Retaining wall cost in Medford, OR
Local estimate from BLS wage data and BEA price levels. Reviewed Nov 4, 2026.
- Typical range (200 sq ft of wall face)
- $7,900 – $14,700
- Per sq ft of wall face
- $39 – $71.50
- before permit
- Versus US midpoint
- +10%
- US $10,300
- Rank of 300 metros
- #59
- 1 = most expensive
Medford homeowners pay roughly $7,900 to $14,700 to build a retaining wall at 200 sq ft of wall face, or $39 to $71.50 per sq ft of wall face (permit not included). Against the US midpoint, Medford is 10% higher. Brickmasons and blockmasons earn a median of $38.20 an hour in the Medford area, 28% above the US median of $29.87.
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Estimated cost for 200 sq ft of wall face in Medford, OR, standard level
$9,950 to $12,700
About $49 to $61.50 per sq ft of wall face before permits. Labor is about 48% of the bill.
| Part | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | $4,550 | $6,650 |
| Labor | $5,250 | $5,700 |
| Permits and fees | $170 | $330 |
| Total | $9,950 | $12,700 |
Cost breakdown for 200 sq ft of wall face in Medford, OR
| Part of the job | Low | Midpoint | High | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Materials | $2,950 | $5,600 | $8,200 | 49% |
| Labor | $4,900 | $5,450 | $6,050 | 48% |
| Permits and fees | $50 | $250 | $460 | 2% |
| Total | $7,900 | $11,300 | $14,700 | 100% |
What is behind the Medford 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 $38.20 an hour. Add the other trades involved and the blended wage index for Medford is 1.16 (US = 1.00), which puts labor at 48% of the total. BLS does not publish this trade for the metro, so we used the Oregon statewide median.
On the materials line, the BEA goods price index for the Medford metro is 105.3 (US = 100). The midpoint materials bill for 200 sq ft of wall face comes to $5,600, compared with $5,300 at national prices. Permit and inspection fees are scaled by the broader index (101.4) and land at $50 to $460.
Data note: 50% of the labor weighting for this project uses a statewide median because BLS has no published metro figure for that trade in Medford. The wage table below marks each row.
Why two Medford quotes can differ
Height
Walls over 4 feet need engineering, deeper excavation and more skilled labor; many cities require permits over 3-4 feet (HomeGuide).
Material
Block, poured concrete and natural stone are priced differently; concrete and stone walls run higher than the segmental block default.
Drainage
Every wall needs drainage behind it. A French drain adds $10-$85+ per linear foot.
Pick a size, pick a tier: retaining wall pricing in Medford
Three bands are cut from the same cited range and localized for Medford wages and prices. They overlap on purpose: a good standard job and a modest premium job can cost the same. The grid below prices the same bands at 4 common sizes.
Basic
$7,900 to $10,600
Short block wall, easy access
Standard
$9,950 to $12,700
Standard segmental block wall with drainage
Premium
$12,000 to $14,700
Tall or stone wall, engineered, hard access
| Size | Basic | Standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| short garden wall (4x25 ft), 100 sq ft of wall face | $3,950 – $5,400 | $5,050 – $6,500 | $6,150 – $7,600 |
| 20 ft x 4 ft (80 sq ft of wall face) | $3,200 – $4,350 | $4,050 – $5,250 | $4,950 – $6,150 |
| 40 ft x 4 ft (160 sq ft of wall face) | $6,300 – $8,550 | $8,000 – $10,200 | $9,650 – $11,900 |
| 40 ft x 6 ft (240 sq ft of wall face) | $9,450 – $12,700 | $11,900 – $15,100 | $14,300 – $17,600 |
How Medford compares
Contractors rarely work more than an hour or two from home, so the neighboring metros set a rough ceiling and floor for your quotes. Midpoints for 200 sq ft of wall face range from $11,200 to $12,100 across Medford and its five closest metros.
| Area | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medford, ORthis page | $7,900 – $14,700 | $11,300 | |
| Eugene, OR105 miles | $7,850 – $14,700 | $11,300 | level |
| Redding, CA120 miles | $7,900 – $14,700 | $11,300 | level |
| Bend, OR150 miles | $7,800 – $14,600 | $11,200 | −1% |
| Salem, OR175 miles | $8,600 – $15,600 | $12,100 | +7% |
| Chico, CA200 miles | $7,900 – $14,700 | $11,300 | level |
| Oregon (statewide) | $8,050 – $15,000 | $11,500 | +2% |
| United States | $7,050 – $13,500 | $10,300 | −9% |
Across 300 US metros, Medford comes in at #59 from the top. The priciest is Kahului, HI at $13,500; the cheapest is El Paso, TX at $8,850 (midpoints, 200 sq ft of wall face). Statewide, Medford is 2% below the Oregon figure.
Other Oregon metros
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland, OR | 1,208,410 jobs | $8,300 – $15,300 | $11,800 | +4% |
| Salem, OR | 188,620 jobs | $8,600 – $15,600 | $12,100 | +7% |
| Eugene, OR | 157,710 jobs | $7,850 – $14,700 | $11,300 | level |
| Bend, OR | 108,240 jobs | $7,800 – $14,600 | $11,200 | −1% |
Cities with a workforce like Medford's
Big cities and small ones price differently, so here is Medford against the 4 metros with the closest total employment.
| Metro | Size | Range | Midpoint | vs. here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. George, UT | 90,500 jobs | $6,550 – $12,600 | $9,600 | −15% |
| Florence, SC | 89,060 jobs | $6,300 – $12,300 | $9,300 | −18% |
| Panama City, FL | 90,610 jobs | $6,350 – $12,400 | $9,400 | −17% |
| Bloomington, IL | 88,110 jobs | $8,700 – $15,200 | $11,900 | +6% |
When to schedule retaining wall in Medford
We use NOAA's 1991-2020 climate normals for Medford Rogue Vly Ap (5 miles from the city center). These are 30-year monthly averages, not forecasts.
September through June is the stretch where digging, grading and setting material in the ground runs into the fewest weather problems in Medford (10 of 12 months). July and August have an average daytime high of 90°F or more.
Medford gets about 18 inches of precipitation in a normal year, including roughly 3 inches of snow. The wettest months are January, November and December (3.5 inches in December). Inside the workable window, June and September are the driest, at 0.7 and 0.5 inches. The station averages about 61 days a year at 90°F or above.
Does the season change the price? Probably, but we do not have a sourced seasonal price curve, so the estimator shows a year-round figure and does not adjust by month. When you collect quotes, ask whether scheduling in a slower month gets a better rate.
| Month | Avg high °F | Avg low °F | Precip (in) | For this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 48 | 33 | 2.7 | Workable |
| Feb | 54 | 34 | 2.0 | Workable |
| Mar | 59 | 37 | 1.8 | Workable |
| Apr | 65 | 41 | 1.5 | Workable |
| May | 74 | 47 | 1.3 | Workable |
| Jun | 82 | 52 | 0.7 | Workable |
| Jul | 92 | 59 | 0.2 | Hot |
| Aug | 91 | 58 | 0.3 | Hot |
| Sep | 84 | 51 | 0.5 | Workable |
| Oct | 70 | 42 | 1.2 | Workable |
| Nov | 54 | 36 | 2.6 | Workable |
| Dec | 46 | 33 | 3.5 | Workable |
Planning more than one job in Medford?
Because every project leans on different trades, Medford's wage level does not move all prices equally. Against the US midpoint, paver patio runs +10% and concrete driveway +6%.
| Project | Size | Range | vs. US |
|---|---|---|---|
| French drain | 60 linear ft | $640 – $2,250 | +7% |
| Paver patio | 300 sq ft | $3,300 – $5,950 | +10% |
| Concrete driveway | 600 sq ft | $3,850 – $9,700 | +6% |
| Sod installation | 1,500 sq ft | $1,600 – $3,500 | +7% |
| Sprinkler system | 4,000 sq ft of lawn | $4,350 – $10,900 | +9% |
| Inground pool | 450 sq ft | $39,100 – $122,000 | +8% |
Local wages behind the labor line
Wages are the part of this estimate that changes most from town to town. 3 trades carry the job here, and each is compared with its US median. The weighted result for Medford is 1.16 times the national level.
Brickmasons and blockmasons (47-2021) carry 50% of the labor weighting. BLS does not publish this trade for the Medford metro, so we used the Oregon statewide median: $38.20 an hour against $29.87 for the US. The middle half of them earn between $31.91 and $47.63 an hour.
Construction laborers (47-2061), 30% of the weighting: a median of $23.72 an hour, 5% above the US median of $22.66. The middle half of them earn between $21.42 and $29.22 an hour. About 520 work in the metro. That is 58.4 per 10,000 jobs, compared with 70.5 nationally, so expect fewer local crews to bid.
For operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073, weighted 20%) the local median is $30.01 an hour, which is 4% above the national $28.78. The middle half of them earn between $26.77 and $37.14 an hour. BLS counts 270 of them working in the area, 30.3 for every 10,000 jobs (US: 30.7), so the local bench is about average.
Quotes come from real crews, not medians. If the brickmasons and blockmasons on your job are paid at the 75th percentile ($47.63 an hour) instead of the median, the labor line grows by about $740. At the 25th percentile ($31.91) it shrinks by about $490. The total moves by 6.6% or 4.4%, so wages alone rarely explain a quote that is far outside our range.
For context on the local economy, BLS counts 89,060 jobs in the Medford area. That makes it the 220th largest of the 300 metros we cover, with 0.06% of US employment.
| Trade | Weight | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct | US median | Ratio | Level used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brickmasons and blockmasons (47-2021) | 50% | $31.91 | $38.20 | $47.63 | $29.87 | 1.28 | state |
| Construction laborers (47-2061) | 30% | $21.42 | $23.72 | $29.22 | $22.66 | 1.05 | metro |
| Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators (47-2073) | 20% | $26.77 | $30.01 | $37.14 | $28.78 | 1.04 | metro |
| Blended | 100% | 1.16 | |||||
Get 3 local quotes
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Retaining wall in Medford: your questions
+How much does it cost to build a retaining wall in Medford?
For 200 sq ft of wall face, expect $7,900 to $14,700 in the Medford area. A standard-spec job lands at $9,950 to $12,700. 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 Medford?
About $39 to $71.50 per sq ft of wall face for materials and labor, plus $50 to $460 for the permit if one is needed. The US range is $35 to $65.
+Is retaining wall cheaper in Medford or Eugene?
Eugene is 105 miles away. The midpoint for 200 sq ft of wall face there is $11,300, which is 0% less than Medford ($11,300). Wage and materials indexes both feed that gap.
+How much of the bill is labor in Medford?
About 48% at the midpoint, or $5,450 out of $11,300. Materials are 49% and permits 2%. Nationally, labor is 46%.
+What would 40 ft x 4 ft (160 sq ft of wall face) cost in Medford?
$6,300 to $11,900. Pick a different size in the estimator above to get your own number.
+Does retaining wall need a permit in Medford?
Often, but rules are set by your city or county building office, so call before you hire. Budget $50 to $460 for fees in the Medford area (our national range of $50 to $450 scaled by the local price level).
+Is Medford expensive for retaining wall compared with the rest of Oregon?
Medford is 2% below the Oregon statewide estimate ($11,500 at the midpoint). We cover 5 metros in Oregon; see the state page to compare them.
+What do brickmasons and blockmasons earn in Medford?
BLS has no published metro figure here, so we use the statewide median of $38.20 an hour, compared with $29.87 nationally. The 25th to 75th percentile range is $31.91 to $47.63.
+What do basic and premium retaining wall work cost in Medford?
For 200 sq ft of wall face, basic work runs $7,900 to $10,600 and premium work $12,000 to $14,700. 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 Medford?
Based on NOAA 1991-2020 normals, the comfortable months for this kind of work are September through June. June and September 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 Medford
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.