Garden Office Pods: One Desk, Its Own Door

A garden office pod is the smallest garden office that works all year: one desk, a chair and a shelf in 6 to 9 m². In Ireland a pod costs €6,700 to €10,500 insulated and put up, or €11,000 to €13,420 for a high-spec one delivered and installed. At that size it needs no planning permission in nearly every garden.

A home office pod, an outdoor office pod and a garden pod for work are the same thing. Here is what fits in one and what to check.

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€6,700 to €10,500a pod, insulated and put up
€11,000 to €13,420high-spec, installed
6 to 9 m²one desk

A small black cabin with a glazed front, standing alone in a field — A small dark cabin with a glazed front. A pod is this scale: one room, one door, glass on the side you face.

What fits in a pod

Size	Floor area	What fits
3 × 2 m	6 m²	One desk along the long wall, a chair, a shelf above. Nothing else.
3.4 × 2.5 m	8.5 m²	A desk, a chair, a filing unit and room to push the chair back.
3 × 3 m	9 m²	A corner desk with two screens, storage, and an easy chair by the door.

Why a pod, and why not

For: it fits a town garden, it leaves the 25 m² of open space the planning rule asks for, it heats in minutes, and it is the lowest price for a real office.
Against: one person only. A second desk, a meeting or a treadmill will not fit later. If there is any chance of two people, look at 12 m².

Five things to check on a pod

Insulation in the floor. Cold comes up through a small building's floor first. Ask for it in millimetres.
Headroom. You stand up in it every day. Ask for the inside height, not the outside.
A window that opens on a different wall from the door, so air moves through in summer.
Where the glass faces. A screen with the sun behind it is unreadable. Glass to the north or east is kinder.
Sockets at desk height, and a data point. Six sockets is not too many for one desk.

Delivered whole, or built in the garden

Some pods are made in a workshop and arrive finished on a lorry. They need a clear way in, or a crane over the house. Others arrive as panels and go up in the garden, which suits a terrace with no side passage. Ask which yours is before you fall for one: the way in decides it.

Pods, priced

What	Typical cost	What moves the price
A one-desk office pod, 6 to 9 m²	€6,700 to €10,500	3 × 2 m up to 3 × 3 m. Insulated timber, put up. Base and power extra
A high-spec pod, installed	€11,000 to €13,420	Better glazing and insulation, or delivered finished
The base	€800 to €2,500	Ground screws, a slab or pads. A slope costs more
Electrics inside the office	€600 to €1,200	Sockets, lights and a small fuse board
The power cable from the house	from €15 a metre	Distance to the fuse board, and what the trench crosses

Our price guide for Ireland. Ask whether VAT is in the price. Many list prices leave it out. Ask what the price includes: the base, the cable from the house and the inside finish.