From my point of view PEX piping wins hands down on two accounts: Price and ease of installation.Price:
The price of copper today is roughly $1.66 per foot compared to 35 cents per foot for PEX. That makes copper more than four times the cost of PEX pipe. I roughly need about 600 feet of PEX pipe so th cost difference is substantial. PEX ~ $250 versus Copper at $1009. That is compelling!
Ease of installation:
While I have soldered copper pipe the thought of all the cutting and soldering needed makes me shake in my boots. The installation of copper will simply take forever! So while ease of installation is easier with PEX that real benefit is much less time to install.
I start the plumbing installation over tha next few weeks - I will share my experiences - so stay tuned!