How Much Does It Really Cost to Build a Brick Shed?

Most of us have seen glossy TV builds where a “complete outbuilding” somehow costs the same as a takeaway. In reality, building even a modest brick shed involves real materials, real labour and real logistics. If you’ve ever wondered what it truly costs to construct a durable outbuilding from the ground up, this blog walks through every stage and every expense.

1. Groundworks and Site Prep

Before the shed can take shape, the ground has to be cleared and levelled. Removing soil and reshaping the site usually costs more than people expect.

Digger hire

A 1.5-ton digger is ideal for small garden projects. Machines of this size come with insurance and delivery included in the weekly hire price.

• Cost: around £250 per week

• Duration: one week was enough to complete the digging for this build

Dumper hire

Once soil is loosened, you need something to move it into a skip. A compact dumper makes the work much faster.

• Cost: around £207 per week

At this point, you’ve spent nearly £500 and haven’t even started building yet. It’s a reminder that groundwork is a major part of any project.

2. Foundations and Floor Slab

A shed that’s built from brick needs solid foundations. In this case, the foundations weren’t deep enough to justify a concrete delivery, so the concrete was mixed on site.

Concrete for foundations

• 4 bags of ballast and 24 bags of cement

• Cost: roughly £250

Engineering brick course

Below-ground courses must be built from engineering bricks. Standard bricks will absorb moisture and fail over time, so stronger, denser bricks are essential.

• Cost: around £300

Concrete floor

The slab is poured on a membrane and finished at about 100 mm thick. Again, the concrete was mixed on site.

• 4 more bags of ballast, plus cement

• Cost: about £250

At this stage, the structure has proper footings and a solid floor. You’re roughly £1,300 into

the project.

3. Walls and Structure

The builder saved money by placing the shed against an existing garden wall. That meant one wall didn’t need to be built. Three new walls—rear, side and front—were constructed from brick.

Bricks

The walls needed around 1,500 bricks. At about 80p per brick, that’s:

• Cost: roughly £1,200

Roof structure

Instead of buying prefabricated trusses, the roof trusses were made by hand using treated timber. Once you create one truss as a template, the rest follow easily.

• Timber and hardware: about £300

The roof is supported by substantial timbers running along the top of the walls. Once the frame is in place, trusses are fixed and the roofline starts to take shape.

4. Roof Tiles and Window

This build uses reclaimed materials, which saves money if you’re lucky enough to have them stored.

Reclaimed clay roof tiles

These are beautiful, long-lasting tiles that can be expensive to purchase new.

• Reclaimed: free in this case

• New equivalent: about £2 per tile

Hardwood double-glazed window

Again, this was reclaimed at no cost.

• New equivalent: £1,000+, depending on size and quality

Reclaimed materials can dramatically reduce the overall budget, but if you buy everything new, the roof and window alone could cost several thousand pounds.

5. Rainwater Storage and Plumbing

The shed uses large water containers to harvest rainfall from the roof. A reclaimed sink was also installed outside for washing tools and garden use.

Costs:

• Water tanks: £50 each

• Copper pipework and fittings: roughly £150

• Reclaimed sink: free (but new equivalents vary)

These details turn the shed into a more functional workspace rather than simple storage.

6. Electrical Supply

Electrics can add significant cost if you haven’t planned ahead. Luckily, an armoured cable had been installed years earlier when the main house was built. Without this, running a new supply would have cost hundreds more.

Costs:

• Connection to an outdoor consumer unit: £100

• External and internal sockets: £70

• Outdoor and indoor lights: £100

Good electrics make the space usable year-round, especially if you’re planning a workshop or hobby space.

7. Doors and Finishing Touches

The shed uses stable-style doors finished with multiple coats of paint for a smooth surface.

Costs:

• Timber doors: reclaimed (but new equivalents would cost significantly more)

• Paint: part of the finishing costs

Inside, shelving and storage were added using reclaimed materials collected over years. This cuts costs dramatically if you have the space to store spare parts or leftovers from other jobs.

8. Final Cost Summary

The main build costs came to just over £5,000. That included:

• Groundworks

• Foundations and slab

• Brickwork

• Roof structure

• Reclaimed tiles and window

• Plumbing

• Electrics

• Timber fascias and guttering

• Internal and external finishing touches

• Self-levelling compound (around £80)

• Sand and cement (around £253)

A timber shed of similar size would cost around £2,500, but it wouldn’t come close to the durability or lifespan of a brick structure.

What would a builder charge?

Labour for a project like this typically runs about the same as the material cost.

• Estimated labour: around £5,800

• Total real-world build cost: £11,600

For a permanent, long-lasting brick outbuilding, this is a realistic figure.

9. Is It Worth Building a Brick Shed?

If you want a structure that:

• lasts decades

• looks good in the garden

• adds value to the property

• can serve as a workshop, storage space or hobby room

…then a brick shed is a solid investment. The upfront cost is higher than a timber version, but the longevity and flexibility make it worthwhile. For many people, it becomes more than a shed—it becomes a workspace, a quiet corner, or even a personal retreat.