Horizontal fence is the same cedar as a vertical privacy fence and a noticeably bigger number, and customers ask why. The short answer: it’s a different build wearing the same wood. The calculator above uses an example rate of $48 per linear foot; the 6 ft vertical privacy example on this site runs $38. That $10 gap is real, and here’s where it comes from.
Why horizontal costs more than vertical
- The framing flips. A vertical fence hangs pickets on horizontal rails, and rails forgive a lot. A horizontal fence spans boards from post to post, so every post has to be dead plumb and dead on spacing, because the boards telegraph every layout error. Posts usually get set closer together to keep boards from sagging, which means more holes per hundred feet.
- The boards are the finish. A dog-ear picket hides its flaws in a crowd. A horizontal board is one long visible line at eye level, so it wants a clear, straight grade. Lower grades cup and twist across a horizontal span, and a cupped board on this fence is the first thing anyone sees. Better grade means more cost per board and more culling at the yard.
- The labor is finish work. Consistent gaps and level lines take more time per foot than running pickets to a string. Slower feet at higher material cost is the whole story of the rate.
Quoting it against the vertical bid
Run both numbers, because your customer often has a vertical quote from someone else. At the example rates, 100 feet of horizontal is $4,800 and 100 feet of 6 ft vertical privacy is $3,800; the 100 ft privacy fence cost page breaks down the vertical side. If your own horizontal rate doesn’t hold a gap like that over your own vertical rate, check it against your board invoices and your hours, because the gap exists in the materials whether you priced it or not.
The vertical numbers live on the wood privacy fence calculator, and the method for building either rate is in how to price a fence job.
Horizontal customers tend to text you a photo and want a number back. PriceDesk puts this calculator on your phone with your rates, free for 14 days.