Wood fence calculator

Posts = run length ÷ post spacing, rounded up, plus one; pickets = each bay ÷ the picket width: a 48 ft wood fence with posts 8 ft apart takes 7 posts and 108 pickets of 5.5 in, or 119 with 10% extra.

Your measurements

Example

Use the unit shown for each box, or type another one: 12 ft 6 in, 150 in, 3.8 m and 600 mm all work, as do the marks on a tape measure.

Fence section 1

Section name Horizontal section length (ft) Grade rise over this section (ft) Start at previous section’s end Distance to first gate post (ft) Distance between gate post centers (ft) Use zero for no gate. Use the post spacing from the gate drawing, including hardware clearances.

Maximum spacing along the slope Fence style

Details Package sizes, prices and materials

Extra for cuts (%) Rails per bay Each rail spans one bay, so every rail on the shopping list is as long as the longest bay. The store price is for pressure-treated 2x4s. Actual picket width Picket height Pickets are usually as tall as the fence. The store price is for 6 ft dog-ear pickets. Gap between pickets Fasteners per rail crossing Concrete per post from plan (cu ft) Concrete yield per bag (cu ft) Your price per picket or panel ($) Post length to buy Left blank, the fence height plus half of it in the ground, QUIKRETE’s rule, in the next length yards stock: 10 ft for a 6 ft fence. The fence post depth calculator works out yours with your frost depth. The store price is for 4x4 posts. Your price per post ($) Your price per rail ($)

Example: replace these measurements

Your material list

119 pickets with extra+ 2 more items on the list

48 ft measured run

Your measured layout

Post layout for the selected section. A dashed opening is the gate. Rise is listed separately; this is not a sloped elevation. On a very long run the drawing shows only the end and gate posts; the list counts every post.

Your shopping list

119 pickets with extra
7 total posts
18 rails, 8 ft long

At posted store prices

$259.42 119 × $2.18 a picket, YellaWood dog-ear fence picket, 5/8 in × 5-1/2 in × 6 ft at Stine Home + Yard in Sulphur, LA on Oct 12, 2026
$124.46 7 × $17.78 a post, YellaWood ground-contact post, nominal 4 in × 4 in × 10 ft at Stine Home + Yard in Sulphur, LA on Oct 19, 2026
$86.04 18 × $4.78 a board, YellaWood ground-contact 2x4, nominal 2 in × 4 in × 8 ft at Stine Home + Yard in Sulphur, LA on Oct 19, 2026

$469.92 for these 3 items, before tax and delivery.

Each price is one store’s posted price on the day shown, for the product named. Prices vary between stores: check yours. Your own price goes under Details.

Quantities and package details

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
Post length to buy: 10 ft: 6 ft above the ground and 3 ft in it, QUIKRETE’s rule
Rail pieces, one per bay: 18
Rail length to buy: 8 ft (the longest bay is 8 ft, post center to post center)
Picket fasteners before spares: 648
Concrete bags: Enter footing volume and bag yield
Same runs in vinyl panels: 6 full and 0 shortened panels on 7 posts, at Veranda’s 96 in post centers

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.

Common questions

How many fence posts do I need?

Divide each straight run by the largest post spacing you allow, round up to whole bays, and add one post. Enter corners and gates as their own runs or openings so the calculator counts every shared post once.

How far apart should wood fence posts be?

The fence system, its height and your site set it. The calculator starts with 8 feet as an example; change it to your plan.

How many pickets do I need?

Divide each bay by the picket width plus the gap between pickets, round up, and add the bays together. Your extra covers breakage and bad boards.

How much concrete per fence post?

Enter the volume per post from your post-hole plan and the bag yield. QUIKRETE Concrete Mix gives about 0.60 cubic feet per 80-lb bag.

Source: QUIKRETE Concrete Mix No. 1101 data sheet. Listed on the Sources page.

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.

The list ends with the same runs in vinyl panels, at Veranda’s post centers, so you can weigh pickets against panels on your own layout.

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.

Have prices moved?

Lumber cost 8.7% more in September 2026 than a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics producer price index, preliminary).

Every building material we track, month by month, with the change in a year.

What owners paid: the typical fence and wall job cost $2,300 in the 2023 Census survey.

Before ordering, read the guide: How to measure for a fence: posts, gates, corners and slopes. Or choose another calculator.