French drain cost in Waterbury, CT
Local estimate from BLS wage data and BEA price levels. Reviewed Nov 4, 2026.
- Typical range (60 linear ft)
- $650 – $2,300
- Per linear ft
- $11 – $38
- before permit
- Versus US midpoint
- +9%
- US $1,350
- Rank of 300 metros
- #84
- 1 = most expensive
Local price for a French drain in the Waterbury area: $650 to $2,300 for 60 linear ft. The low end is a basic job on easy ground; the high end is a premium spec with harder access. The midpoint runs 9% higher than the US figure. Construction laborers earn a median of $27.27 an hour in the Waterbury area, 20% above the US median of $22.66.
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Estimated cost for 60 linear ft in Waterbury, CT, standard level
$1,150 to $1,800
About $19 to $30 per linear ft before permits. Labor is about 57% of the bill.
| Part | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | $490 | $770 |
| Labor | $650 | $1,000 |
| Permits and fees | $0 | $0 |
| Total | $1,150 | $1,800 |
Cost breakdown for 60 linear ft in Waterbury, CT
| Part of the job | Low | Midpoint | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Materials | $280 | $630 | $980 | 43% |
| Labor | $370 | $840 | $1,300 | 57% |
| Permits and fees | $0 | $0 | $0 | 0% |
| Total | $650 | $1,450 | $2,300 | 100% |
Why Waterbury prices look the way they do
We price the labor side from BLS wage data for 3 trades: construction laborers at 50%, operating engineers and other construction equipment operators at 30%, pipelayers at 20%. Weighted together, Waterbury wages are 1.19 times the national level. Labor makes up about 57% of the midpoint estimate (52% at national prices).
Materials are scaled with BEA's regional price parity for goods. Waterbury is at 97.3 against 100 for the US, so a materials line of $650 nationally becomes $630 here (midpoint, 60 linear ft). Permits follow the all-items index of 99.8: $0 to $0.
Data note: 20% of the labor weighting for this project uses a national median because BLS has no published metro figure for that trade in Waterbury. The wage table below marks each row.
Specs and site conditions that change a Waterbury bid
Exterior versus interior
A shallow exterior French drain is $10-$35 per linear foot; an interior basement drain is $40-$85 per foot, or $4,000-$17,000 installed (HomeGuide).
Where the water goes
A sump pump adds $500-$1,800 and a dry well $50-$3,000+. Discharging to a storm drain can mean extra permit fees.
Depth and soil
Rocky or clay soil and long trenches raise excavation time.
How Waterbury compares
Same job, same size (60 linear ft), priced for the nearest metros. Poughkeepsie is the priciest of the group at $1,550. Hartford is the cheapest at $1,450.
| Area | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterbury, CTthis page | $650 – $2,300 | $1,450 | |
| New Haven, CT20 miles | $670 – $2,350 | $1,500 | +2% |
| Bridgeport, CT25 miles | $670 – $2,350 | $1,500 | +2% |
| Hartford, CT30 miles | $650 – $2,250 | $1,450 | −1% |
| Springfield, MA50 miles | $670 – $2,350 | $1,500 | +3% |
| Poughkeepsie, NY50 miles | $700 – $2,450 | $1,550 | +7% |
| Connecticut (statewide) | $660 – $2,300 | $1,500 | +1% |
| United States | $600 – $2,100 | $1,350 | −8% |
Out of the 300 metros we cover, Waterbury ranks #84 for the cost of this job (#1 is the most expensive). Statewide, Waterbury is 1% below the Connecticut figure.
Elsewhere in Connecticut
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartford, CT | 599,770 jobs | $650 – $2,250 | $1,450 | −1% |
| Bridgeport, CT | 404,180 jobs | $670 – $2,350 | $1,500 | +2% |
| New Haven, CT | 281,410 jobs | $670 – $2,350 | $1,500 | +2% |
| Norwich, CT | 126,450 jobs | $620 – $2,150 | $1,400 | −5% |
Metros of a similar size
Big cities and small ones price differently, so here is Waterbury against the 4 metros with the closest total employment.
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shreveport, LA | 162,750 jobs | $530 – $1,850 | $1,200 | −18% |
| Youngstown, OH | 160,160 jobs | $630 – $2,200 | $1,400 | −4% |
| Canton, OH | 163,080 jobs | $630 – $2,200 | $1,400 | −3% |
| Gulfport, MS | 158,310 jobs | $540 – $1,850 | $1,200 | −18% |
Planning more than one job in Waterbury?
Jobs that often go together with French drain are priced below at their usual sizes, using the same Waterbury wage and price inputs. Compared with national midpoints, gravel driveway comes out highest (+11%) and concrete slab lowest (+4%); the gap comes from the trades each job uses.
| Project | Size | Range | vs. US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retaining wall | 200 sq ft of wall face | $7,700 – $14,100 | +6% |
| Gravel driveway | 1,000 sq ft | $2,800 – $11,300 | +11% |
| Sod installation | 1,500 sq ft | $1,600 – $3,500 | +6% |
| Concrete slab | 400 sq ft | $2,550 – $5,350 | +4% |
| Sprinkler system | 4,000 sq ft of lawn | $4,400 – $11,000 | +10% |
| Inground pool | 450 sq ft | $39,700 – $124,000 | +10% |
The best months for French drain in Waterbury
Climate numbers on this page come from NOAA's 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals at the nearest suitable station, Meriden Markham Muni Ap (10 miles from the city center). They are 30-year averages, so any one year can run hotter, colder or wetter.
For digging, grading and setting material in the ground, the comfortable months in Waterbury are April through October: 7 of 12. Outside them, January, February, March, November and December have an average overnight low at or below freezing (32°F).
In January, February, March, November and December the average low is at or below freezing, which means frozen ground and slower digging, compaction and sod or stone placement. NOAA counts about 129 days a year with a low at or below 32°F at this station.
Waterbury gets about 45 inches of precipitation in a normal year. The wettest months are April, September and October (4.5 inches in October). Inside the workable window, May and July are the driest, at 3.5 and 3.4 inches. The station averages about 15 days a year at 90°F or above.
We do not adjust the estimate by month, because we have no reliable published data on seasonal pricing. It is still worth asking contractors whether an off-peak start date changes their bid.
| Month | Avg high °F | Avg low °F | Precip (in) | For this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 37 | 19 | 3.0 | Cold |
| Feb | 39 | 20 | 2.9 | Cold |
| Mar | 48 | 28 | 4.0 | Cold |
| Apr | 60 | 38 | 4.1 | Workable |
| May | 70 | 48 | 3.5 | Workable |
| Jun | 79 | 57 | 4.0 | Workable |
| Jul | 84 | 63 | 3.4 | Workable |
| Aug | 82 | 61 | 3.5 | Workable |
| Sep | 75 | 54 | 4.3 | Workable |
| Oct | 64 | 42 | 4.5 | Workable |
| Nov | 52 | 32 | 3.4 | Cold |
| Dec | 42 | 25 | 4.1 | Cold |
Waterbury: what basic, standard and premium work costs
The cited range is split into basic, standard and premium bands, then scaled to Waterbury. Bands overlap, because plenty of standard jobs cost as much as a light premium one. Sizes run from short run (30 linear ft) to long run (120 linear ft).
Basic
$650 to $1,300
Shallow yard drain, easy digging
Standard
$1,150 to $1,800
Standard drain with fabric, gravel and a pop-up outlet
Premium
$1,650 to $2,300
Deep or long drain, hard soil, dry well or sump discharge
| Size | Basic | Standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| short run (30 linear ft) | $330 – $650 | $570 – $900 | $820 – $1,150 |
| side yard (60 linear ft) | $650 – $1,300 | $1,150 – $1,800 | $1,650 – $2,300 |
| long run (120 linear ft) | $1,300 – $2,600 | $2,300 – $3,600 | $3,250 – $4,550 |
Who does the work: Waterbury trade wages
The labor line is built from BLS wage data, one trade at a time. This job draws on 3 trades. We compare each trade's local median with the US median, weight the ratios by how much of the job each trade does, and apply the blend to the national labor cost. For Waterbury the blend is 1.19.
For construction laborers (47-2061, weighted 50%) the local median is $27.27 an hour, which is 20% above the national $22.66. The middle half of them earn between $22.50 and $34.43 an hour. BLS counts 840 of them working in the area, 52.3 for every 10,000 jobs (US: 70.5), so the local bench is thinner than average.
Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073), 30% of the weighting: a median of $37.66 an hour, 31% above the US median of $28.78. The middle half of them earn between $31.25 and $48.43 an hour. About 300 work in the metro. That is 18.7 per 10,000 jobs, compared with 30.7 nationally, so expect fewer local crews to bid.
Pipelayers (47-2151) carry 20% of the labor weighting. BLS does not publish this trade for the Waterbury metro, so we used the national median: $23.56 an hour against $23.56 for the US. The middle half of them earn between $21.15 and $29.52 an hour.
A quick sensitivity check: moving the lead trade (construction laborers) from the median to the 75th percentile wage adds about $110 to the midpoint estimate; the 25th percentile takes off about $75. That is a swing of roughly 5.0% to 7.5% of the total, which is useful for judging whether a bid reflects wages or something else, such as scope or margin.
Waterbury-Shelton has 160,710 jobs in total (BLS, May 2025), ranking 147th by size among the 300 metros on this site.
| Trade | Weight | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | US median | Ratio | Level used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Construction laborers (47-2061) | 50% | $22.50 | $27.27 | $34.43 | $22.66 | 1.20 | metro |
| Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073) | 30% | $31.25 | $37.66 | $48.43 | $28.78 | 1.31 | metro |
| Pipelayers (47-2151) | 20% | $21.15 | $23.56 | $29.52 | $23.56 | 1.00 | US |
| Blended | 100% | 1.19 | |||||
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French drain in Waterbury: your questions
+How much does it cost to install a French drain in Waterbury?
For 60 linear ft, expect $650 to $2,300 in the Waterbury area. A standard-spec job lands at $1,150 to $1,800. Small jobs usually cost more per linear ft and large ones less.
+What is the price per linear ft for French drain in Waterbury?
About $11 to $38 per linear ft for materials and labor, plus $0 to $0 for the permit if one is needed. The US range is $10 to $35.
+Is French drain cheaper in Waterbury or New Haven?
New Haven is 20 miles away. The midpoint for 60 linear ft there is $1,500, which is 2% more than Waterbury ($1,450). Wage and materials indexes both feed that gap.
+How much of the bill is labor in Waterbury?
About 57% at the midpoint, or $840 out of $1,450. Materials are 43% and permits 0%. Nationally, labor is 52%.
+What would side yard (60 linear ft) cost in Waterbury?
$650 to $2,300. Pick a different size in the estimator above to get your own number.
+Does French drain need a permit in Waterbury?
Often, but rules are set by your city or county building office, so call before you hire. Budget $0 to $0 for fees in the Waterbury area (our national range of $0 to $0 scaled by the local price level).
+Is Waterbury expensive for French drain compared with the rest of Connecticut?
Waterbury is 1% below the Connecticut statewide estimate ($1,500 at the midpoint). We cover 5 metros in Connecticut; see the state page to compare them.
+What do construction laborers earn in Waterbury?
The BLS median is $27.27 an hour in the Waterbury area, compared with $22.66 nationally. The 25th to 75th percentile range is $22.50 to $34.43.
+What do basic and premium French drain work cost in Waterbury?
For 60 linear ft, basic work runs $650 to $1,300 and premium work $1,650 to $2,300. Basic means: shallow yard drain, easy digging. Premium means: deep or long drain, hard soil, dry well or sump discharge.
+When is the best time to install a French drain in Waterbury?
Based on NOAA 1991-2020 normals, the comfortable months for this kind of work are April through October. May and July are typically the driest of those months. Local contractors' schedules matter as much as the weather, so book early for the busy months.
French drain near Waterbury
Where these numbers come from
Base prices are national ranges from the sources below. We scale labor by local BLS wages, materials by BEA goods prices and permits by the BEA all-items price level. Full method on the methodology page.
- HomeGuide: How Much Does a French Drain Cost? (2026) (accessed November 4, 2026)
- Cost to Renovate: Renovation Labor Report 2026: Where the Money Goes (accessed November 4, 2026)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991-2020
Note on derived figures: Materials = 48% of the installed price, from Cost to Renovate's mid-range 'Outdoor Living' category split (44% labor, 48% materials). It is a category average, not a French-drain figure, so the materials line here is a rough one.