How Many Helical Piers Do I Need?
Work out how many helical piers or piles you need for a foundation repair, a deck or an engineered wall load, and see the matching cost range.
Your project
Line load and footing span come from your engineer or structural drawings. Get pier capacity from the capacity calculator.
How pier count is worked out
There are two different spacing questions. The first is how far apart piers sit along a foundation, which sets how many you buy. The second is the minimum distance between piles so they do not share the same soil, which matters only for tight groups.
Foundation repair
Piers go along the settling wall at a regular spacing, with extra piers at corners and under point loads such as chimneys. PierTech gives a typical helical pier spacing of 5 to 10 ft. Heavier walls or weak footings need closer spacing, and the footing has to span safely between piers.
Decks
A deck needs one pile under each post. Post spacing comes from the beam span tables in IRC Section R507.5, so a stronger beam means fewer posts. Our deck guide works through a 12x16 attached deck on three piles about 7 ft apart.
Load-based design
Engineers divide the pile's allowable capacity by the wall's line load to get the spacing, then cap it at the distance the footing or grade beam can span. Number of piers = wall length ÷ spacing + 1.
Minimum spacing between piles
To avoid group effects, evaluation reports set a minimum center-to-center distance based on helix size. CHANCE ESR-2794 sets it at four times the largest helix diameter, so 32 in. for an 8 in. helix.
More detail: how far apart helical piers need to be.
Frequently asked questions
How far apart are helical piers placed?
For foundation repair, helical piers are typically spaced 5 to 10 ft apart along the wall, closer for heavy walls or weak footings, with extra piers at corners and point loads.
How many helical piers does a house need?
It depends on how much wall is settling. A 40 ft section at 6 ft spacing needs about 8 line piers plus corner piers. Today's Homeowner estimates about 9 piers for a 2,000 to 2,500 sq ft home.
How many helical piles does a deck need?
One under each post. A 12x16 deck attached to the house typically needs three piles; the same deck freestanding needs six.
What is the minimum spacing between helical piles?
Evaluation reports set it by helix size. CHANCE ESR-2794 requires at least four times the largest helix diameter center to center.
Sources
- PierTech: Helical pier FAQ (typical spacing)
- ICC-ES ESR-2794 (CHANCE)
- 2021 IRC deck code handout (Island County, WA)
- Today's Homeowner: Helical piers cost (piers per house size)
- Forbes Home: Helical piers cost
Related guides and tools
Last reviewed October 2026 by the Helical Pile USA editorial team. Estimates are for planning only; a licensed engineer or installer sets the final design. Found an error? Tell us.
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