Guide · Cost · 2026

How Much Do Concrete Footings Cost?

Installed footings run about $5 per linear foot on average — from roughly $4 to $20 depending on size — and a typical footing job averages near $750. Here is what drives the number, with 2026 prices you can edit for your market.

Installed cost by footing size

Footing price scales with cross-section: a wider, deeper footing is more concrete and more excavation per foot. Typical 2026 installed ranges, per linear foot:

Footing size (W × D)Typical useInstalled $/linear foot
12″ × 6″ 8″ wall, 1–2 story light frame $4–5
16″ × 8″ 10″ wall, typical house $7–9
18″ × 8″ Heavier 2–3 story loads $8–10
24″ × 12″ Deep/wide, weak soil or masonry $15–20

Installed ranges by size from HomeGuide; average and project totals from Angi. These are national 2026 estimates that bundle material, labor, and excavation — your local quote is the real number.

The three things you’re paying for

Every footing cost breaks into material, labor, and site work. The unit prices behind a quote, from 2026 US cost data:

Item2026 figureSource
Ready-mix concrete, delivered $160–195 / cubic yard (≈$180 avg) Concrete Network
Bagged concrete, 80 lb ≈$6.47 / bag retail Home Depot
Footing labor + material, installed $5 / linear foot avg ($1.50–24 by size) Angi
Rebar, #4 (½″) $0.65–0.95 / linear foot HomeGuide
Footing-trench excavation $5–12 / linear foot HomeGuide

Worked example: a 300 LF house footing

A 300 linear foot perimeter-and-interior footing at 20 by 6 inches works out to about 250 cubic feet, or roughly 9–10 cubic yards after a 10% waste allowance. In ready-mix at $160–195 per yard, that is about $1,600–$2,000 in concrete material alone. Add labor and excavation on top, and a bundled installed quote for a footing this size lands in the low thousands — which is why the honest answer to “what does it cost” is always “what size, and what’s included.”

Bags cost more than a truck

For that same cubic yard, bagged concrete is the expensive way: about 45 eighty-pound bags at roughly $6.47 each is over $290 in bags per yard, plus a day of mixing — versus one ready-mix yard near $180. Bags only win below about a cubic yard, where a truck’s minimum-load fee would dominate. See how many bags in a yard for the crossover.

Price your own footing

Put your real dimensions, local ready-mix price, and labor rate into the footing cost calculator for a number you can bid with, or start from length on the linear feet calculator. The defaults shown are editable examples, not universal pricing.

Doing whole plans, not single runs?

FootingTakeoff reads a footing plan and returns total linear feet, pad count, and an invoice at your rates — automatically.

See FootingTakeoff

FAQ

Footing cost, answered.

How much do concrete footings cost?
Installed footings commonly run about $5 per linear foot on average, ranging roughly $4 to $20 per linear foot depending on the footing size, and a typical footing project averages around $750 (about $225 to $3,600). The number is driven by three parts — concrete material, labor, and excavation — so a wider, deeper footing on weak soil costs several times a shallow one. These are 2026 US market estimates; confirm with local quotes.
How much does concrete cost per cubic yard in 2026?
Delivered ready-mix concrete runs roughly $160 to $195 per cubic yard in 2026, averaging near $180, before short-load fees and delivery minimums. Bagged concrete is far more expensive per yard — about 45 eighty-pound bags at roughly $6.47 each is over $290 in bags for a single cubic yard.
What does footing cost per linear foot include?
It depends who is quoting. A labor-only footing sub bills a low per-linear-foot rate for laying out, forming, and pouring. A homeowner-facing installed price bundles concrete material, labor, excavation, rebar, and margin, which is why those figures run several times higher. Always ask what a per-foot number includes before comparing quotes.
How much concrete does a house footing need?
A typical 300 linear foot house footing at 20 by 6 inches is about 9 to 10 cubic yards of concrete after waste — roughly $1,500 to $2,000 in ready-mix material alone at 2026 prices, before labor and excavation. Get the exact volume from your dimensions on the concrete footing calculator.