Carport vs. Garage: What Should You Choose?

You’ve just taken your brand new baby home, and you need to figure out where to put it. It shouldn’t be too hot, and you definitely don’t want it to get rained or snowed on, but your home does not include a garage, and now you’re in a pickle.

Before you go all out and build a brand new garage to go with your brand new car, stop for a second and consider another option – a carport. Obviously, choosing one of the two depends largely on your particular needs and capabilities, and you need to know upsides and downsides of both before you make your choice. Here is how the two compare in five critical aspects.

1. Price

Predictably, garage costs much more than a carport. The amount of material needed to make a closed structure is naturally much higher than the amount needed to make an open structure with a simple roof. In addition, the time you need to invest is much higher for a garage than for a carport. Finally, you can make a carport as a DIY project, without having to pay for professional assistance. By some estimates, the total cost for building a garage goes up to $33.200, while the cost for making a carport goes up to $7.200. So, if the money is tight, a carport is the obvious choice.

2. Protection

A carport is an open-style structure. In essence, it’s a roof supported by beams or posts. A garage is a completely closed room for your car. While a carport can provide shade for your car, and stop most of the rain and snow, it simply doesn’t provide the protection equal to the kind provided by a garage. So, if you live in a place like Australia, where the climate is moderate and fairly predictable, finding a good carport in Sydney is probably all you need to do. On the other hand, if your home is in Norway, you will be much better off with a good garage.

3. Security

When it comes to stopping thieves from having a go at your car, carports don't really do much by themselves. You can take certain precautions, though – like having motion-sensor lights that go off whenever somebody approaches the area, for instance. Still, a garage will make you sleep much better at night. Therefore, if you live in a bad part of the town, a garage is definitely the way to go.

4. Esthetics

Now, this depends entirely on the style of your home. However, in general, carports blend in more easily with the environment. The different styles and materials you can use make this even easier, and you can mask it really nicely with some shrubs, vines, and flowers. A garage can be a bit more challenging in this respect. If your home doesn’t already contain a garage, building one additionally can make it stick out and seem like an eyesore. It’s not impossible to make a garage that’ll fit in well with your home, but it’ll likely require even more money and time.

5. Additional benefits

Both of these provide certain additional benefits worth considering. A garage usually serves as storage space, in addition to its primary function. It can be transformed into living space if need be, and you can usually build another room on top of it. On the other hand, a carport can double as shade for an outdoor living area, and it usually doesn’t require any building permits (though you’ll want to check this with the local authorities).

To sum up, your choice should be made based on your needs. If you live in an area of unpredictable weather or high crime rates, go for a garage. If not, and you'd like to save some money and time, a carport is an obvious way to go.