Pool types

Five pool types, plainly compared

Concrete in-ground, fibreglass, plunge, lap, above-ground. Each one suits a different section, budget and use-case. We name the trade-offs — speed of install, longevity, cost spread, and what the quote actually includes — so you compare like with like.

Concrete in-ground

$80k–$180k

Custom shape, custom finish, fifty-year shell.

Sprayed-concrete (often called gunite or shotcrete) over a steel-reinforced cage, lined with tile, pebble or render. The premium build — fully customisable in shape, depth, edge detail and finish, and a shell that's expected to outlast the house. Slowest to build, costliest, and the only practical option above 10 metres in length or for vanishing-edge designs.

Build: 12–22 wks
Length: 8–15 m
Volume: 45–95 m³

Best for: Large family pools, lap pools, infinity edges, custom architectural integration.

Fibreglass shell

$40k–$80k

Pre-moulded shell, dropped in, swimming in three weeks.

A factory-built one-piece fibreglass shell, delivered on a truck and craned into a pre-dug hole. Shell sizes top out around 8.5m (longer than a NZ truck deck won't carry) and shapes are catalogue-fixed — but the build is fast, the gel-coat is genuinely low-maintenance, and total install cost is half what a comparable concrete pool runs.

Build: 3–6 wks
Length: 5–8.5 m
Volume: 20–55 m³

Best for: Family pools under 8.5m, fast turnaround, low-maintenance owners.

Plunge pool

$25k–$50k

Compact, deep, often heated. Lifestyle, not laps.

A small-footprint pool — usually 3–5 metres long, 2–3 metres wide, 1.4–1.8 metres deep — designed for cool-down soaks, hydro-spa use, and small sections that can't fit a full-length pool. Almost always heated in NZ; plunges work at 28–32°C and the heat pump is the workhorse, not the optional extra. Concrete or fibreglass shell both common.

Build: 4–9 wks
Length: 3.0–5.0 m
Volume: 10–22 m³

Best for: Townhouses, small sections, plunge-and-spa lifestyle, cooler-region builds.

Lap pool

$95k–$220k

Long, narrow, swim-fitness focused — almost always concrete.

12–25 metres long, 2.5–3.5 metres wide, depth set for proper freestyle stroke. Lap pools are concrete by default — fibreglass shells don't extend to lap lengths, and the linear shape works architecturally with side gardens or terrace runs. Most NZ lap pools are heated to 28°C year-round so the swim-fitness use-case actually works.

Build: 14–24 wks
Length: 12–25 m
Volume: 55–135 m³

Best for: Daily-swim households, narrow side-yards, architectural integration.

Above-ground

$8k–$25k

Steel or composite frame, no excavation, removable.

A self-supporting pool that sits on a prepared pad — steel or resin frame, vinyl or PVC liner, no excavation. The cheapest path to swimming on a property and the only option on rocky or unconsented sites. Still requires a 1.2-metre fence under the Building Act if water depth exceeds 400mm. Lifespan is shorter and resale-value contribution is minimal, but the cost-of-entry maths is honest.

Build: 1–3 wks
Length: 3.6–7.3 m
Volume: 12–28 m³

Best for: Rentals, kids-only families, soft-cost trial-runs, sites where excavation is impractical.