How much does demolition cost in Adelaide?
Adelaide demolition quotes are built from rows: whole houses by construction type, floor area and concrete by the square metre, and pools, garages, sheds and strip-outs as jobs of their own. A typical house on a standard block is $12,000–$40,000, typically $25,000. A three-bedroom brick veneer house with no asbestos sits at $18,000–$30,000, and a timber or fibro house without significant asbestos at $15,000–$22,000.
The city's housing sets the mix. Post-war brick homes and semi-detached pairs across Woodville, Findon and Seaton are cleared for rebuilds, brick veneer houses in Modbury and Tea Tree Gully land in the veneer row, and stone-fronted villas in Norwood and Unley tend to come up as strip-outs ahead of a renovation. These are national bands: the sources do not support separate Adelaide prices.
Comparing cities, or after the Australia-wide picture? See the national guide: Demolition cost in Australia.
Demolition Prices in Adelaide 2026: Cost Table and Price List
| Service | Low | Typical | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full house demolition, typical house on a standard block | $12,000per job | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| Single-storey timber or fibro house demolition (3-bed, no significant asbestos) | $15,000per job | $18,000 | $22,000 |
| Single-storey brick veneer house demolition (3-bed, no asbestos) | $18,000per job | $22,000 | $30,000 |
| Double-storey house demolition | $25,000per job | $32,000 | $50,000 |
| House demolition priced per square metre of floor area | $40/sqm | $60 | $150 |
| Concrete in-ground pool removal, full (shell removed, backfilled) | $8,000per job | $12,000 | $18,000 |
| Pool partial removal / fill-in (concrete shell broken and filled) | $5,000per job | $8,000 | $10,000 |
| Fibreglass pool removal | $7,000per job | $10,000 | $18,000 |
| Concrete slab removal, reinforced, incl. disposal | $55/sqm | $74 | $95 |
| Garden shed demolition & removal (no asbestos; slab extra) | $280per job | $700 | $1,600 |
| Garage demolition, single (no asbestos) | $3,000per job | $5,000 | $6,000 |
| Whole-house internal strip-out (to frame) | $8,000per job | $10,000 | $20,000 |
| Kitchen strip-out / demolition | $2,500total | $3,000 | $6,000 |
| Bathroom strip-out / demolition | $1,500total | $2,000 | $4,500 |
| Internal wall removal, non-structural | $800per wall | $2,000 | $2,500 |
| Disconnecting services before demolition (electricity, gas, water, sewer) | $1,000per job | $2,000 | $3,000 |
| Asbestos removal priced inside a demolition quote (bonded, typical house) | $1,500per job | $3,000 | $10,000 |
Prices are as published by demolition contractors, builders and cost guides, fetched in November 2026. Most of those sources do not state a GST basis; the pool fill-in and fibreglass pool figures include GST. Every band rests on at least two independent sources. Permit, council and certifier fees vary by council and are not priced here. The sources do not support separate city prices, so Adelaide shows the national bands.
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Get Adelaide quotes →How Demolition Costs Vary Across Adelaide
Every Adelaide suburb uses the same bands. What moves a quote between rows, and within one, is the building, the block and how the machines get in.
- Western suburbs rebuild blocks - Older brick homes in Woodville, Findon and Seaton often come down so the block can take new homes. Solid brick takes more machine time than veneer, so ask where the quote sits against the typical house band of $12,000–$40,000.
- Eastern and inner-south villas - In Norwood, Kensington and Unley the work is often inside the house: a whole-house strip-out to the frame is $8,000–$20,000, a kitchen $2,500–$6,000 and a bathroom $1,500–$4,500.
- North-east brick veneer - Three-bedroom brick veneer homes in Modbury, Tea Tree Gully and Para Hills sit in the brick veneer row at $18,000–$30,000 where no asbestos is found.
- Adelaide Hills and the foothills - Sloping blocks in Stirling, Aldgate and Belair limit where machines can stand, which slows a job and moves it up within its band; a backyard shed there is $280–$1,600, with any slab extra.
What Adelaide Demolition Jobs Actually Cost
Three Adelaide jobs, each priced from a row on this page. The rows are national; your site decides where the quote lands.
Woodville West brick veneer home
A three-bedroom brick veneer house cleared for a rebuild, with no asbestos found, is $18,000–$30,000, typically $22,000. Disconnecting electricity, gas, water and sewer beforehand adds $1,000–$3,000.
Unley villa strip-out
Stripping a villa back to the frame before a renovation is $8,000–$20,000, typically $10,000; taking out a non-structural wall between the old kitchen and the lounge is $800–$2,500 per wall.
Marion backyard clear-out
An old single garage with no asbestos comes down for $3,000–$6,000, and the reinforced slab under it is removed with disposal at $55–$95 per square metre.
House Demolition Cost in Adelaide by Construction Type
A whole house is priced by what it is built from and how high it goes. A typical house on a standard block is $12,000–$40,000, typically $25,000. A single-storey timber or fibro three-bedroom house without significant asbestos is $15,000–$22,000, a single-storey brick veneer house $18,000–$30,000 and a double-storey house $25,000–$50,000. Some contractors price per square metre of floor area instead, at $40–$150 per square metre.
Brick comes apart more slowly than timber or fibro, which is why the timber row at $15,000–$22,000 sits below the brick veneer row at $18,000–$30,000. A two-storey Adelaide home has its own row at $25,000–$50,000, typically $32,000.
If the plan is to rebuild or split the block, settle early what the new build needs from the site. A house quote may stop at floor level, and a reinforced slab, driveway or carport base comes out at $55–$95 per square metre as a separate line.
Pool, Garage and Slab Demolition Cost in Adelaide
Smaller structures have their own rows. Removing a concrete in-ground pool in full - shell out and the hole backfilled - is $8,000–$18,000, while breaking the shell and filling it in place is $5,000–$10,000; a fibreglass pool comes out for $7,000–$18,000. A single garage without asbestos is $3,000–$6,000, a garden shed $280–$1,600 with any slab extra, and a reinforced concrete slab is removed with disposal for $55–$95 per square metre.
Where an old in-ground pool is part of the job, the choice is between full removal at $8,000–$18,000, with the shell taken out and the hole backfilled, and a fill-in at $5,000–$10,000, where the shell is broken and filled in place. A fill-in can limit what goes over that spot later, so ask the builder before choosing.
Backyard sheds and single garages are priced as small jobs of their own: a shed with no asbestos is $280–$1,600 and a single garage $3,000–$6,000. An older shed with fibro walls or roof sheeting is an asbestos job before it is a demolition job.
Strip-outs, Services and Asbestos: Demolition Cost in Adelaide
Not every job takes the whole building. A whole-house internal strip-out to the frame is $8,000–$20,000, a kitchen strip-out $2,500–$6,000 and a bathroom strip-out $1,500–$4,500; removing a non-structural internal wall is $800–$2,500 per wall. Before a house comes down, electricity, gas, water and sewer are disconnected for $1,000–$3,000, and bonded asbestos removed inside a demolition quote for a typical house runs $1,500–$10,000.
Renovating a Adelaide villa or bungalow often starts with a strip-out. A kitchen is $2,500–$6,000 and a bathroom $1,500–$4,500 when a demolition contractor does them as separate jobs, and a whole house back to the frame is $8,000–$20,000.
Before any whole-house job, the services and asbestos come first. Disconnecting electricity, gas, water and sewer is $1,000–$3,000, and bonded asbestos taken out inside the demolition quote is $1,500–$10,000, typically $3,000.
In South Australia, the person doing the demolition must hold a South Australian contractor's licence issued by Consumer and Business Services, and must notify SafeWork SA at least 5 days before starting demolition work on a structure at least six metres in height, work using load-shifting machinery on a suspended floor, or work with explosives. A stand-alone asbestos job, such as a whole fibro house stripped before anything else happens, is priced in our Adelaide asbestos removal cost guide.
What Affects Demolition Costs in Adelaide
In Adelaide the walls, the block, what else stands on it and what the asbestos inspection finds decide where a quote lands.
Brick, veneer or timber
A timber or fibro house is $15,000–$22,000 and a brick veneer house $18,000–$30,000; solid brick and stone take longer again, so ask which row the quote is built from.
Asbestos
Fibro sheeting, eaves and wet-area linings in older homes can contain bonded asbestos. Removed inside a demolition quote it runs $1,500–$10,000 for a typical house, and it comes out before anything else.
Block and access
A sloping Hills block, a narrow driveway or a house built close to the side boundary limits which machines fit, slowing the job and moving the price up its band.
Outbuildings and concrete
A shed at $280–$1,600, a single garage at $3,000–$6,000 and concrete at $55–$95 per square metre each add a row to the house price.
Storeys
A two-storey home is $25,000–$50,000, against $12,000–$40,000 for a typical house: more height means more waste and more careful work near the neighbours.
Waste
Ask how the waste will be sorted: clean brick, concrete and steel are cheaper to dispose of than mixed loads, and old red brick or hardwood can sometimes be credited back.
How to Save Money on Demolition Cost in Adelaide
Demolition Cost in Adelaide by Job Size
At the small end are single structures and single rooms: a shed at $280–$1,600, a non-structural wall at $800–$2,500, a kitchen strip-out at $2,500–$6,000. Whole houses are priced by construction type, or per square metre of floor area at $40–$150 where a contractor quotes that way.
A full site clearance is the house plus everything else that goes. Each structure and each slab is its own row, so check the quote names every one rather than giving a single lump sum.
Demolition Cost in Adelaide: What the Quote Should Include
Compare Adelaide demolition quotes line by line: each should list every structure coming down, how asbestos and the services are handled, what happens to the waste and how the block is left.
- What is coming down, priced against our rows - for example a typical house at $12,000–$40,000 or a single-storey brick veneer house at $18,000–$30,000 - and what stays (slab, driveway, fences, trees)
- Whether the price includes waste removal and tipping, and how the site is left: levelled, cleared to the slab, or ready for a builder
- The disconnection of electricity, gas, water and sewer, quoted at $1,000–$3,000 or shown as the owner's job, with who books each utility
- An asbestos inspection result, and any removal priced as its own line - bonded asbestos inside a demolition quote is $1,500–$10,000 on our table
- For a pool, which method is quoted: full removal at $8,000–$18,000 or a fill-in at $5,000–$10,000, and how the fill is compacted
- Who obtains the demolition approval or permit and whether the fee is in the price or passed on at cost
- The contractor's licence or registration where your state requires one, and their public liability insurance
- Site access, machinery and any traffic or footpath arrangements on the street, shown as lines rather than buried in the total
- A single GST basis across every line, the contractor's ABN and the payment stages
Frequently Asked Questions — Demolition Cost in Adelaide
Our Methodology
Prices on this page are compiled from publicly available cost guides, supplier and contractor price lists and individual tradesperson websites across Australia, fetched in November 2026. Every band rests on at least two independent sources, and the typical figure is one a source states. The demolition evidence does not support separate city prices, so Adelaide shows the national bands. Our price guides are produced independently and no tradesperson can influence a published figure. All prices are estimates and will vary based on your specific job. Always compare quotes. Last reviewed November 2026. Read our full methodology →