Retaining wall cost in Jacksonville, FL
Local estimate from BLS wage data and BEA price levels. Reviewed Nov 4, 2026.
- Typical range (200 sq ft of wall face)
- $6,550 – $12,700
- Per sq ft of wall face
- $32.50 – $61
- before permit
- Versus US midpoint
- −6%
- US $10,300
- Rank of 300 metros
- #194
- 1 = most expensive
A retaining wall in Jacksonville, FL usually costs $6,550 to $12,700 for 200 sq ft of wall face. That works out to about $32.50 to $61 per sq ft of wall face before permits. Compared with the national midpoint that is $620 less. Brickmasons and blockmasons earn a median of $28.12 an hour in the Jacksonville area, 6% below the US median of $29.87.
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Estimated cost for 200 sq ft of wall face in Jacksonville, FL, standard level
$8,400 to $10,900
About $41 to $52.50 per sq ft of wall face before permits. Labor is about 44% of the bill.
| Part | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | $4,150 | $6,050 |
| Labor | $4,100 | $4,450 |
| Permits and fees | $170 | $330 |
| Total | $8,400 | $10,900 |
Cost breakdown for 200 sq ft of wall face in Jacksonville, FL
| Part of the job | Low | Midpoint | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Materials | $2,700 | $5,100 | $7,500 | 53% |
| Labor | $3,850 | $4,300 | $4,750 | 44% |
| Permits and fees | $50 | $250 | $450 | 3% |
| Total | $6,550 | $9,650 | $12,700 | 100% |
What is behind the Jacksonville number
The wage side of the estimate leans on brickmasons and blockmasons, who do 50% of the hours on a typical job. Their local median is $28.12 an hour. Add the other trades involved and the blended wage index for Jacksonville is 0.91 (US = 1.00), which puts labor at 44% of the total.
Materials are scaled with BEA's regional price parity for goods. Jacksonville is at 96.2 against 100 for the US, so a materials line of $5,300 nationally becomes $5,100 here (midpoint, 200 sq ft of wall face). Permits follow the all-items index of 99.5: $50 to $450.
Retaining wall: what moves the price in Jacksonville
Rebuilding
Replacing an old wall adds $15-$30 per linear foot for demolition plus disposal.
Permit
Permits cost $50-$450 depending on location and wall size.
Height
Walls over 4 feet need engineering, deeper excavation and more skilled labor; many cities require permits over 3-4 feet (HomeGuide).
Jacksonville: what basic, standard and premium work costs
The cited range is split into basic, standard and premium bands, then scaled to Jacksonville. Bands overlap, because plenty of standard jobs cost as much as a light premium one. Sizes run from short garden wall (4x25 ft), 100 sq ft of wall face to 40 ft x 6 ft (240 sq ft of wall face).
Basic
$6,550 to $9,000
Short block wall, easy access
Standard
$8,400 to $10,900
Standard segmental block wall with drainage
Premium
$10,200 to $12,700
Tall or stone wall, engineered, hard access
| Size | Basic | Standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| short garden wall (4x25 ft), 100 sq ft of wall face | $3,300 – $4,600 | $4,300 – $5,600 | $5,250 – $6,550 |
| 20 ft x 4 ft (80 sq ft of wall face) | $2,650 – $3,750 | $3,450 – $4,550 | $4,250 – $5,350 |
| 40 ft x 4 ft (160 sq ft of wall face) | $5,250 – $7,250 | $6,750 – $8,750 | $8,250 – $10,200 |
| 40 ft x 6 ft (240 sq ft of wall face) | $7,850 – $10,800 | $10,100 – $13,000 | $12,200 – $15,100 |
Is Jacksonville cheap or dear? The local comparison
Of the five closest metros, all are cheaper than Jacksonville. Savannah is the lowest at about $9,150 (midpoint, 200 sq ft of wall face), 135 miles away.
| Area | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville, FLthis page | $6,550 – $12,700 | $9,650 | |
| Ocala, FL75 miles | $6,200 – $12,200 | $9,200 | −4% |
| Gainesville, FL75 miles | $6,300 – $12,400 | $9,350 | −3% |
| Deltona, FL80 miles | $6,350 – $12,400 | $9,400 | −2% |
| Orlando, FL125 miles | $6,250 – $12,300 | $9,300 | −4% |
| Savannah, GA135 miles | $6,150 – $12,200 | $9,150 | −5% |
| Florida (statewide) | $6,450 – $12,600 | $9,550 | −1% |
| United States | $7,050 – $13,500 | $10,300 | +6% |
Out of the 300 metros we cover, Jacksonville ranks #194 for the cost of this job (#1 is the most expensive). Statewide, Jacksonville is 1% above the Florida figure.
Elsewhere in Florida
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami, FL | 2,819,940 jobs | $6,800 – $13,400 | $10,100 | +5% |
| Tampa, FL | 1,447,120 jobs | $6,550 – $12,600 | $9,600 | level |
| Orlando, FL | 1,411,730 jobs | $6,250 – $12,300 | $9,300 | −4% |
| North Port, FL | 339,940 jobs | $6,450 – $12,500 | $9,500 | −1% |
| Cape Coral, FL | 304,790 jobs | $6,250 – $12,300 | $9,250 | −4% |
| Lakeland, FL | 265,280 jobs | $6,150 – $12,200 | $9,200 | −5% |
Metros of a similar size
Big cities and small ones price differently, so here is Jacksonville against the 4 metros with the closest total employment.
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee, WI | 820,780 jobs | $8,550 – $15,100 | $11,800 | +23% |
| Virginia Beach, VA | 763,060 jobs | $6,200 – $12,300 | $9,250 | −4% |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 826,210 jobs | $6,950 – $13,200 | $10,000 | +4% |
| Raleigh, NC | 743,120 jobs | $6,400 – $12,500 | $9,400 | −2% |
Jacksonville weather and the retaining wall calendar
Climate numbers on this page come from NOAA's 1991-2020 U.S. Climate Normals at the nearest suitable station, Jacksonville Nas (5 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 Jacksonville are September through May: 9 of 12. Outside them, June, July and August have an average daytime high of 90°F or more.
Jacksonville gets about 48 inches of precipitation in a normal year. The wettest months are June, August and September (7.3 inches in June). Inside the workable window, February and November are the driest, at 2.3 and 2.0 inches. The station averages about 97 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 | 66 | 47 | 2.9 | Workable |
| Feb | 69 | 50 | 2.3 | Workable |
| Mar | 74 | 55 | 3.1 | Workable |
| Apr | 81 | 61 | 2.4 | Workable |
| May | 86 | 69 | 3.2 | Workable |
| Jun | 90 | 74 | 7.3 | Hot |
| Jul | 92 | 76 | 6.0 | Hot |
| Aug | 91 | 76 | 6.3 | Hot |
| Sep | 88 | 74 | 6.1 | Workable |
| Oct | 82 | 66 | 3.5 | Workable |
| Nov | 73 | 56 | 2.0 | Workable |
| Dec | 68 | 50 | 2.5 | Workable |
Planning more than one job in Jacksonville?
Jobs that often go together with retaining wall are priced below at their usual sizes, using the same Jacksonville wage and price inputs. Compared with national midpoints, sod installation comes out highest (−4%) and concrete driveway lowest (−10%); the gap comes from the trades each job uses.
| Project | Size | Range | vs. US |
|---|---|---|---|
| French drain | 60 linear ft | $560 – $1,950 | −7% |
| Paver patio | 300 sq ft | $2,850 – $5,150 | −5% |
| Concrete driveway | 600 sq ft | $3,300 – $8,300 | −10% |
| Sod installation | 1,500 sq ft | $1,450 – $3,150 | −4% |
| Sprinkler system | 4,000 sq ft of lawn | $3,700 – $9,300 | −7% |
| Inground pool | 450 sq ft | $33,500 – $104,500 | −7% |
What local crews earn in Jacksonville
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 Jacksonville the blend is 0.91.
For brickmasons and blockmasons (47-2021, weighted 50%) the local median is $28.12 an hour, which is 6% below the national $29.87. The middle half of them earn between $22.84 and $41.21 an hour. BLS counts 130 of them working in the area, 1.7 for every 10,000 jobs (US: 3.4), so the local bench is thinner than average.
For construction laborers (47-2061, weighted 30%) the local median is $20.90 an hour, which is 8% below the national $22.66. The middle half of them earn between $17.68 and $23.16 an hour. BLS counts 7,150 of them working in the area, 93.4 for every 10,000 jobs (US: 70.5), so the local bench is deeper than average.
Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073), 20% of the weighting: a median of $23.52 an hour, 18% below the US median of $28.78. The middle half of them earn between $22.49 and $28.15 an hour. About 1,990 work in the metro. That is 26.0 per 10,000 jobs, compared with 30.7 nationally, so expect fewer local crews to bid.
A quick sensitivity check: moving the lead trade (brickmasons and blockmasons) from the median to the 75th percentile wage adds about $1,050 to the midpoint estimate; the 25th percentile takes off about $420. That is a swing of roughly 4.3% to 10.7% of the total, which is useful for judging whether a bid reflects wages or something else, such as scope or margin.
Jacksonville has 765,930 jobs in total (BLS, May 2025), ranking 39th by size among the 300 metros on this site.
| Trade | Weight | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | US median | Ratio | Level used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brickmasons and blockmasons (47-2021) | 50% | $22.84 | $28.12 | $41.21 | $29.87 | 0.94 | metro |
| Construction laborers (47-2061) | 30% | $17.68 | $20.90 | $23.16 | $22.66 | 0.92 | metro |
| Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073) | 20% | $22.49 | $23.52 | $28.15 | $28.78 | 0.82 | metro |
| Blended | 100% | 0.91 | |||||
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Detailed retaining wall report for Jacksonville, FL, $9
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Retaining wall in Jacksonville: your questions
+How much does it cost to build a retaining wall in Jacksonville?
For 200 sq ft of wall face, expect $6,550 to $12,700 in the Jacksonville area. A standard-spec job lands at $8,400 to $10,900. Small jobs usually cost more per sq ft of wall face and large ones less.
+What is the price per sq ft of wall face for retaining wall in Jacksonville?
About $32.50 to $61 per sq ft of wall face for materials and labor, plus $50 to $450 for the permit if one is needed. The US range is $35 to $65.
+Is retaining wall cheaper in Jacksonville or Ocala?
Ocala is 75 miles away. The midpoint for 200 sq ft of wall face there is $9,200, which is 4% less than Jacksonville ($9,650). Wage and materials indexes both feed that gap.
+How much of the bill is labor in Jacksonville?
About 44% at the midpoint, or $4,300 out of $9,650. Materials are 53% and permits 3%. Nationally, labor is 46%.
+What would 40 ft x 4 ft (160 sq ft of wall face) cost in Jacksonville?
$5,250 to $10,200. Pick a different size in the estimator above to get your own number.
+Does retaining wall need a permit in Jacksonville?
Often, but rules are set by your city or county building office, so call before you hire. Budget $50 to $450 for fees in the Jacksonville area (our national range of $50 to $450 scaled by the local price level).
+Is Jacksonville expensive for retaining wall compared with the rest of Florida?
Jacksonville is 1% above the Florida statewide estimate ($9,550 at the midpoint). We cover 19 metros in Florida; see the state page to compare them.
+What do brickmasons and blockmasons earn in Jacksonville?
The BLS median is $28.12 an hour in the Jacksonville area, compared with $29.87 nationally. The 25th to 75th percentile range is $22.84 to $41.21.
+What do basic and premium retaining wall work cost in Jacksonville?
For 200 sq ft of wall face, basic work runs $6,550 to $9,000 and premium work $10,200 to $12,700. Basic means: short block wall, easy access. Premium means: tall or stone wall, engineered, hard access.
+When is the best time to build a retaining wall in Jacksonville?
Based on NOAA 1991-2020 normals, the comfortable months for this kind of work are September through May. February and November are typically the driest of those months. Local contractors' schedules matter as much as the weather, so book early for the busy months.
Retaining wall near Jacksonville
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 Retaining Wall Cost? (2026) (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 = 40% of the low installed price and 60% of the high one, since HomeGuide says labor is 40-60% of the total project cost.