"Which fence is cheaper" has no single answer, because the cheapest fence to build and the cheapest fence to own are usually different ones. This guide breaks down what actually drives the cost of each type, and points you at calculators that price them using your own local material prices rather than a national average that won't match your quote.
The three options, honestly
"Privacy fence" isn't really a third material — it's a style that you can build in either wood or vinyl. It's worth separating because it changes the material count dramatically, which is where a lot of budget surprises come from.
| Wood picket | Vinyl | Wood privacy | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | $ — lowest | $$$ — highest | $$ |
| Maintenance | Stain every 2–3 yrs | Wash occasionally | Stain every 2–3 yrs |
| Typical lifespan | 10–20 yrs | 20–30+ yrs | 10–20 yrs |
| Sold as | Loose pickets | Pre-made panels | Loose boards |
| Odd shapes & slopes | Easy — cut on site | Hard — fixed panels | Easy |
| Repair a damaged section | Swap one picket | Often whole panel | Swap one board |
Why wood and vinyl are counted differently
This trips people up constantly. Wood fence is bought as individual pickets, so the count depends on picket width and the gap you leave between them. Vinyl arrives as pre-made panels — usually 6 or 8 feet wide — so you're counting panels and rounding up, then cutting one panel to fill the last gap.
That difference matters for your budget. Use the wood fence calculator for pickets, posts, rails and concrete, and the vinyl fence calculator for panels, posts and caps. Both take a price field, so you can drop in a real quote from your supplier and get a number that means something.
Privacy fencing costs more than people expect
A privacy fence has no gaps, so it uses far more lumber than a picket fence of the same length. And there's a catch most guides skip: wood shrinks as it dries. Build with boards butted tight and you'll have visible gaps within a season or two — which defeats the entire point.
The fix is overlapping the boards, and that costs real money:
| Style | Coverage per 5.5" board | Boards for 100 ft |
|---|---|---|
| Side-by-side (solid) | 5.5 in | ~219 |
| Board-on-board (1" overlap) | 4.5 in | ~267 |
| Heavy overlap (1.75") | 3.75 in | ~320 |
Board-on-board needs roughly 22% more lumber than solid for the same fence. That's not a rounding error on a big yard. The privacy fence calculator handles all three styles so you can see the difference before you order.
What actually drives your total
Material choice matters less than three things people underestimate:
Post spacing. Going from 8-foot to 6-foot spacing adds roughly a third more posts and concrete. Worth it on windy sites or slopes, expensive everywhere else.
Gates. Each gate needs its own pair of posts, and vinyl gate posts usually need a wood or steel insert because vinyl alone flexes under a swinging gate. Gates are the most expensive foot of any fence.
Post depth. Get this wrong and the fence heaves out of the ground in the first hard winter, and then the material choice was irrelevant. Our fence post depth calculator sizes holes by fence height and frost line.
So which should you build?
Choose wood if the budget is tight now, your yard has slopes or odd angles, or you actually want the look of real timber and don't mind a weekend of staining every few years.
Choose vinyl if you plan to stay put long enough to collect on the low maintenance, your fence runs are straight and regular, and you'd rather pay once than keep paying in labour.
Choose privacy when screening is the whole point — and budget for board-on-board rather than solid, because the version that stays private is the one with overlap.
Try the free calculator
Skip the manual math — get instant numbers for your own project:
Frequently Asked Questions
Is vinyl fence cheaper than wood?
Not upfront — vinyl costs more to install. Over 20 years the totals often land close, because vinyl never needs the staining and sealing that wood requires every few years.
How much more lumber does a privacy fence need?
A board-on-board privacy fence with a 1-inch overlap needs roughly 22% more boards than a solid side-by-side fence, because each board covers less width.
Which fence lasts longer, wood or vinyl?
Vinyl typically lasts 20 to 30 years or more with almost no upkeep, while wood generally lasts 10 to 20 years and only reaches the top of that range if it's sealed regularly.
Can vinyl fence be installed on a slope?
It's difficult. Vinyl panels are pre-made and can't be trimmed as freely as wood, so slopes and odd angles usually favour wood or require special stepped vinyl panels.