Pressure-Treated vs Composite Decking — The 10-Year Cost Truth

Updated October 2026. Deck costs per sq ft are Fixr's national ranges; board prices are single lumber-yard listings; stain prices are Defy's own list prices — each linked where it's used. All comparisons are based on a typical 300 sq ft residential deck.

The decking dilemma that splits every family thread

The decking decision that splits Reddit threads and family arguments is almost always the same: pressure-treated lumber or composite decking? Both will hold the family barbecue and the kids' pool party. Both come in dozens of colors and profiles. But they sit at opposite ends of the cost-and-maintenance tradeoff — one costs well under half as much upfront in materials but asks for a stain weekend every two or three years, the other costs more than twice as much and asks for little more than a hose-down.

The short version: pressure-treated wins on cash; composite wins on time. At Fixr's mid-range prices a 300 sq ft PT deck is still about $1,500 cheaper at year 12, even re-stained every two years; entry-level composite closes the gap around year 9. If you're selling within five years, PT is the right math. If you're staying long-term and never want to think about deck stain again, composite is.

Below: a side-by-side table, scenarios for picking each, the maintenance math that decides for most people, and the install gotchas that actually wreck decks (which, surprisingly, are usually structural — not surface-level).

Side-by-side comparison

	Pressure-treated lumber	Composite decking
Materials per sq ft (DIY)	$3–8 (Fixr)	$8–20 (Fixr)
Cost per sq ft (installed)	$15–25 (Fixr)	$28–40 (Fixr)
300 sq ft deck, materials at Fixr midpoints	~$1,650	~$4,200
Lifespan	At least 10–15 years for wood decks (Fixr)	About 20 years (Fixr); Trex warranties 25–50 yrs by line
Annual maintenance	Clean + re-stain every 1–3 years (~$135–195 in product per round)	Soap-and-water cleaning; Trex wants spills cleaned within a week
12-year total cost (DIY model below)	~$8.80/sq ft ($5.50 + ~$3.30 stain rounds)	~$14/sq ft (no stain)
Look at year 5	Grey patina unless kept stained	Close to install day (Trex: no fade past 5 Delta E)
Splinter risk	Yes — real concern with kids and pets	None
Surface temp in sun	Cool to warm	Hot — darker colors run hottest
Best for	Short-term residents, tight budgets	Long-term homeowners, zero maintenance

When to pick pressure-treated

Pick pressure-treated lumber if at least three of these are true:

• You're planning to sell the house in the next 5 years
• Your materials budget for a 300 sq ft deck is under about $2,400 (the top of Fixr's PT range)
• You're OK with a stain weekend every two or three years
• The deck gets significant sun and you want it cooler underfoot
• You want easy on-site repairs — replace one board with a single stock length of PT

At Fixr's $3–8/sq ft for materials, a 300 sq ft PT deck runs about $900–2,400 before the first stain. Cabot lists 200–650 sq ft per gallon for its semi-transparent stain, so each round takes one or two gallons; at Defy's list prices ($59.99 a gallon of Defy Extreme, $35.99 Wood Cleaner, $37.99 Brightener) that's about $135–195 in product. Other common choices include Cabot Australian Timber Oil or Thompson's WaterSeal — compare coverage on the label.

The honest case for PT in 2026: it's the right choice when you genuinely won't be in the house long enough to hit the composite break-even. The math works for renters of long-term rentals, military families on 3-year rotations, and homes already on the market. For everyone else, the question is whether the stain weekends are worth more to you than the price gap.

What you give up: your spring weekends. Re-staining is real work — clean, brighten, dry 48 hours, then one thin coat with the excess wiped off (the method is in our deck staining mistakes guide). Plan a full Saturday every two or three years, more often on a deck in full sun, plus the product. Stretch it too far and the boards grey, then check and splinter.

When to pick composite decking

Pick composite if at least three of these are true:

• You're staying in the house 10+ years
• You hate yard chores (composite asks for none)
• Kids or pets are on the deck barefoot and splinter risk matters
• You want consistent appearance year-round, not weathered grey
• You live in a humid or coastal climate (composite doesn't rot)

Within composite, the line moves the price more than the brand. Per sq ft of board face (16 ft 1×6 boards, about 7.33 sq ft each, one listing per line): Trex Enhance about $4.30–4.60 ($31.84–33.63 at Hills Flat Lumber), Select about $10.80 ($79.20), Transcend Lineage about $13.20 ($96.96 at SuperArbor). Boards only — Trex's own estimate for a whole composite deck in materials is $15–30/sq ft. TimberTech's AZEK collections are Advanced PVC, not composite.

Warranties separate the lines: Trex lists limited residential warranties of 25 years for Enhance, 35 for Select and 50 for Transcend; TimberTech's composite collections carry 25–30 years; Fiberon Sanctuary 40. Trex's fade and stain warranty covers fading beyond 5 Delta E units and food, drink and grease stains — if they're cleaned with soap and water within one week.

What you give up: upfront cost (Fixr's composite materials range starts at $8/sq ft, where PT's tops out), heat in direct sun (dark colors get hot underfoot), and repairability (you can't easily replace one composite board mid-deck — color matching is hit-or-miss after a few years of UV exposure).

The 12-year maintenance math

Both decks at 300 sq ft, built DIY, materials at Fixr's midpoints ($5.50/sq ft PT, $14 composite), and a $165 re-stain round (middle of the $135–195 range) every two years from year 1:

Year	Pressure-treated running cost	Composite running cost
Year 0 (install)	$1,650	$4,200
Year 1 (first stain)	$1,815	$4,200
Year 6	~$2,145	$4,200
Year 12	~$2,640	$4,200

By year 12 the PT deck has still cost about $1,550 less. Covering a $2,550 premium with stain savings takes about 15 rounds — three decades on a two-year cycle, past the at-least-10-to-15-year lifespan Fixr gives wood decks. Entry-level composite is different: at the bottom of Fixr's range ($8/sq ft) the premium is about $750, which five rounds cover by around year 9. And by year 12–15 PT boards may need replacing while composite is still under warranty — that, not the stain bill, is composite's real long-run case.

The honest disclaimer: this assumes you keep up with PT maintenance and do it yourself. Skip years of stain and the boards wear out sooner; pay someone to stain and labor becomes the biggest line — that's where composite starts winning on money too.

Install reality check: the structure usually fails first

Both decking materials sit on top of the same hidden infrastructure: joists, posts, ledger board, and footings. The structure usually fails before the boards do — regardless of which surface material you picked. Before you spend thousands on composite over old joists, inspect the structure:

• Ledger board flashing — the connection the whole deck hangs on. Where the deck attaches to the house, water sneaks behind the ledger and rots both the deck and the rim joist of the house. Inspect for soft wood or staining behind the ledger.
• Joist condition — push a screwdriver into joists near the ledger and near posts. Soft spots = replace before re-decking.
• Post bases — if posts sit directly in concrete (no metal post base), they're rotting from the bottom up. Whether you can see it or not.
• Joist spacing for composite — most composites need 12" on-center for picture-frame patterns or 16" o.c. for straight install with a 90° board angle. PT can usually span the same.

Replacing rotted joists before installing composite is the single biggest hidden cost of a "deck refresh" project. On an older deck, get the joist work quoted before you price the surface material.

The short verdict

Pick pressure-treated if you're moving in five years, you want the lowest cash outlay over the next decade, or your deck is in significant sun and barefoot use matters. Pick composite if you're staying 10+ years and value your stain weekends (or would pay someone to stain), want near-zero spring maintenance, have kids or pets on the deck barefoot, or live somewhere humid where PT rots faster. There's no wrong answer between these two — only a right answer for your specific situation and stay-length.

Comparing more decking options? The full outdoor deck guide also covers outdoor rugs and interlocking deck tiles — useful for balcony spaces under 100 sq ft or renter situations where any permanent install is off the table.