# Playground and Daycare Turf

> Playground turf with a safety pad for Ontario daycares, schools, parks and backyards: CSA Z614 fall heights, published prices, and a free installer request.

Canonical: https://artificialturfcanada.ca/services/playground-turf
Last updated: 2026-10-24

Turf over a shock-absorbing pad, matched to the fall height of the equipment above it. A local installer builds it for child care centres, schools, parks and backyards.

## At a glance

- **Pad sized to the fall height**: The safety comes from the pad under the turf, chosen for how high a child can fall from the equipment.
- **Built for CSA Z614**: Canada's playground standard. Ask for the system's tested critical fall height in writing.
- **Published prices**: A Toronto-area installer publishes $18–$35 per sq ft installed, pad included.
- **No pea gravel in shoes**: Turf stays put, drains, and lets wheelchairs and strollers roll across the play area.

## Why playgrounds use turf

Wood chips, pea gravel and sand all cushion falls, but they move. Kids kick them out from under swings and slides, leaving thin spots exactly where the cushioning matters, and staff spend their mornings raking them back. **Playground turf** over a shock pad doesn't migrate, stays usable after rain, and gives a firm surface that strollers, wheelchairs and walkers can cross. It is the reason so many Ontario daycares and school yards have switched over the past decade.

## The pad does the safety work

Turf on its own is not a safety surface. What absorbs a fall is the shock pad underneath: a foam or rubber layer of a set thickness, tested together with the turf as a system. Each system has a **critical fall height**, the highest fall it can safely cushion under the test method. The equipment above it has a fall height too, set by the highest platform or the top of a swing's arc. The pad has to match or beat the equipment.

In Canada, children's playspaces and equipment are covered by CSA Z614. Public playgrounds and licensed child care centres are expected to meet it, and Ontario's child care regulation (O. Reg. 137/15 under the Child Care and Early Years Act) is what licensed centres are inspected against. Certified playground safety inspectors, trained through the Canadian Playground Safety Institute, check surfacing as part of an inspection. Ask any installer for:

- The system's tested critical fall height, in writing, for the exact turf and pad thickness.
- How far the surfacing extends around each piece of equipment (the use zone).
- How the pad is joined and secured so it can't shift.
- The warranty on the pad, which often outlives the turf.

## What it costs

A Toronto-area installer publishes $18–$35 per sq ft installed, depending on pad thickness, fall height, drainage and equipment access. The pad alone runs $3–$10 per sq ft from ¾ inch to 2½ inches thick. For whole projects, the same installer publishes $8,000–$22,000 for a daycare playground of 300 to 800 sq ft and $25,000–$150,000+ for a school or park. Every figure is in the [playground turf cost guide](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/guides/playground-turf-cost).

## Drainage and heat

A play area has to be usable an hour after rain, so the base under the pad drains the same way a turf lawn does. Ask where the water goes. In full sun, turf surfaces get much hotter than grass or shade; plan shade structures or trees over the most-used areas, and read [how hot turf gets](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/guides/artificial-turf-heat) for what the research shows.

## Backyard play areas

At home, the same approach works under a swing set or play structure: turf over a pad rated for the equipment's fall height. Many families turf the whole yard and put the thicker pad only under the play structure. Tell the installer the height of the highest platform.

## Timing for daycares and schools

Playground work is usually scheduled for school breaks or quiet weeks, since the area is closed while the base is built and the pad and turf go down. A typical daycare playground takes a crew several days to a couple of weeks depending on size, access for equipment and how much old surfacing has to be removed first. Book early for summer: playground installers' calendars fill well ahead of July and August.

## Daycares, schools and municipalities

Institutional projects usually go through a quote or tender with a specification. Send us the area, the equipment list or heights, and your timeline, and we'll pass it to an installer who does playground work and can provide the fall-height documentation your inspector will want.

## Looking after it

A playground surface needs regular checks to stay safe. Walk it for lifted seams, edges and trip hazards, top up infill where it thins (especially under swings and at slide exits, where feet dig in), and brush the fibres upright. Certified playground inspectors check surfacing during inspections; keep the installer's fall-height documentation and warranty with your inspection records. If equipment is added or changed later, check that the existing pad still covers its fall height and use zone.

## Published prices

CAD, before GST/HST.

| Item | Price | Note |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Playground turf with safety pad, installed | $18–$35 per sq ft | 2 published prices, 1 source |
| Safety pad alone, ¾ to 2½ inch | $3–$10 per sq ft | Thicker pads cover higher fall heights |
| Daycare playground, 300 to 800 sq ft | $8,000–$22,000 |  |
| School or park, 1,000 to 5,000 sq ft | $25,000–$150,000+ |  |

Published prices from Ontario turf installers’ own price guides and HomeStars’ Canadian price guide, checked October 23, 2026. They are ranges, not quotes, in CAD before HST.

[Every price and where it comes from](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/guides/playground-turf-cost)

## Questions people ask

### Is artificial turf safe for playgrounds?

When it's installed over a shock pad tested to cover the equipment's fall height, yes. Turf on its own, laid on gravel or concrete, is not a safety surface.

### What thickness of pad does a playground need?

It depends on the fall height of the equipment. Taller structures need thicker pads. The installer should give you the system's tested critical fall height in writing.

### How much does playground turf cost in Ontario?

A Toronto-area installer publishes $18–$35 per sq ft installed, including the pad, and $8,000–$22,000 for a daycare playground of 300 to 800 sq ft.

### Does playground turf meet CSA Z614?

Turf and pad systems can, when the system's critical fall height covers the equipment and the surfacing extends across the use zones. A certified playground inspector confirms it on site.

## Related

- [Playground Turf Cost in Ontario (2026): Daycares, Schools and Backyards](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/guides/playground-turf-cost)
- [How Hot Does Artificial Turf Get? What the Research Shows](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/guides/artificial-turf-heat)
- [Artificial Turf Pros and Cons: An Honest Look for Canadian Homeowners](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/guides/artificial-turf-pros-and-cons)
- [Synthetic Turf Sports Fields](https://artificialturfcanada.ca/services/sports-field-turf)