Outdoor Saunas Are the Fastest-Growing Segment of the Residential Market
Barrel saunas, cabin saunas, and custom outdoor builds are driving residential sauna growth across North America.
Auroom Halo barrel sauna in a natural outdoor setting. Photo: Auroom Wellness / Unsplash.
Outdoor saunas have become the fastest-growing segment of the North American residential sauna market. Manufacturers, dealers, and building permit data all point in the same direction: barrel saunas, cabin saunas, and custom outdoor builds are where the growth is, and the trend has been accelerating for three consecutive years.
What's Driving Growth
Several converging factors are fueling the outdoor sauna boom. Post-pandemic outdoor living investments continue to drive home improvement spending, while social media, particularly platforms that showcase backyard lifestyle content, has dramatically increased consumer awareness and aspiration.
Barrel saunas remain the volume leader in the outdoor category. Their relatively accessible price point (many models start under $5,000), ease of installation, and distinctive aesthetic have made them the gateway product for first-time sauna buyers. Dundalk Leisurecraft, Almost Heaven, and SaunaLife are among the brands competing most visibly in this space.
Three years ago, outdoor saunas were a niche product. Now they're competing with hot tubs and outdoor kitchens for backyard budget dollars.
Regional Patterns
Growth is strongest in the Pacific Northwest, Upper Midwest, and Mountain West, where outdoor sauna culture intersects with existing cold-water immersion and outdoor recreation communities. The Southeast and Mid-Atlantic are growing from a smaller base, suggesting the trend is broadening geographically.
Supply Chain Considerations
Manufacturers report that demand continues to outpace production capacity in several sub-categories, particularly for thermowood and cedar outdoor models. Lead times for custom outdoor builds have extended to 8-14 weeks in many markets. Rising lumber costs (Nordic spruce and cedar have both seen price increases) are also putting pressure on margins. As the category grows, entry-level product quality has become a growing concern for the industry.
Arlene Scott
Senior Wellness Correspondent & Hospitality Consultant
Arlene Scott brings over fifteen years of reporting and consulting experience across energy infrastructure, sustainable design, and thermotherapy-focused hospitality.
Full byline
Arlene Scott is a Senior Wellness Correspondent for SaunaNews.com, bringing over fifteen years of experience at the intersection of energy infrastructure, sustainable design, and thermotherapy. Her work focuses on the physiological benefits of passive heat therapies and the sustainable integration of sauna culture into modern wellness routines.
Arlene's background is rooted in the clean energy transition. She was a founding writer at MicrogridMedia.com, where she covered the technical and economic viability of desalination projects, microgrid deployments, and distributed renewable energy systems. During the mid-2010s, she was a regular contributor to Greentech Media (GTM) during its independent era — prior to the Wood Mackenzie acquisition in 2016 — reporting on the early integration of thermal energy storage and sustainable infrastructure.
Transitioning her focus from macro-energy systems to human-scale wellness, Arlene now applies her technical background to the hospitality sector. She operates as an independent consultant, advising boutique hotels and eco-resorts on the design, energy efficiency, and historical authenticity of commercial sauna and thermal spa installations. Her consulting work ensures that high-end wellness facilities balance traditional Nordic bathing principles with modern sustainable engineering.
Arlene holds a specialized certification in Applied Thermic Wellness from the Nordic Institute of Passive Heat Studies (NIPHS) and is a recognized associate member of the International Sauna Association (ISA). When she isn't reviewing the latest innovations in infrared technology or consulting on a new resort project, Arlene can be found tending to her own traditional wood-fired sauna in the Pacific Northwest. You can read her complete archive of essays on energy, wellness, and sustainable living at www.arlenescott.com.
