Guides · Updated November 2026
Screw piles vs bored piers: which should you use?
Screw piles are steel piles wound into the ground to a measured torque; bored piers are holes drilled and filled with concrete. Screw piles win on speed, wet or reactive sites, tight access and verified load on every pile. Bored piers win on cost for simple sites with good access and stable soil, and where a large-diameter concrete pier is specified. Many Melbourne jobs could use either; the engineer's design and the site conditions decide.
Prices on this page are indicative ranges for Victoria at the time of writing, not a quote. Based in Keilor East, Melbourne. Working across metropolitan and regional Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia.
How each one works
A screw pile is a galvanised steel shaft with one or more helical plates. A machine winds it into the ground, and the torque needed to turn it is read against the engineer's chart to confirm the pile has reached its design capacity. A cap plate or bracket then takes the bearer, post or slab edge.
A bored pier is a hole drilled with an auger, typically 300 to 600 mm diameter, to a depth set by the engineer. A steel cage goes in and the hole is filled with concrete, which then has to cure before it carries load.
When screw piles are the better choice
- Wet, sandy or reactive clay sites where a bored hole would collapse or fill with water.
- Tight backyards and sloping blocks: the installation machine is compact and there is no spoil to cart away.
- Programme pressure: piles go in and the frame or slab follows the same day.
- Where the engineer wants a load reading on every pile, or the structure may be removed later.
When bored piers are the better choice
- Stable soil with good access, where a pier rig can move freely and holes stand open.
- Larger diameter piers under heavy point loads, or where the design calls for mass concrete.
- Cost-driven jobs on straightforward sites: concrete and steel is often cheaper per pier than a galvanised pile.
Cost comparison
On a simple site bored piers usually come in cheaper per unit. Add rock, water, a tight site or a tight programme and screw piles close the gap or overtake, because there's no spoil, no pump, no cure time and fewer return visits. We price both where the design allows and show the difference on the quote.
Questions we get asked
Can screw piles and bored piers be mixed on one job?
Yes, and it's common: bored piers under the house slab with screw piles for a deck or a section with poor access, as long as the engineer details both.
Which lasts longer?
Both are designed for the life of the structure. Screw piles are hot-dip galvanised and sized with a corrosion allowance; concrete piers rely on cover to the steel cage.
Who decides which to use?
Your structural engineer specifies the footing system. We can suggest an alternative where it saves money or time, and the engineer signs it off.