Pool removal cost in St. Louis
Filling in an inground pool in the St. Louis area costs about $3,000–$9,000. Removing it completely, so the yard is buildable again, costs about $5,000–$16,000. Concrete pools, tight access and long hauls push the price up. Local cities and counties require a demolition permit first.
- Partial removal (fill in)
- $3,000–$9,000, 2–5 days
- Full removal
- $5,000–$16,000, 5–7 days
- Permit
- Demolition permit, $10–$200 in the cities we checked
- Before digging
- Call 811 at least 2 working days ahead
Partial removal vs. full removal
Partial removal drains the pool, punches drainage holes through the floor, breaks off the top of the walls and fills the hole. The rest of the shell stays buried. It is the cheaper option and the one most homeowners are first quoted.
Full removal breaks out and hauls away the whole shell, then fills the hole in compacted layers. It costs more, but the ground can carry a patio, addition or garage later, and there is nothing buried to explain to a buyer.
| Compare | Partial removal | Full removal |
|---|---|---|
| Typical St. Louis cost | $3,000–$9,000 | $5,000–$16,000 |
| What stays in the ground | The pool floor and lower walls, broken up | Nothing |
| Building on the spot later | Lawn or garden only, unless an engineer signs off | Possible with documented compaction |
| Time on site | 2–5 days | 5–7 days |
| Best for | A concrete pool you will turn into lawn | Vinyl and fiberglass pools, resale, any future building |
Vinyl-liner and fiberglass pools are usually removed completely. A liner, steel or polymer walls and a fiberglass shell do not break down into fill the way concrete does. That is why the cost gap between pool types is smaller than you might expect: Fixr puts vinyl at $3,000–$10,000, fiberglass at $5,000–$10,000 and concrete at $3,000–$15,000.
What published pool removal prices say
No two cost guides agree, mostly because they mix partial and full jobs. Here is every figure we checked and when it was published.
| Source | Partial | Full | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixr (national, updated January 2025) | $3,000–$7,000 | $5,000–$15,000 | Full-removal average $7,500; permits $50–$250 |
| Bob Vila (national, March 2023) | $4,500–$6,250 | $4,000–$16,000 | Full-removal average $9,000; about $500 for an engineer |
| Angi (St. Louis page, undated) | $2,380–$9,510 | $3,805–$15,215 | Average $5,706; we could only read a summary of this page |
Our planning ranges sit across those figures. St. Louis labor runs a little below national averages, but haul distances, rock and clay soil, and the permit steps below land on top.
What moves the price
- Pool material and size. A large gunite pool has the most concrete to break and haul.
- Access. An excavator needs a path into the back yard. Removing a fence section or working around a narrow side yard adds labor.
- Decking. Removing the concrete deck and coping is often priced separately from the pool itself.
- Fill. Fill is cheap per load but the volume adds up. A 16×32 pool averaging 5 to 6 feet deep takes roughly 95 to 115 cubic yards, before allowing for compaction. Fixr lists fill dirt at $8–$12 per cubic yard and topsoil at $12–$15, plus delivery.
- Equipment and utilities. Capping plumbing, disconnecting the pool's electrical circuit and removing a gas heater line take a plumber and an electrician.
- Compaction testing. If you want to build on the spot later, pay for compaction in layers and a test or engineer's letter at the end. It is a small share of the job and very hard to add afterward.
Pool removal permits in the St. Louis area
Removing a pool is demolition, and local cities treat it that way. Most require utility disconnection letters and a locate ticket before they issue the permit, and an inspection before the hole is closed.
| Where | Permit | Rules worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Creve Coeur | $200 plus a $2,000 refundable escrow | The form has a swimming pool box. Needs a St. Louis County waste disposal authorization, an asbestos report or permit, a 48-inch safety fence and erosion control. Finish within 30 days. Backfill must be clean dirt or rock, never wood or construction debris. |
| Unincorporated St. Louis County | Demolition permit; call to confirm the fee | The county requires a permit to demolish any structure, and its health department issues a separate demolition release. We could not confirm from the county's own pages how it treats a pool. Call the county permit office before you hire anyone. |
| City of St. Louis | Pulled by a city-certified demolition contractor | Valid for 30 days. Clean fill only, no pieces over 12 inches, no wood, metal or construction debris. The top 12 inches must be topsoil, seeded and strawed. |
| St. Charles County | $160 for an accessory structure | Includes a $100 environmental fee. Rubble can stay in the hole only with approval, compacted and under 24 inches of clean fill. The site must be graded and seeded before the final inspection. |
| City of St. Charles | $100 plus a $500 refundable deposit | Utility letters required. The permit expires after 3 months. |
| Wentzville | Demolition application | Construction and demolition waste cannot be buried on site. |
| Edwardsville, IL | $10 for an accessory structure | Any demolition work needs a permit. |
Checked against city and county sources in October 2026. Fees change; confirm with the office before work starts. Other cities follow the same pattern. For who handles permits where you live, see pool permits by city.
Call 811 before anyone digs
Missouri law requires notice at least 2 and no more than 10 working days before excavation. In Illinois, JULIE needs at least 2 working days' notice. Your contractor normally places the ticket, but ask for the number; several cities want it on the permit application.
Selling a house with a filled-in pool
The Missouri REALTORS seller's disclosure form we reviewed asks whether you know of any fill on the property. A filled-in pool is fill. We are not lawyers and this is not legal advice, but the practical answer is the same either way: keep the permit, the final inspection and any compaction report together, so the buyer's inspector and lender have the paperwork instead of a question.
If you think you might ever build where the pool was, choose full removal with documented compaction. Putting a footing over a partly removed pool is the scenario everyone in this business warns about.
Questions to ask a removal contractor
- Is this partial or full removal, and what exactly stays in the ground?
- Who pulls the demolition permit and schedules the inspections?
- What fill are you using, and will you compact it in layers?
- Is deck and coping removal included?
- Who caps the plumbing and disconnects the electrical and gas?
- Does the price include topsoil, grading and seed or sod?
- Will I get a compaction test or engineer's letter at the end?
Removing a pool to build a new one?
If the old pool is failing and you want a new one, a builder can often reuse part of the excavation, and the removal becomes one line of a single contract. New inground pools in St. Louis currently run $45,000 to $150,000+; the pool cost guide breaks that down.
Replacing an old pool?
Get matched with a local builder who can price the removal and the new pool together.
Get matched with a local pool builder See pool permits by city
Sources
- Creve Coeur demolition permit requirements (rev. March 2025)
- City of St. Louis demolition permits
- City of St. Louis demolition handbook (2018)
- St. Charles County demolition permit
- City of St. Charles demolition permit information
- Wentzville demolition application (2021)
- Edwardsville single-family permit Q&A (2026)
- Missouri Revised Statutes 319.026 (excavation notice)
- Fixr: cost to fill in a pool (January 2025)
- Bob Vila: cost to fill in a pool (March 2023)
- Angi: pool removal cost in St. Louis
Published October 27, 2026. Planning ranges, not quotes.