Florida Pergola Kits

Are you dreaming of turning your Florida patio into a stunning backyard retreat, complete with protection from the elements? A popular outdoor living element that serves both purposes is a pergola. One of the quickest ways to build that feature into your garden plan that guarantees some shade, protection from weather, and timeless beauty is with a ready-to-assemble pergola kit. Pergola Depot pergola kits are pre-cut and pre-drilled, and can be shipped right to your location. Your kit will contain all the pieces needed to assemble your patio cover, including easy-to-follow instructions, so you’ll be sitting under the shade of your new pergola within a weekend! 

Not sure where to begin to select your new pergola? First, consider the style that will work in your location. Not surprisingly, the style of pergola kits Florida residents will most often choose are those that provide plenty of shade. Our most popular Florida pergolas are our Big Kahuna and Big Kahuna PLUS pergola kit with roofing. Both styles are engineered to withstand 175 mph wind to ensure you have a pergola that will endure during extreme Florida weather. Most homeowners start their search by thinking about how to make it blend with their current home or patio design. What are your top priorities and how will you choose?

Guide to Choosing a Florida Pergola

The 3 main considerations when choosing a Florida pergola are: How much shade will it provide? Will it withstand severe weather? How will it be used?

Make the pergola part of your design for function and flair. The rafters and top slats of a pergola create a natural wood shade structure to protect you from the Florida sunny days. If you seek even more shade, canopies, and shade covers offer additional protection. If you choose a structure designed for stormy weather like our pergolas, you can be confident that your patio cover will withstand the fury that Mother Nature can unleash in Florida.

Incorporate this popular outdoor living element into your design to use it as a cover over an outdoor kitchen, to create a seating area near your swimming pool, or as a garden design feature that enhances an empty backyard space.

An iconic Florida pergola is surrounded by palm trees and nearby water access. But just as appealing is the beauty one creates when placed near a winding garden path in the backyard of an inland Florida home. 

Whether you’re northern, mid-state, central, or coastline – we’re going to recommend the best Florida patio covers for a variety of landscape settings. 

The top choices for Florida patio cover pergolas that we recommend are The Big Kahuna, Big Kahuna PLUS covered pergola kit, The Big Kahuna Solar-Ready pergola kits, The Big Kahuna Timber Frame Pergola Kit, or our Sombrero Pergola Kit. These are our top sellers in the Sunshine State and are all built to withstand the harsh weather and create shade. All of these pergola styles are built to withstand 175 mph wind gusts, which is important in Florida during hurricane season.

Our best-selling Big Kahuna pergolas are designed for maximum shade and are engineered for extreme weather. This pergola style is offered in freestanding and attached models. Standard size freestanding pergola kits include 4 posts to support the rafters and beams. Standard size attached pergolas include 2 posts and a ledger board for attaching your pergola to a house or other solid structure. Custom pergola kits above 20′ will include more posts depending on the size. The Sombrero and Melbourne are both popular pergola styles for Florida backyard designs. Modeled after the Big Kahuna style, these medium and light shade pergolas offer a bit less shade but are quality-built structures at a lower price point. If you like more coverage from the sun and light rain, you can also add a retractable canopy to our Big Kahuna, Sombrero, Melbourne, or Fedora pergola styles. These styles have varying coverage from top slats that can be enhanced further with a colorful shade sail or canopy.

Our standard classic pergola styles come in many popular sizes, such as the Big Kahuna 12×12 pergola in freestanding or attached, the 14×14 pergola, or the 20×20 pergola. If you’re looking for some coverage but are looking for a budget-friendly pergola, consider one of our 10×10 pergolas. These offer ample space under the pergola roof at a lower price point.

For more complete coverage, you can select a roofed pergola style that includes metal roofing to shield you from the elements. Choose the Big Kahuna PLUS pergola with roof and add your optional metal roofing for even more shade.

Maximum Coverage Big Kahuna Pergola Kit

The Big Kahuna provides maximum coverage for a backyard patio in a strong, stylish pergola design. If you’re looking to create a cover over an outdoor kitchen or a retreat in your garden for a little escape, a freestanding structure will frame the area perfectly.

A Big Kahuna pergola can provide coverage over a seating area next to the home and pool. Select the Big Kahuna PLUS pergola with roofing and choose from a variety of popular roofing colors.

Free standing pergolas can provide structure to your newly added outdoor Florida patio, or cover the backyard BBQ area for your outdoor parties. 

This style can also be configured for solar panels. Our Big Kahuna Solar Pergolas are built just like our standard Big Kahuna pergolas, but configured to accommodate solar panels.

Configure your install to provide power for outdoor living environments, carport with power for charging, for backup power, or many other uses.

The kit includes all materials required to assemble the solar pergola, but doesn’t include solar panels, racks, or other solar related equipment.

Medium Coverage Sombrero Pergola Kit

The Sombrero would be a good choice for a patio design if you’re looking for a little less coverage while still benefiting from some shade. The Sombrero has the same solid design as our Big Kahuna, but comes with half the rafters and top slats.

This creates a more open feel and offers a more affordable pricing option. Our Sombrero style pergola comes standard with 6×6 posts, double 2×8 beams, 2×8 notched rafters, 2×2 top slats and stainless steel hardware.

The rafters are placed on 24 inch centers and the top slats on 12 inch centers, creating a more exposed feel than the Big Kahuna, but offers a lot more coverage than other ready-to-assemble pergolas on the market.

If you’re still unsure which might work best for your budget and space, compare all of our different style pergolas on our Pergola Styles Comparison for a side-by-side look at the options.

Our Guide to Choosing a Pergola offers another helpful resource for reviewing all the options for each of our pergola styles. This comparison has important steps to consider in configuring your Florida pergola. Review the choices for wood types, post height and installation method, and end cuts to customize the appearance of the rafters and beams on your new wood pergola. We offer guidance when selecting your pergola to ensure that your patio or garden area is ready for the installation of the posts as well as the remaining pergola components.

Light Coverage Melbourne Pergola Kit

The Melbourne shares the same sturdy design and quality construction with our Big Kahuna and Sombrero wood pergola styles, with 4-6 rafters depending on the beam length and no top slats.

This creates a high quality kit that’s reasonably priced for many backyard budgets – and offers the flexibility to choose your shade option.

Once you’ve decided on the pergola size, you can then complete your backyard shade package and add one of our popular retractable canopies or shade sails that are offered in a variety of beautiful colors. The Melbourne is available in 90 standard sizes from 8×8 to 20×20 in freestanding or attached. Finding the correct measurements for your pergola can be confusing sometimes. You can choose from a range of rafter and beam lengths. Your rafter and beam lengths will be reflected in your size choice – for example, an 8×10 pergola kit will have 8 foot rafters and 10 foot beams. Inner and Outer post-to-post dimensions will also be affected by your choice in size. Review our pergola measuring guide, and then contact us with any questions about the pergola size you’re considering.

The Melbourne freestanding pergola, just like the rest of our models, is proudly built per order in the USA with precision and care. The Melbourne comes standard with 6×6 posts, double 2×8 beams, 2×8 notched rafters, stainless steel hardware, and optional post base mounting hardware.

Our Melbourne attached pergola will include the same components as the freestanding, but will also include a ledger board for mounting the pergola to your house or other solid structure. Included in the kit will be step-by-step installation instructions. Each kit comes complete with all pre-cut, pre-drilled lumber that is marked for easy assembly. 

Timber Frame Style Pergola Kit

We also have a timber frame structure offering, the Big Kahuna Timber Frame pergola kit. Built using traditional woodworking techniques including mortised joinery, wood pegs, and quality hardware – our timber frame kits create strong and beautiful structures.

Available in popular sizes and premium wood, our Big Kahuna Timber Frame pergola kits include shipping to your Florida location.

Customizations are available for special sizes to accommodate your outdoor project.

Florida Pergola Styles

Pergolas that help create shade and ambiance for your patio or deck can be built in many configurations. Maybe your yard needs an overhaul, and a garden pergola with a seating area would complete your design.

You may have an existing patio that needs a cover that will require a style that is attached to your home or existing structure.

Compare the different pergola styles and sizes, and keep in mind that our full-size pergolas can all be ordered in freestanding or attached. Regardless of the style you choose, you’ll want to consider how the pergola will be installed on your patio or in your garden area. Our pergola post guide provides some information about mounting surfaces, as well as pergola height and the clearance you’ll have under the pergola based on the size posts you choose and how those posts are mounted in the ground.

If you don’t see the size you’re looking for or know your dimensions are not standard, we also offer custom size pergolas. Custom sizes are sometimes required for projects with an unusual patio size, special height requirements, or an extra large area needed to accommodate commercial pergola kits such as restaurants or entertainment venues. If you’re unsure of the size you need, contact us and we can help determine your patio measurements and proper size pergola to fit.

There are so many options, choices, and decisions to make for your outdoor space whether you’re in south Florida, north Florida, coastal, or inland.

Here are a few tips on how to choose your Florida pergola no matter which part of the state you call home!

How to Choose Pergolas for South Florida and Beyond

Answering questions about choosing a pergola that works well in South Florida can answer the very same questions you might have in many other parts of Florida. Weather conditions in South Florida can sometimes be more severe during certain times of year than in North or Central Florida, so you can use this Q&A as a reference on how to choose your Florida pergola, regardless of where in the state you’re building your outdoor oasis.

Which type of wood is the best choice for pergolas in Florida?

All of our wood kits are made using either western red rough-sawn tight knot cedar or pressure treated #1 southern yellow pine lumber. Either wood choice ensures you will have a quality wood pergola.

If you’re considering a 6-post poolside pergola, that would be one of our custom sizes and can be built using one of our premium wood types – western red cedar or #1 pressure treated southern yellow pine.

Western red cedar wood has a beautiful light amber color with a wonderfully appealing fragrance that adds another dimension to its fine qualities. Cedar is highly resistant to decay and can withstand severe elements often found in Florida.

Pressure treated pine, the most affordable pergola wood option, is also very rot and insect-resistant and has qualities that will stand up to even the worst weather often experienced in Florida.

Whether you choose cedar or pine for your poolside pergola, either type creates a lovely patio cover with plenty of space for outdoor patio furniture, landscaping, and planter boxes.

Here’s a bit more information about pine to keep in mind as you plan your outdoor pergola project. A pressure treated pine pergola kit will have a green appearance when it first arrives. This is due to the pressure treatment applied to the wood. After you assemble the pergola and allow it to dry for 2-6 months (depending on your local weather), you’ll be able to apply a stain, sealant, or paint to your pergola. There are different options for staining and painting a wood pergola. Remember, different wood types have different timeframes for applying stain or paint that you can consider when comparing your wood type options.

Will I need a permit to build a pergola?

What happens if you need a permit to build your pergola? For several of our pergola styles, we provide an engineered drawing that is stamped in Florida for up to 175 mph wind gusts. This comes free of charge when you order a pergola kit from us in Florida. If you build a pergola from scratch without a kit, you would have to get an engineer to draw up a plan for you to take to the code office. Ordering a pergola kit that’s already cut and drilled with a stamped drawing is a great way to get your project underway quickly!

Do you have installers who can assemble pergolas in Florida?

We offer a Pergola Installer Directory with several pergola installer listings across the country, and many of them in the state of Florida. Pergola Depot is not affiliated with the businesses in the directory.

We provide it as a reference, so it’s up to you to determine if the installer business will be suitable for you to use to complete the pergola installation as well as other related projects you might have. You may want to check to make sure they are licensed, insured, and can do the job. If there isn’t an installer in your area, contact us and we’ll do our best to assist in finding you an installer for your new pergola.

What is the cost for a standard size pergola kit?

Our base prices for a standard-size pergola kit range from $2930 up to $23,000. Prices vary based on wood type, attached or freestanding, optional roofing, post length, and size.

Most of the time, ordering a pergola kit from us is about the same cost if you priced out materials for a Home Depot pergola or a Lowe’s pergola to build the pergola yourself. Then you would have to take the time to figure out how to lay it out, how to cut the end cuts, etc. Make it easier and order your pergola in a ready-to-assemble kit. Your neighbors will think that you hired a carpenter to custom build a pergola in your backyard when they see the quality of the pergola kit that you receive from us.

Our DIY pergola kits are built by hand with precision so that you and a few friends or family members can assemble your new pergola within a day. Timeframe to assemble depends on your level of experience and the size kit you’ve chosen for your outdoor patio cover.

Can I customize any type of pergola?

Each of our pergola kit styles is customizable with options that are specific to your liking. Our standard sizes can be built in over 90 sizes ranging from 8×8 up to 20×20 in freestanding or attached. If you’re looking for an attached pergola, any of our full size DIY pergolas (Big Kahuna, Big Kahuna PLUS roofed pergola, Big Kahuna Solar Ready, Sombrero, Melbourne, and Fedora) can be ordered as an attached pergola kit. Additionally, our Visor garage pergola kits are only sold as an attached pergola. Our full-size attached pergolas have been engineered with two posts for sizes 8×8 up to 20×20 (four posts for freestanding sizes 8×8 up to 20×20). Once you go over 20 feet overall (17 feet outside post to post) in either direction we will need to add extra support posts to bear the weight of the pergola. Note that with our roofed pergola kits, there will be a variation in post length to accommodate the slope for the metal roofing.  

If one of those sizes doesn’t work for your backyard space, submit a Custom Pergola Quote request. You can request a custom attached or freestanding pergola kit for any size project. On the form you can enter details about the pergola features you’d like, including the estimated pergola size and type of wood.

It’s worthwhile to spend a little time and find the best fit for your outdoor project. Take a minute to read our reviews and customer testimonials. You’ll find that we take great pride in our work and do our best to provide a high level of customer service and build quality pergolas. Compare our products, and contact us if you need any help with measurements or choosing the style that will complete your Florida backyard retreat.