Fence Calculator
Lay out each straight fence section and gate, then count posts, rails and pickets without hiding the corners.
Your measurements
Editable exampleExample: replace these measurements
Your material list
119 pickets with extra
Shopping list & save options
- Solid fence along slope
- 48 ft
- Gate openings between post centers
- 0 ft
- Total posts
- 7
- End posts
- 2
- Corner posts
- 0
- Gate posts
- 0
- Grade-change posts
- 0
- Line posts
- 5
- Rail pieces, one per bay
- 18
- Picket fasteners before spares
- 648
- Concrete bags
- Enter footing volume and bag yield
- Picket or panel subtotal
- Add your unit price
Gate leaves, hardware and rail-to-post fasteners are separate. Pickets on a slope still need a cut plan; this allowance does not lay out a stepped fence.
The calculation
- Fence section: 48 ft horizontal length; 0 ft grade rise; no gate.
- 0 to 48 ft: 6 bays at 8 ft along the slope.
- Horizontal post centers from section start: 0, 8, 16, 24, 32, 40, 48 ft.
- 108 base pickets × (1 + 10/100), rounded up = 119.
Material price trends, separate from your quote
These U.S. producer indexes track material prices over time. They are not store prices, labor rates or local installed costs. We do not use them to increase a historical project median.
Historical household spending: the national 2023 AHS median for fence and wall was $2,300. Fences and walls share this category. It is not a cost per foot for a selected fence system. This broader category does not price your specific job.
Lumber
+7.6% from August 2025 to August 2026. Latest observation is preliminary and may be revised.
| Period | Index level, not dollars |
|---|---|
| August 2025 | 266.293 |
| August 2026 | 286.633 |
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · Updated . Use your quoted unit price in the material calculator; delivery, tax, preparation and labor remain separate.
Before ordering, use the fence measurement, gates & material handoff guide to check the inputs and take the right questions to the supplier. Choose another calculator.
How to plan the quantity
Enter a straight section between fixed post locations. Its length and gate positions are horizontal measurements between post centers. Use the gate drawing for the distance between gate posts, including the hardware clearances.
Place a gate by entering its first post’s distance from the start and the distance to its second post. The solid fence on either side gets its own equal bays. Add another section at a corner or grade change; choose how its first post connects to the previous end.
A grade rise increases the fence length along the slope. Each section has a constant slope; split it where the grade changes. Post centers are listed horizontally from the start, while the maximum bay spacing is measured along the slope.
Pickets, rails and fasteners follow the solid bays. The picket count uses the bay length along the slope as an allowance; a stepped fence needs a separate cut plan. Gate leaves and their hardware remain a supplier list.
Before you order
- Gate leaves, hinges, latches and supports need a system-specific supplier schedule. This calculation locates gate posts but does not size them.
- Post depth, diameter, foundations, utilities, boundary position and sloping ground require local/site decisions. No universal hole size is assumed.