Prosper Drainage
Cost Guide

French Drain Cost in Prosper, TX

Real price ranges for French drain installation in Collin County, including what drives cost up or down and what to expect on a typical Prosper property.

Typical Prosper TX French Drain Cost
$23 to $36 per foot

The published Dallas-area installed rate (HomeBlue). A typical 60 foot Prosper side-yard run works out to about $1,370 to $2,130 before extras. Nationally, LawnStarter reports a $5,000 average job, with most homeowners paying $1,650 to $12,250.

Price Ranges by Scope

Run lengths are multiplied out from HomeBlue's Dallas French drain data. Where the water can legally go sets the length, so the French drain outlet options for your lot type come first; the build itself is covered on French drain installation in Prosper.

French Drain Cost in Prosper, TX: French drain cross-section, perforated pipe in washed stone wrapped in filter fabric in Houston Black clay, falling to a daylight outlet
How a French drain is built in Blackland Prairie clay: perforated pipe, holes down, in washed #57 stone wrapped in non-woven fabric, 18 to 36 inches deep, falling at least 1 inch every 8 feet to a daylight outlet. Not to scale.
Scope of WorkPrice Range
French drain, per linear foot installed (Dallas area)$23 to $36
40 ft run, one side yard or one wet corner$910 to $1,420
60 ft run, full side yard to the curb$1,370 to $2,130
80 ft run, back fence line$1,820 to $2,850
100 ft run, rear intercept routed around the house$2,280 to $3,560
Dry well (national, LawnStarter)$500 to $3,000
Catch basins, downspout tie-ins, long outlet runs, sod and irrigation repairQuoted per site

What Affects Cost in Prosper TX

Linear Footage

The most direct cost driver. More footage means more trench, more aggregate, more pipe, and more labor. In Prosper, a typical side-yard drain run is 40 to 80 feet. Whole-yard systems that tie the front, sides, and back together can reach 150 to 250 feet.

Trench Depth and Soil

Shallow drains at 12 to 18 inches cost less to install than deep perimeter systems at 24 to 36 inches. Prosper clay is dense and requires more equipment effort than sandy soils. Hand-digging around buried utilities adds labor cost per linear foot in affected sections.

Outlet Type and Distance

The cheapest outlet is a surface discharge at the curb or a low point at the rear of the property. Running pipe to a city storm drain or through a long side yard to reach the street adds both material and labor cost. Some Prosper lots have outlets that are simple; others require routing 80+ feet just to reach a compliant discharge point.

Catch Basins and Cleanouts

A catch basin is a box-style inlet that collects surface water at a specific low point; cleanouts provide access to flush the pipe later. Both add cost, quoted per site, but serve important functions. Most Prosper jobs benefit from at least one catch basin in the low corner of the backyard.

New-Construction vs. Established Yard

Installing drainage in a new-construction Prosper home before landscaping is cheaper than retrofitting a mature yard with sod, irrigation, and established plantings. If you are about to landscape a new home, drainage is much more cost-effective to do first.

Why Prosper Costs Slightly More Than National Averages

Excavator in the bare back yard of a newly built brick home
A new-build back yard stripped to bare soil. Final grading on new lots often leaves water running toward the house or the fence line.

National cost sites quote wide ranges: LawnStarter puts exterior French drains at $10 to $65 per linear foot, with a $5,000 average job. Dallas-area pricing is tighter at $23 to $36 per linear foot (HomeBlue). Where a Prosper job lands inside that band comes down to three local factors.

First, the clay. Vertisol clay is significantly harder to trench than sandy or loam soils, and it takes more aggregate volume per linear foot to create a functional drainage bed. Second, outlet complexity: many Prosper lots, especially in newer subdivisions, have limited outlet options because the street curb is at a higher elevation than you would expect, or because the rear of the lot backs to a common area with no permitted discharge point. Third, tight lots: Prosper subdivision lots often require precision work in narrow side yards with fencing, utilities, and irrigation to work around.

None of these factors should deter you from getting a drain installed. The cost is still significantly lower than even minor foundation repair, and a well-installed drain in Collin County clay lasts 20 to 30 years with minimal maintenance.

The Wider DFW Market Rate, For Comparison

It is worth knowing what the rest of the metroplex charges, because it tells you whether a quote you are holding is reasonable. Across the Dallas-Fort Worth market in 2026, installed french drain work runs roughly $23 to $36 per linear foot, and a whole project in North Dallas typically lands between $2,500 and $4,250. A 100 foot run installed generally comes in at $3,000 to $5,000.

Two numbers get quoted that are not comparable and cause a lot of confusion. A surface-only drain, essentially a shallow gravel trench with no engineered outlet, is quoted at $10 to $15 per linear foot. It is cheap because it is not the same product, and on Houston Black clay it silts closed quickly. At the other end, interior or below-slab drainage runs $50 to $60 per linear foot, because it involves working under a structure. If one bid is dramatically under the others, check which of these three things it is actually describing before assuming you found a bargain.

Prosper sits at the upper half of the residential band rather than outside it. The reason is almost always outlet distance rather than any premium on the work itself.

Two Prosper Yards, Same Puddle, Very Different Price

Standing water pooled on a lawn after rain
Water standing on a lawn a day after rain: the surface is sealed and the water has nowhere to go.

The most common question is why a neighbour paid so much less. Here is the honest arithmetic on the two most common Prosper scenarios.

A standard subdivision lot. The wet corner is at the back fence, the curb is 50 feet away down the side yard, and there is a clean route past the AC pad. That is roughly 50 feet of trench, one catch basin, and a curb outlet. At the Dallas-area rate the trench itself is about $1,150 to $1,800, with the basin and outlet on top, and it is usually a one-day job. Nothing about it is complicated.

An estate lot in Star Trail, Whitley Place, or a rear section of Windsong Ranch. Same puddle, same basin, but the nearest legal outlet is 160 feet away, the route crosses an irrigation zone and a mature bed, and part of it has to be bored under a walkway. Now it is 160 feet of trench and pipe, about $3,680 to $5,760 at the same per-foot rate before the sprinkler rerouting, boring and hand work through the planted section are added. The same visible problem costs several times more.

The puddle is identical. The distance to somewhere the water can legally go is not. This is why a Prosper drainage job should not be quoted from a photo, and why any per-foot price given before someone has established where your outlet is should be treated as a guess.

French Drain Cost FAQ

Corrugated drain pipe bedded in washed gravel in an open drainage trench
An open drain trench with corrugated pipe bedded in washed gravel, before the fabric is folded over and the trench backfilled.
How much does a French drain cost in Prosper TX?
At the published Dallas-area rate of $23 to $36 per linear foot (HomeBlue), a 40 foot drain runs about $910 to $1,420, 60 feet about $1,370 to $2,130 and 100 feet about $2,280 to $3,560. Nationally, LawnStarter reports a $5,000 average job with most homeowners paying $1,650 to $12,250. Catch basins, downspout tie-ins, long outlet runs and sod or irrigation repair are quoted on site because they depend on the lot.
What is the cost per linear foot for a French drain in Collin County?
Published Dallas-area pricing for French drain installation is $23 to $36 per linear foot (HomeBlue), and Collin County jobs move within that band on trench depth, aggregate type, pipe diameter and outlet conditions. Shallow drains in accessible areas are on the lower end. Deep trenches, hard clay, difficult outlets, or areas with buried utilities push the cost higher.
Do French drains in Prosper TX cost more because of the clay soil?
Clay soil does increase cost slightly. Trenching through Vertisol clay takes longer than sandy soil, aggregate volume is sometimes higher to ensure adequate drainage capacity, and proper filter fabric installation is more important. National averages from general cost websites mix every soil type, so treat them as a rough check and lean on Dallas-area figures for a Prosper job.
What makes a French drain job cost more?
The main cost drivers are: length of the drain run, required trench depth, outlet type (surface outlet vs. tied into a storm drain), number of catch basins or cleanouts, difficulty of access, and whether buried utilities require hand-digging around them. Combining multiple drainage problems into one connected system costs more upfront but usually less per square foot of coverage than doing separate jobs.
Is a French drain worth it for a Prosper TX home?
In most cases, yes. Standing water that contacts a slab foundation contributes to the clay shrink-swell cycles that cause differential settling and cracks. A properly installed French drain that keeps the soil at the slab edge from cycling between soaked and dry costs far less than repairing a slab after it has moved. Beyond the foundation, standing water damages turf, creates breeding conditions for mosquitoes, and makes usable outdoor space unusable for days after every rain.

Get an Accurate Estimate for Your Property

Generic cost guides can only give you ranges. The only way to know what your specific Prosper drainage job will cost is an on-site walk. The slope, soil conditions, outlet options, and scope get assessed before quoting. No obligation.

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