Virginia · Gunite & Concrete Pool Builders · Updated 2026
Any shape, any depth, any feature: 9 gunite pool builders serving Richmond, ranked by rating and review count, with what a gunite pool costs to build in Richmond this year.
Ordered by customer rating and review count across the Richmond area. Listings include the available rating, contact details and location; confirm current credentials and scope directly.
Planning a new pool as well? The Richmond pool builders directory ranks all 19 builders in the area.
A mid-size gunite pool (about 16×32) with a standard plaster finish in Richmond typically runs $79,000–$126,000. Spas, premium finishes, features and decking are where custom pools climb from there:
| Job | Typical Richmond price |
|---|---|
| Small gunite pool (about 12×24), plaster finish | $58,000–$84,000 |
| Mid-size gunite pool (about 16×32) | $79,000–$126,000 |
| Large or elaborate custom pool | $126,000–$262,500+ |
| Attached gunite spa with spillover | $16,000–$37,000 |
| Pebble or quartz finish upgrade | $5,500–$12,500 |
| Tanning ledge or beach entry | $3,000–$8,500 |
| Water features, lighting, fire bowls | $2,000–$16,000 |
| Decking and coping | $8,500–$26,500 |
| Rock or hard-dig excavation allowance | $3,000–$16,000 |
| Permits, engineering, soils report | $800–$4,200 |
Virginia pricing is close to the national baseline used for these estimates. Gunite bids vary more than any other pool type because every element is custom — compare the shell thickness, steel schedule, finish, feature and equipment lines, not just the bottom number.
Spas, ledges, benches, lighting niches and water features are cheapest when they are shot into the shell — adding them later means cutting concrete.
Richmond market
4.5 average customer rating · 264 reviews · 9 companies
See All on the Map →9 gunite pool builders serving Richmond. The ranked companies average 4.5 stars across 264 customer reviews. PoolPad orders the list with a weighted score that combines customer rating and review count, so a long track record counts for more than a handful of scores.
Piedmont red clay wants drainage and compacted backfill; Tidewater digs sand with high water tables and hydrostatic relief; and NoVa adds sloped, wooded lots where retaining walls and tree protection shape bids. Builders local to your region price these correctly by reflex. Gunite with spas and paver surrounds leads NoVa and Richmond's high end; vinyl liner remains the statewide value pick, with fiberglass surging in the suburbs. Salt systems and heat pumps are mainstream everywhere.
For statewide rankings, city counts and Virginia prices, see the Virginia gunite pool builders directory, or check the nearby cities below.
Ask for the shell engineering and the gunite crew's track record, read the structural, finish and equipment warranties separately, and compare at least three itemized bids for the same design. Virginia licenses contractors through DPOR with classes tied to project size — verify the license class and insurance. County and city permitting covers pool, electrical, and the residential code's barrier requirements (fences, gates, alarms where applicable), and Chesapeake Bay-area lots can add environmental review. HOA approval is a near-universal step in NoVa.
A mid-size gunite pool with a plaster finish in Richmond, VA typically runs $79,000–$126,000; small pools run $58,000–$84,000 and large custom designs $126,000–$262,500+. An attached spa adds $16,000–$37,000, a pebble or quartz finish $5,500–$12,500, and decking $8,500–$26,500. Virginia pricing is close to the national baseline used for these estimates.
Both are concrete sprayed over a steel cage. Gunite is a dry mix with water added at the nozzle; shotcrete is wet-mixed concrete pumped through the hose. Each produces a strong shell when applied by a good crew — the nozzleman's skill, the mix design and proper curing matter more than which method is used. Ask which your builder uses and what thickness is specified.
Plan on eight to sixteen weeks from excavation to swimming: dig and steel in the first week or two, the shell shot and cured for about four weeks, then tile, coping, plumbing, equipment, decking and finally the plaster and fill. Permits add two to eight weeks before the dig. Freezing weather pauses shell and plaster work, so most builds are scheduled for the warm months.
The concrete shell can last 50 years or more. The plaster finish lasts about 10 to 15 years (quartz and pebble 15 to 20 or more), waterline tile and coping 15 to 25 years, and equipment 8 to 15 years. Balanced water, especially calcium hardness and pH, is what protects the finish.
The outdoor season in Richmond runs May through late September — about 5 months unheated. A full professional winterization each fall protects plumbing and equipment through the freeze, and spring openings cluster into the same few weeks. May through late September with humid mid-summers; Hampton Roads stretches a bit longer, the mountains a bit shorter. Winters freeze statewide, and a full close remains the standard of care everywhere but the mildest coastal pockets.
Pool Works Va has the highest customer rating on this Richmond list at 5 stars across 35 reviews. Anthony & Sylvan Pools has the largest review count (71 reviews at 4.7 stars). PoolPad orders the list with a weighted score that combines customer rating and review count, so a long track record counts for more than a handful of scores.
Usually, for the same size: the shell is built on site, the finish is a separate trade, and custom features add up. The gap narrows for large pools and designs with spas and ledges, where fiberglass models are limited. Over 20 years a gunite pool also needs at least one resurfacing, which is part of its true cost.
Virginia licenses contractors through DPOR with classes tied to project size — verify the license class and insurance. County and city permitting covers pool, electrical, and the residential code's barrier requirements (fences, gates, alarms where applicable), and Chesapeake Bay-area lots can add environmental review. HOA approval is a near-universal step in NoVa.
Check gunite pool builders in cities near Richmond, or open the Virginia directory for every listed market in the state.
Claim your free PoolPad listing, check gunite among the pool types you build, and show Richmond homeowners planning a custom pool what you construct.
