What is the issue you are trying to resolve? If its just to get more light, go with a skylight.

I suspect that the answer is..."it depends"!

I don’t know the difference in price, but don’t you get more floor space with a dormer?

Issue: bonus above garage that I'd like more natural light, it's going to be used as a craft room and one section will be unfinished for potential future build out..and used in the meantime for storage.. the unfinished space is approx. 12x30, there is a window on the front facing end, the other area (craft room) is 18x23 and will have a terrace (8ft wide) at the end facing the back yard.

extra floor space is not needed ( more $$ and already plenty of space)

other considerations: esthetics on the elevation..the shed style dormers (which I like vs gabled ones) and DH prefers the skylights.

In my opinion, the dormer will have less leak potential, better protect the glass from damage, look nicer on a traditionally styled home, potentially provide emergency egress, potentially add usable floor space, potentially provide views out, make the glass easier to clean, provide better ways of controlling light coming into the space, and in general make the space a more livable space. I try to avoid skylights.

Without knowing more about size, shape, etc. I'd hazard a guess that skylights will be much less expensive. A shed dormer requires reframing of the roof, sidewalls, new roofing, usually a membrane roof on the "flat" portion, and windows. Individual skylights may involve some framing if they don't fit between the rafters, but are much less involved in scope.

What Mark said.

If you're looking primarily for light, Solatubes (TM) are the easiest by far to retrofit into an existing structure, and bring amazing light with very few downsides.

If you're looking for headroom in a new build, in a traditional style such as American Colonial or Cape Cod, then dormers make a lot of sense.

So what is the current situation and what is your goal?

new build..working on plans now

The space will be unfinished storage and a craft room, that will only be used during the day and only intermittently, there is no view to capture, except a row of tall pine trees between ours an neighbors house. The house style is craftsman..

Would consider solatubes as well, especially for the front half of the space (the unfinished area)

Depending on how pure you want the Craftsman Style to be, skylights do not fit in well.

If you are going for a pure Craftsman Style I do have a Stickley dining room table and chairs for sale. (just a little plug)

For all the reasons Mark mentioned, we are doing shed dormers. Skylights were never an option, really. We live on a farm, though, and the last thing I wanted was a piece of glass that I couldn't get to in order to clean it after the dust from the fields settled on it.

I've always heard there are two types of skylights: Ones that leak and ones that are gonna leak.

Just like concrete, there's concrete that's cracked and there's concrete that's gonna crack.

Personally, I think a shed dormer would be nice for a crafting to be able to get more natural light into the room.

Didn’t read the opinions that closely, but to your question.... on a new build, 3 to 5 times more expensive for a shed dormer than a simple sky light, depending on size of the dormer and quality of the window(s) used.

I've always heard there are two types of skylights: Ones that leak and ones that are gonna leak.

Well, think it through: In time, a roof made of good, solid shingles will leak. How much more so is a skylight, which is -- after all -- a hole in the roof , likely to leak? A skylight is a bet against nature; a bet that nature will work 24/7 to win.

Mrs. Pete:

You need to think it through. A properly installed skylight is designed to not leak, The mechanical flashing preventing the leaking moves with seasonal changes and weather. You can replace your shingles, but you'll probably reuse the flashing on your skylight because it's as good as the day it was installed.

21 years since our build and no leaks ever from the 4 Velux skylights we have in our house.

+1. Where are all these people that have leaking skylights. If they are done properly, a skylight should never leak. I have never had a callback on a unit installed in nearly 20 years now.

Well, shiver me timbers! I guess that just goes to show that everything one reads on Houzz written by Pros isn't the gospel ;)

FWIW, I've never had skylights but I'd still view the cleaning factor as an annoyance.

There is a leaky skylight.

The builder was called, he fixed it, and everyone lived happily ever after . . . so far.

I don't think anyone is saying that skylight "can't" leak here. I am just saying that when they are installed properly, they are pretty darn tested. The Velux system (I prefer curb mount) is supremely well engineered and thought out. Even if the glazing seal between the frame and the glass breaks down, it has weeping accommodations built into the design.

Clearly, even the most simple of material can leak if installed incorrectly. If I am worried about my contractor doing a skylight, I sure as heck don't want him/her doing dormers. I see more leaks at dormers than I do skylights these days.

I think a good rule of thumb to go by is if it can get rained on, it can leak. Skylight companies put a LOT of time in designing their products so they don't leak, and a leak in a quality made skylight is very rare. Builders take extra care to make sure the skylights they install do not leak, because I understand trying to find the cause of the leak is many times difficult and preforming the repair is not fun especially when not being paid for it.

Any penetration in a roof --whether it's a plumbing vent, a chimney or a skylight increases the potential for a problem.

...or a dormer.

Matters less what it is than the experience, skill, and diligence of the installer to do it right on any roof penetration.

"Any penetration in a roof --whether it's a plumbing vent, a chimney or a skylight increases the potential for a problem."

Technically true but statistically meaningless.

If this is a true Craftsman, I would only do a dormer. That would be architecturally correct, and a better value in the end as far as being more visually appealing inside and out.

Skylights are a pain to live with unless you plan for the electrical source to operate the blinds needed for light control. And the expensive blinds. Those are expenses that most don’t think about. It beats stuffing them full of anechoic foam to keep the horrible glare out. Which is what we resorted to in a rental. It was made worse by the owners insistence on mirrored closet doors. It was like a funhouse kaleidoscope of blinding glare from all directions. You couldn’t sleep one minute past dawn.

I know this post is 4 months old but I was just thinking about this topic and stumbled upon the post. We have two Velux skylights in the master bedroom and have had no problems with leakage and they do look nice from both inside and outside. But I do wish we went with dormers. While the skylights help with ventilation in the room overall, you never can feel a nice breeze come through them. I find them difficult to clean, you cannot enjoy any view except for the sky, and birds walking on the screens at dawn are definitely a startling way to wake up.