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Fence Calculators: Cost Per Foot, Posts & Materials

Divide the run into bays that land evenly, budget the concrete honestly, and pick a material you won't resent in ten years.

By Trace Bailey · Reviewed · How we calculate

3 calculators

Fencing & Privacy

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A fence is quoted by the linear foot but built by the post. Every end, every corner and both sides of every gate opening need a post of their own, and those terminal posts — not the pickets — decide whether the run is still straight in ten years. Two things move the budget more than the material does: how many posts the layout demands, and how deep each hole has to go, because concrete is sold by the bag and frost depth sets the bag count.

This page covers what comes before the calculator: dividing a run into bays that land evenly, what the concrete really costs per hole, how a city measures height, and which material is cheapest across twenty years rather than on day one. If the actual problem is a grade change, size it with the Retaining Wall Calculator; for a mortared masonry screen, use the Block Wall Calculator. Every figure here is a national planning ballpark — confirm it against a supplier quote.

Before you pick a tool

Decide these before you buy materials

How do I lay out the posts so I don't end up with a 3 ft bay at the end?

Place the terminal posts first — one at each end, one at every corner, one on each side of every gate — then divide what is left into equal bays. Divide the run by 8, round the bay count up, and space to that: a 53 ft run becomes seven bays of 7 ft 7 in, not six 8-footers and a stub. Allow for the opening too, since a 4 ft clear gate between 4x4s eats about 4 ft 4 in center to center. Chain-link line posts may run out to 10 ft, so chain-link divides more forgivingly than wood.

How many bags of concrete does a fence post take, and where can I skip it?

An 80 lb bag yields 0.6 cu ft. A 10 in hole 30 in deep holds 1.4 cu ft — call it two bags. A 12 in hole 42 in deep, which is what a 36 in frost line forces, holds 2.7 cu ft — four to five bags. Across a 100 ft privacy fence that gap is roughly 35 bags and $250. So concrete the terminals always, and tamp line posts in gravel only on 4 ft picket or split rail in firm, draining ground. Crown every collar 1–2 in above grade and slope it away, or the collar ponds water and the post rots at that ring first.

How tall can I build, and how does the city measure it?

Build 6 ft in the back and side yards and 3 or 4 ft in front. That clears nearly every residential code without a variance; taller usually triggers a permit and 6x6 posts. Height is measured from grade at the base, and where the two sides sit at different elevations most codes take the lower one — so a 6 ft fence on a 4 ft wall reads as 10 ft. Corner lots also carry a sight triangle: nothing above about 3 ft within 25 to 30 ft of the intersection. Be honest about upstairs windows, though; 8 ft will not block a second-storey sightline, and planting will.

Wood, vinyl or chain-link — which is cheapest over twenty years?

Vinyl costs roughly $12–20 more per installed foot than pressure-treated wood. Keeping wood stained takes 6–8 gallons per 100 ft of 6 ft fence counting both faces — $200–350 and a weekend every two to three years, or $3–6 a foot hired out. That is about $1 per foot per year DIY, so vinyl breaks even in years twelve to twenty, nearer ten if you hire it out. Wood also needs boards and posts replaced around year fifteen. Build wood if you are moving inside five years or want a height nobody sells as a panel; buy vinyl if you are staying. Chain-link wins on containment only.

Reference

Installed cost, lifespan and upkeep by fence material (6 ft privacy unless noted)

MaterialInstalled cost / lin ftRealistic lifespanUpkeep
Pressure-treated pine$22–4015–20 yearsStain or seal every 2–3 years
Western red cedar$25–5020–25 yearsSeal every 3–5 years, or let it grey
Vinyl (PVC)$30–6030+ yearsHose it off once a year
Aluminum ornamental$35–7040+ yearsNone
Chain-link, galvanized (4–6 ft)$12–2820–30 yearsNone
Composite privacy$45–8525–30 yearsWash annually, never stain

Contractor supplied-and-installed national ballparks; labor is roughly half of each figure. Doing your own layout, digging and setting typically lands wood at $18–30 and vinyl at $22–35 per linear foot in materials once the concrete is counted — price your actual run in the Fence Calculator. On any wood fence the posts fail before the pickets do, so lifespan tracks how the posts were set far more than the picket species.

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Answers

Frequently asked questions

Which side of the fence faces the neighbor, and where on the line does it go?

Finished side out. Most municipal codes and effectively every HOA want the smooth face toward the street and the neighbor, with rails and posts on your side. Shadowbox and board-on-board end the argument by reading the same from both directions, which is why they are the default on a shared line. Set the fence 4 to 6 in inside your own line rather than on it — that keeps it unambiguously yours and lets you maintain both faces without stepping onto someone else's ground. If you are within a foot of the line and the pins are not findable, pay $500–1,000 for a boundary survey before you dig, not after the neighbor objects.

How wide should the gates be?

Three feet passes a person, but 4 ft is the number that matters — that is what a wheelbarrow, a push mower or a hand truck needs, and the upcharge over a 3 ft kit is small. Go 5 ft for side-yard access where a riding mower or a small trailer has to get through. Above 5 ft build a double gate rather than one wide leaf: a single leaf past about 5 ft levers on its hinges and sags within a season no matter how good the hardware is. Drive gates for a car run 10 to 12 ft, always as a pair and always on 6x6 posts.

Can I build a fence on top of a retaining wall?

Not into the wall itself. Segmental block walls are not designed for the overturning load a fence hands them, and core-drilling the caps voids most manufacturers' systems. Set the posts in their own footings behind the wall — at least 3 ft back from the face, further on a tall wall — or cast sleeves into the reinforced zone while the wall is going up. Check how your code measures height as well: if it measures from the low side, a 4 ft wall under a 6 ft fence is a 10 ft fence. Size the wall itself with the Retaining Wall Calculator.

How long does a DIY fence really take?

Four working days for two people on a typical 150 ft wood privacy run, not one weekend. Day one is layout, the 811 locate and digging — a rented two-person auger does twenty to thirty holes, a clamshell digger eight to ten. Day two sets and plumbs the posts and then stops: fast-setting mix needs about four hours before it takes load, standard mix wants overnight, and no gate should hang the same day. Days three and four are rails, pickets, gates and caps. Rocky or root-bound ground doubles the digging.