Average tennis court cost

Summary: How much does a tennis court cost, average tennis court installation costs and average price for materials.

When considering building a tennis court there are several factors which will affect the project. As well as having enough space to build the court in the first place it is important to get each stage of the construction right, otherwise you could be facing costly repair bills and resurfacing charges later down the line.

Average Cost

Factors to consider

A large part of the cost of a court will depend on the type of surface you wish to lay. Tennis courts can be grass, clay, asphalt, cement or synthetic and each comes with pros and cons for the court owner.

Cement and asphalt courts are fairly common as they are amongst the cheapest to lay and require the least ongoing maintenance once they have been constructed.

Grass courts are popular in the UK but require a regular rest period to allow grass to re-grow and need constant feeding, watering and mowing to keep the grass in good condition and at the correct level.

Clay courts need to be watered and brushed regularly and only last around 5 years before needing to be resurfaced. Clay courts are not appropriate for areas which often experience high winds and heavy rain.

Companies are available which provide click together synthetic tiles for tennis court surfaces. These can be more costly in the first instance, but claim to require very little maintenance and have life spans of up to 25 years.

Some Local Authorities will require planning permission to construct a tennis court if they deem it to involve a change of use for the land, for example from agricultural to recreational, so it is worth checking that the site you have chosen is likely to be approved.

Access to the site needs to be good, with connection to a main road if possible. Diggers, tonnes of gravel and concrete as well as fencing will need to be delivered, so make sure that large vehicles are going to be able to access the site before committing to a project.

Consider how to manage the work. Can you employ a non specialist builder to undertake some of the work? Specialist tennis court construction companies come at a hefty price so it might be possible to make savings by undertaking some of the preparation yourself. It is unlikely, however, that you could DIY the whole project as tennis courts require specialist surfaces; it is not as simple as pouring a concrete slab, as some might think.

Constructing a level surface with good drainage should be fairly straightforward and you might find a specialist company who is willing to come in once this has been done to lay the final surface. However, beware of ending up stuck in the middle if something goes wrong as the companies will undoubtedly blame each other and you could end up with neither taking responsibility for remedial works.

Also consider whether the surface could be used for anything else. It may be wise to get your line painter to paint in lines for basketball or 5 a side football in another colour so that your investment can be well used all year round. Line painting may be another area which you could DIY to save a little money.

Costs to consider

The cost of transforming a plot of land into a tennis court can vary greatly depending on the condition of the land to start with. A court proposed on a level, well drained surface will require less building works than one on wet ground, on a slope or on an uneven or rocky surface.

The court surface itself can vary wildly from as little as £5,000 for asphalt to around £25,000 for clay and even more than that for some of the synthetic materials available.

The fence around the court will also be a large part of the budget, so consider the size and type of fence carefully. Generally the larger the fence, the more expensive it will be. However, if your court is in a residential area this can be a good investment to save upsetting the neighbours. With some fence types it may be possible for you to do some of the installation yourself, or to get a local builder to undertake this rather than the more expensive specialists.

Be careful adding bells and whistles to your tennis court, as this can substantially add to the cost. If you are going to have floodlighting you will need a mains electricity connection, so check the cost of connecting your court beforehand.