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Have you worked out the cost of a contractor putting in quality tiles? Shower bases are usually cheaper. Pre-fabs are idiot proof, so there's that. But tile gives more options and a diverse look. Shower bases are mostly plain and simple.
The drawback with pre-fab is the fixed size. You can't have a bigger shower, and there's a chance of slipping when there suds on the floor.
IMO, tile is always better. Needs maintaining but that's alright

@laur No, haven't seen these before. I'm a fan of not having the potential problems with contractor built bases for the reasons you mentioned.

Another solution is a cast iron base from Kholer

They come in various sizes and colors and I know it's going to be durable - I don't know about the composite stone.

At $500 The cast iron bases are also a much better value. They look great, feel sturdy under foot, and aren't going to crack or leak.

@Jake The Wonderdog Thanks so much for the link. I'll take a look at these for sure as an option. I'll have to see if these are available in Canada as well.

I'm in Canada as well and researching options for our shower. Haven't seen these bases in person but the price doesn't work for me. I had cast iron shower pan in my list of options but now see they're not much cheaper than the Wet Style: $1846 at Home Depot for a 60 x 30 pan with right hand drain. Kohler cast iron shower pan - Home Depot

When does your reno start, @Laur?

Holy smokes!

• Kohler Salient at Home Depot: CA$1,846.00
• Kohler Salient at Rona CA$1,393
• Kohler Salient at Amazon CA$1,355
• Kohler Salient at Home Depot US$869

Also look for solid surface bases. They are made by Swan (Swanstone), Corian, and other manufacturers. The advantage is that they have their color going through the whole depth of the material and can be repaired in place. If you somehow scratch it, a 3M scrubby like you use in the kitchen (maybe two or three different grit levels) can renew the finish. A professional can repair chips in place, too, if you managed to chip it.

If I'm not mistaken, a solid surface base would be more expensive than the WetStyle option. Around 3K Cdn for a 48" X 36" shower pan when I checked a couple of years ago.

I've been looking into the solid surface bases as well. Quite expensive compared to the acrylic bases, but they do have lower thresholds! My only concern is most of them don't have a "tile" flange integrated, and one must "tape" it on prior to installation. I worry about water leakage down the road. Oceania is the only company that offers an integrated tile flange during manufacture, but again it's expensive and lead times right now are 4 months. I also worry about hair coloring products and staining with these solid surface bases. Only a few have stated it's not a problem. Keep me posted on your decision. :-)

Hi Laur. I wonder if you ended up installing a Wetstyle shower base or another solid surface shower pan brand and if you did, how is your experience so far? I think the cost will be comparable to having the shower floor tiled but I'm not sure. I have an alcove bathtub and plan to convert it into a walk in shower and just chanced upon the Wetstyle website so it piqued my interest until I found out how expensive they were. I live in Metro Vancouver and there are a few resellers listed so I'm going to call them to see if they have one in their showroom for me to check out.

WETSTYLE shower bases, like the one you're considering, are high-quality products made with textured, ADA-compliant materials. They're designed to be durable and offer excellent slip resistance, unlike some cast iron alternatives like Kohler. In addition to being colored and textured, they can be cut to size on the job site or by WETSTYLE, offering more flexibility during installation. Another advantage is that chips or scratches can be repaired in the field, which isn't possible with cast iron.

Given that they slope downward, installation is simpler, reducing the risk of contractor error with tiling. Plus, the lack of grout lines means less cleaning and maintenance over time. While they are on the pricier side at around $2,000 CAD, the combination of design, ease of maintenance, and durability provides solid value for the investment.