Fence pricing is one of the more straightforward home projects to estimate, since it scales almost linearly with length — but the per-foot number people quote each other is often missing pieces. Here's what actually goes into it.
Pricing by material, per linear foot installed
- Chain link — $10–$25/ft. The budget standard, minimal labor complexity, though it offers no privacy and a utilitarian look.
- Wood (pressure-treated, standard picket) — $20–$40/ft. The most common residential choice, wide range depending on picket style, height, and whether it's a basic or decorative pattern.
- Wood (cedar or premium) — $30–$60/ft. Better rot resistance and appearance, meaningfully pricier than pressure-treated pine.
- Vinyl — $25–$50/ft. Higher upfront cost than wood but effectively zero maintenance — no staining, no rot — which changes the lifetime-cost comparison significantly.
- Aluminum or steel (ornamental) — $30–$70/ft. Common for front-yard or pool fencing where code requires specific picket spacing and height; priced higher due to material and precision fabrication.
- Wrought iron (custom) — $50–$150+/ft. The premium tier, largely custom fabrication.
For a typical backyard needing about 150 linear feet, that's roughly $3,000–$6,000 for a standard wood privacy fence — the most common residential project.
What drives the price within a material category
Height. A 6-foot privacy fence costs more per foot than a 4-foot picket fence — more material, more labor per post, and often heavier posts to handle wind load.
Post spacing and depth. Standard spacing is 6-8 feet between posts; tighter spacing (more posts) costs more but handles wind and provides a straighter, more rigid fence line. Post depth (typically set below the frost line in cold climates) is a code requirement, not optional — a fence with shallow posts will heave and lean within a few years.
Terrain. A flat, clear yard is the cheapest to fence. Slopes require either stepped panels (each section follows the ground) or racked panels (angled to follow a gentle slope) — racking costs more in labor. Rocky or root-filled soil slows post-hole digging significantly, sometimes requiring an auger or even hand excavation around obstacles.
Gates. Often priced separately from the linear-foot rate — a single walk gate typically adds $200–$500, a double drive gate $600–$1,500+, more for automated gates. Easy to forget when estimating from a per-foot number alone.
The line items people miss
- Removal of the old fence. If you're replacing rather than building new, demo and disposal of the old fence is real labor — often $3–$8 per linear foot, sometimes quoted separately and sometimes forgotten entirely in a first-pass estimate.
- Property line survey. Fences built even a foot over a property line can become a legal problem with a neighbor or at resale. A survey ($400–$800) is cheap insurance compared to that risk, especially on older properties without clear existing markers.
- HOA approval. Many communities require approval for fence height, material, and even color before installation — worth confirming before materials are ordered, not after.
- Utility locates. Calling 811 (or your local utility-locate service) before digging post holes is standard practice, usually free, and prevents a very expensive mistake if a gas or electric line runs where you planned to dig.
- Permits. Fence height limits and setback requirements vary widely by jurisdiction; permits when required are usually inexpensive ($50–$200) but the fence may need to be moved or shortened if it doesn't comply — worth checking before, not after.
DIY vs. hire
Fencing is genuinely one of the more DIY-friendly exterior projects — the failure mode of a slightly imperfect fence line is cosmetic, not structural or safety-critical, and the core skills (digging post holes, setting posts in concrete, attaching rails and pickets) are learnable within the project itself. Where it gets harder: long runs on sloped or rocky terrain, gates that need to hang true over years of use, and any fence where code compliance (pool fencing especially) has real safety and legal consequences if done wrong.
Structuring the estimate
A fence estimate breaks cleanly into materials (posts, rails, pickets or panels, concrete, hardware, gate kits — typically priced by linear foot but worth itemizing the components) and labor (post hole digging, setting, framing, picket installation — often estimated as a crew day rate for a given length rather than hourly). The survey, permit, and old-fence removal belong in a miscellaneous section so they don't get lost in the linear-foot math.
JobPencil's builder handles this cleanly — materials with quantities and current prices, labor by task, and a miscellaneous section for the extras. Build your fence estimate free, no account required.