How much does it cost to install a fence per linear foot?

In 2026, installed pricing typically runs $25 to $45 per linear foot for pressure-treated wood, $35 to $60 for cedar, $30 to $60 for vinyl, $15 to $30 for chain-link, and $60 to $100+ for composite. Gates add a separate $250 to $600 each because they need extra framing and hardware. Always quote fencing per linear foot, not per square foot.

How do I estimate decking cost per square foot?

Measure deck area (length times width) and apply a per-square-foot rate by material: roughly $25 to $45 for pressure-treated, $35 to $55 for cedar, $45 to $75 for composite, and $75 to $120+ for premium or elevated builds. Price stairs, railing, and multiple levels separately because they carry disproportionate labor relative to flat deck surface.

What should I include in a fencing material takeoff?

Post count (run length divided by 6-to-8-foot spacing plus terminal and gate posts), rails, pickets or panels, concrete (1 to 2 bags fast-set per post hole), gate kits, and fasteners. Add a 10% waste factor for straight runs and 15% or more for angled lines. Underestimating posts cascades into short lumber, concrete, and labor.

Do I need a permit to build a deck or fence?

Often, yes. Most decks above a certain height require a permit and an inspection covering joist span, beam sizing, footing depth below frost line, guardrail height, and baluster spacing. Fences over a set height frequently need a permit too, plus setback and sight-line compliance. Price the permit and inspection time into the bid and verify local code before you quote.

How should I bill a fencing or decking job?

Bill by phase to protect cash flow: a deposit at signing, a draw after demo and posts or footings are set, a draw after framing passes inspection, and the balance on completion. Phase billing keeps you from financing all the material upfront and aligns the customer's payments with verifiable progress on the job.

Why is composite decking labor more expensive than pressure-treated?

Composite systems usually use hidden fasteners that install slower than face screws, the boards cost three to four times more so mistakes are costly, and customers who buy composite often want picture-frame borders and clean detail work that add cutting and fitting time. Price composite labor higher per square foot than pressure-treated to reflect that.

How to Price Fencing and Decking Jobs: Estimating Guide

# How to Price Fencing and Decking Jobs So the Bid Holds Up

Fencing and decking look like simple builds until you've eaten the cost of a miscounted post run or a deck that failed inspection because the joist spacing didn't meet code. Pricing these jobs well comes down to three things done in order: an accurate material takeoff, a realistic labor number, and a margin that survives contact with the job site. Get the takeoff wrong and every other number is built on sand. This guide breaks down how to price fencing and decking jobs the way an experienced crew lead does it.

Price Fencing by the Linear Foot, Decking by the Square Foot

The two trades use different units because they fail in different ways. Fencing cost scales with run length and post count, so you quote per linear foot. Decking cost scales with surface area and structural load, so you quote per square foot. Mixing these up is the first rookie mistake.

Fencing quotes start from the perimeter run in linear feet, then layer in posts, rails, pickets or panels, gates, and hardware. Typical installed prices in 2026:

Pressure-treated wood privacy fence: $25 to $45 per linear foot
Cedar privacy fence: $35 to $60 per linear foot
Vinyl fence: $30 to $60 per linear foot
Chain-link: $15 to $30 per linear foot
Composite / premium: $60 to $100+ per linear foot

Gates add a flat adder, usually $250 to $600 each depending on width and hardware, because they need extra framing, hinges, and a latch.

Decking quotes start from deck area (length times width) in square feet, then add for height, framing complexity, railing, and stairs. Typical installed prices:

Pressure-treated deck: $25 to $45 per sq ft
Cedar deck: $35 to $55 per sq ft
Composite deck (Trex-class): $45 to $75 per sq ft
Premium composite / elevated builds: $75 to $120+ per sq ft

Stairs, multiple levels, and railing runs are priced separately because they carry disproportionate labor.

Do a Real Material Takeoff, Not a Round-Up

The takeoff is where margin is won or lost. For a fence, you need post count (run length divided by post spacing, usually 6 to 8 feet on center, plus a post for each terminal and gate), rail count, picket or panel count, concrete bags per post (typically 1 to 2 bags of fast-set per post hole), and fasteners. Underestimate posts by even three on a long run and you're short on lumber, concrete, and the labor hours to set them.

For a deck, the takeoff covers joists (spacing driven by decking material and span), beams, posts and footings, ledger board and flashing, decking boards (with a waste factor for the board pattern and any picture-frame border), and a fastener count that climbs fast with hidden-fastener composite systems. Composite boards cost three to four times pressure-treated, so a sloppy board count on a composite deck is an expensive mistake.

Always add a waste factor: 10% for straight, simple runs and 15% or more for diagonal decking patterns, herringbone, or odd-angled fence lines. A clean takeoff that feeds straight into a quote is exactly what the linear-footage and material takeoff tools in the Fencing & Decking Construction Ops Kit are built to produce for wood, vinyl, and composite, so you're not counting pickets twice on a notepad.

Verify the Design Against Local Code Before You Quote

This is the step that separates contractors who get paid from contractors who get callbacks. Decks especially are governed by building code: joist span and spacing, beam sizing, footing depth below frost line, post-to-beam connections, guardrail height (commonly 36 inches residential), baluster spacing (no 4-inch sphere passes through), and stair rise/run limits. A deck over a certain height almost always needs a permit and an inspection.

Fencing has its own rules: height limits (often 6 feet rear, 4 feet front yard), setback from property lines, corner-lot sight-line triangles, and HOA restrictions. Some municipalities require a permit for any fence over a set height.

Price the permit, the inspection time, and any code-driven upgrade (deeper footings in a cold climate, larger beams for a longer span) into the bid before you sign. Discovering at inspection that your joists are undersized means tearing out finished work on your dime. Keep a local code and permit reference handy so the requirements are checked at quote time, not at framing time. The kit includes a building-code reference and a load-bearing span calculator with local cross-checks for precisely this reason.

Build Labor From Crew-Days, Then Bill by Phase

Materials are only half the bid. Estimate labor in crew-days. A two-person crew installing a straightforward 150-foot wood privacy fence on flat, diggable ground might run two to three days. Rocky soil, slopes, demo of an old fence, or hand-digging where a machine can't reach can double that. A 320 sq ft ground-level pressure-treated deck might take a two-person crew four to six days; add stairs, railing detail, and elevation and it climbs.

Bill the job by phase so cash flow tracks the work: deposit at signing, a draw after demo and posts/footings are set, a draw after framing passes inspection, and final on completion. Phase billing protects you from fronting all the material cost and keeps the customer's incentives aligned with the schedule. Track crew hours against your estimate by phase so you learn where your labor numbers drift; the kit's job tracker is structured around crew phases, labor tracking, and invoice templates for this.

A Worked Fence Example

160 linear feet of 6-foot cedar privacy fence, one 4-foot walk gate, flat suburban yard, no demo.

1. Run: 160 LF. Posts at 8 ft on center plus terminals and gate posts ≈ 22 posts. 2. Materials: Posts, 3 rails per section, pickets, ~2 bags fast-set per post, hardware, one gate kit. Add 10% waste. 3. Labor: Two-person crew, ~2.5 days. 4. Price: At $48/LF cedar = $7,680, plus a $450 gate adder = $8,130. Confirm height and setback against local code, pull a permit if required, and the bid is solid.

Common Pricing Mistakes in Fencing and Decking

Skipping the waste factor on diagonal decking or angled fence lines, then running short on premium boards.
Forgetting the gate and stair adders — they carry far more labor per unit than straight run.
Quoting before checking soil and access. Rock, clay, slopes, and no-machine access are labor multipliers.
Ignoring code-driven upgrades like frost-depth footings and beam sizing until the inspector flags them.
No phase billing, so you finance the customer's materials and get squeezed on cash flow.
Underpricing composite labor. Hidden fasteners and picture-frame borders take meaningfully longer than face-screwed pressure-treated.

Make Every Bid Repeatable

The crews that grow are the ones whose bids come out consistent regardless of who's estimating. Standardize your per-linear-foot and per-square-foot tiers by material, your gate and stair adders, your waste factors, and your crew-day labor rates, then check actuals against estimates after every job. The free getting-started guide bundled with the kit walks through setting those tiers and reading your phase-level profitability. Take off accurately, verify against code, bill by phase, and your fencing and decking bids will hold up from the first post to final inspection.