Do I Have Enough Room for a Golf Simulator? (And What Will It Cost?)

Everyone wants to play golf whenever they want. Get out of bed, pour your coffee, and go play Augusta in your basement. But what does that actually cost? And what do you need to buy?

Setups range from around $1,500 to well over $50,000, depending on what you're after. Want to hit into a net and see your shots on an iPad from an entry-level launch monitor? That build starts around $1,500, less if you already own the iPad. Want a tour-level setup like the bays we're building at Station Yards, with the latest TrackMan units, 4K projection, swing cameras, turf that feels like a fairway, and full padding and baffles on every side? Now you're over $40,000 when you include labor.

And it's never a one-time number. Most launch monitors and course software charge yearly subscriptions, and PCs and projectors have a 3-to-5 year lifespan, so plan on replacing them every few years. The builder below shows the annual line right next to the upfront total, because that's the number most people forget.

But before you pick your tech, your room picks it for you. If you have a big space, more than 15 feet of width, 10-foot ceilings, and 18 or more feet of depth, you can run basically anything. The tighter your room, the shorter your list. That doesn't mean there's no great option for you. It means you have to be smart about which one.

Width is the example everyone learns the hard way. With 15 feet, you can center the hitting mat and righties and lefties both play comfortably. At 12 feet, you've got three plays: an overhead unit that tracks both sides of the mat, so righties and lefties stand in the same spot to hit (like the TrackMan iO Duo), a side-placed monitor like a GCQuad or Bushnell that you physically move whenever a lefty and righty swap, or, if it's your room and you're the only one swinging, an offset one-handed setup.

Your monitor choice then drives everything downstream. Higher-end simulators need real computing power, so budget for the PC, and to get what you paid for out of the graphics, the projector has to keep up. Or skip both entirely: some monitors run straight to an iPad or a TV, no PC, no projector, no wiring. There are a thousand combinations, and every good build starts the same way: with your room's actual numbers. So grab a tape measure and put yours in below.