indoor or outdoor. Indoor saves the trip outside and needs a waterproofed, ventilated space; outdoor keeps the heat and humidity out of the house but needs a base and a delivery path. The location decides most of the rest.
2. Match the type to the space. An infrared cabin fits a spare room and often a normal outlet; a traditional indoor sauna needs a suitable room and usually 240-volt power; an outdoor sauna needs ground and access.
3. Cost the whole install. The sauna is one line. Power, ventilation, the base or the room prep, and delivery of a heavy item are the others, and together they often rival the sauna's own price.
4. Size for real use. A one or two person sauna is cheaper to buy, run and heat, and most home buyers use theirs alone or in pairs. Buy for the common case, not the occasional gathering.

Indoor versus outdoor at home

An indoor home sauna is more convenient and protects you from the weather, but it needs a room that can take heat and humidity, proper ventilation, and often a 240-volt circuit, and any moisture escaping into the house is a real problem to avoid. An outdoor home sauna keeps all of that outside, which is why it is the more popular choice in the United States, at the cost of a base, a delivery path and the walk out to it. Neither is cheaper across the board once the install is counted; they simply move the cost to different places.

The three ways to have one

Most home saunas are one of three things: a plug-in infrared cabin that fits a spare room, a traditional electric or wood sauna as an outdoor structure or a built-in room, or a barrel in the yard. Infrared is the lowest-friction and often the cheapest to install indoors; a traditional room gives the highest-heat, steam-capable experience; a barrel is the affordable outdoor default. Deciding which experience you actually want narrows a bewildering market to a short list quickly.

What the install adds

Across every type the common surprise is that the sauna's sticker is not the project's cost. A traditional sauna usually needs a dedicated 240-volt circuit and an electrician; an indoor installation needs ventilation and moisture control; an outdoor one needs a level, drained base and a way to move a heavy crate to the site. Budget those before choosing the model, because they can cost as much as stepping up a tier on the sauna itself.

Common questions

What is the cheapest way to have a sauna at home?

A small plug-in infrared cabin is usually the lowest total cost, because it often runs on a normal outlet and needs no base or flue. A spruce barrel is the cheapest traditional outdoor option once you have somewhere level to put it.

Does a home sauna need special wiring?

A traditional electric sauna almost always needs a dedicated 240-volt circuit and an electrician. Many small infrared cabins run on an ordinary 120-volt outlet, which is a large part of their appeal indoors.

Indoor or outdoor sauna for a home?

Indoor is more convenient but needs a heat-and-humidity-tolerant, ventilated room; outdoor keeps the heat and moisture out of the house but needs a base and delivery access. Outdoor is the more common US choice for exactly that reason.

By type

• Compare Outdoor sauna on printed prices
• Compare Infrared sauna on printed prices
• Compare Barrel sauna on printed prices
• Compare Cold plunge tub on printed prices