The recently published New Zealand Code of Practice for the Design of Concrete Structures (NZS 3101:1982) and the newly amended Code of Practice for General Structural Design and Design Loadings for Buildings (NZS 4203) permit a variety of possible design approaches for reinforced concrete shear wall structures. A series of wall designs for dimensionally similar four-storey and eight-storey buildings has been carried out and a comparison of construction cost estimates obtained together with an assessment of the relative design effort required for the different design options.