Foundation pier types and costs: slab, push and helical piers
Live installed costs for concrete, steel push and helical piers on the same foundation repair, how each works, and which soil and house suits which.
Stabilizing a settling foundation with eight helical piers typically costs $20,000, including a structural engineer's report and a permit allowance. The same repair with steel push piers costs about $10,500, and with concrete (slab) piers about $7,400. The cheapest method is not always the right one: the engineer's report, your soil and the weight of your house decide which pier will actually hold.
Every pier type, same repair
The table prices one repair, eight piers along the affected wall, with each method. Everything else stays the same: a structural engineer's inspection and written report, excavation at each pier, installing and loading the piers, attaching them to the footing, backfilling, and an allowance for the permit and follow-up monitoring. Only the pier changes. We build the figures from the hours the work takes, multiplied by local rates, plus materials and equipment, and check them against market prices and real quotes. They are before sales tax.
| Material | Typical | Usual range | Lifespan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concrete / slab piers | $7,400 | $5,750 – $9,600 | – |
| Steel push piers | $10,500 | $8,200 – $13,700 | – |
| Helical piers | $20,000 | $15,600 – $26,000 | – |
For your own number of piers and local rates, use the calculator on Foundation repair.
How each pier works
Concrete (slab) piers
Precast concrete cylinders are stacked and pressed into the ground under the footing, one on top of the other, until they will not go further. They are the least expensive option and need no special steel. The limits: they usually do not go as deep as steel piers, and the load each one can carry is harder to verify during installation. They are most often used under lighter structures and where firm soil is not far down.
Steel push piers
Steel tubes are driven down in sections with a hydraulic ram that uses the weight of the house itself as the counterforce. Driving continues until the pier reaches firm soil or rock, and the pressure at that point gives a measure of what the pier can carry. Once all piers are in, the house can be lifted back toward level, as far as the structure allows.
Push piers suit heavier houses, such as brick, stone or two-story homes, where there is enough weight to drive the pier. They are less suitable for light structures, which may lift before the pier reaches good soil.
Helical piers
Helical piers are steel shafts with screw-like plates that are turned into the ground with a hydraulic motor. The torque needed to turn them tells the installer how much load each pier can take. Because they do not rely on the house's weight, they work for lighter structures, porches and additions, and can be installed ahead of new loads. They also work in tension, which helps where soil may heave.
They cost the most in our figures because of the steel and the installation equipment, and they need soil the helix plates can bear on. Very rocky ground or debris-filled fill can stop them.
Which one fits your house
The structural engineer's report, which is in all our figures, is the starting point. It should say what is moving, why, and what repair is recommended. As a general guide:
- Heavy house, deep firm soil: push piers are often the value choice.
- Light structure, addition or porch: helical piers.
- Moderate settlement, firm soil fairly close to the surface, tight budget: concrete piers may be proposed; ask how the load will be verified.
- Unclear soil: ask whether a soil test is needed before choosing. It is not in our figures.
Settlement usually has a cause, often water. Grading that slopes toward the house, short downspouts and leaks can keep the soil moving. Drainage corrections are not in our figures but are often part of a lasting fix.
Cracks are not always a pier job
Hairline cracks in a basement wall or slab do not always mean the foundation is settling. Doors that stick, cracks that widen, stair-step cracks in brick and floors that slope are stronger signs. A crack that only leaks water may need injection rather than piers: see Foundation crack repair.
Permits and professionals
Structural repairs usually need a local permit. Use a foundation contractor who works from an engineer's design, not one who both diagnoses and sells the fix without an independent report.
What is not in our figures
- Interior crack repair, drywall and repainting
- Drainage and grading corrections
- Soil testing, if required
- Lifting beyond what the structure can safely take
Before you sign
Ask each contractor to name the pier type, the number and spacing of piers, the depth or load they expect to reach and how it will be verified, and what the warranty covers and whether it transfers to a buyer. Then run the price through our "Is my quote fair?" tool, which compares it with what homeowners in your area typically pay for the same job.