Fencing Material Calculator

A fence is a deceptively big material list. The drawing shows a straight line on the property map, but that line turns into posts every eight feet, panels and rails between them, concrete below every post, hinges and pins at every gate, and hardware on every corner — and it all has to arrive together or the crew stops. The classic mistake is counting the fence as "length in feet" and forgetting that each post is a hole, a bag of concrete and a week of settling.

Fencing Material Calculator turns your run length into a complete bill of materials: posts, panels or pickets, rails, post concrete, gates and corner hardware. Switch between wood privacy, picket, chain-link and vinyl modes, set your spacing and post depth, add waste, and read off the count plus a material budget with live cost-per-item pricing.

The learning guide covers post depth rules, spacing tables, frost heave, and the concrete-per-post math that quietly doubles a fence budget. Everything runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded.

• Four fence styles: Wood privacy (panels + rails), picket (pickets + rails), chain-link (fabric rolls), and vinyl (panels + hardware) — the math matches how each fence is actually built.
• Posts & concrete: Post count from length and spacing plus corner/end posts, and concrete bags from your bags-per-post setting.
• Panels or pickets: Panel width for pre-made panels, or picket width and gap for board-and-board picket runs.
• Rails in stock lengths: Rails-per-section converts to stock board lengths (8, 10, 12 ft) so the lumber order is exact.
• Gates & corners: Each gate adds its posts plus a hinge/pin set, and corners add a brace post, so the estimate covers real fences.
• Chain-link rolls: Fabric rolls (50 or 100 ft), tension wire and post caps for chain-link runs.
• Live cost: Per-post, per-panel, per-picket, per-bag and per-roll pricing sum into a whole material budget.
• Imperial or metric: Feet or metres for the whole run, with spacing and post depth in compatible units.
• Export: Copy or download the complete fence materials report as text, CSV or JSON.
• Learning guide: Post-depth rule, spacing tables, frost protection and fencing best practice built in.

1. Choose the fence style. Wood privacy, picket, chain-link or vinyl — each has its own material math.
2. Enter the total run length. Measure each straight section with a wheel or from the survey and add them together.
3. Set post spacing. 6–8 ft for wood, 10 ft for chain-link, tighter for windy or heavy sites.
4. Enter height and picket/panel sizes. Picket width and gap drive the picket count; panel width drives panel count.
5. Add gates and corners. Every gate takes extra posts and a hardware set; corners add a brace.
6. Set post depth and concrete. 24–30 in typical, and choose 1 or 2 bags per post for your soil.
7. Add waste. 7 percent covers warped boards and cuts.
8. Read the estimate. Posts, panels, pickets, rails, concrete bags and hardware appear instantly with cost.
9. Review the working. The maths line shows length ÷ spacing + ends, and each sub-count.
10. Export the report. Copy or download as text, CSV or JSON for the supplier.

Example 1 — Wood privacy fence. A 100 ft run, 6 ft panels, 8 ft spacing, 6 ft tall: 14 posts, 17 panels, 3 rails/section × 17 sections = 51 rail lengths, and 14–28 bags of concrete.

Example 2 — Picket fence. A 60 ft run with 4-inch pickets at 2-inch gaps, 8 ft spacing, 2 rails: 9 posts, 60×12 ÷ 6 = 120 pickets, 18 rail lengths, 9–18 bags of concrete.

Example 3 — Chain-link. A 200 ft run, 10 ft spacing, 6 ft height: 21 posts, 2 rolls of 100 ft fabric, 21 post caps, and tension wire for top and bottom.

Example 4 — With a gate. The 100 ft wood run plus one 4 ft gate: 14 posts becomes 15, panels stay 17, and the gate adds its hinge/pin set and a latch.

Example 5 — Metric garden. A 30 m run at 1.8 m posts: 30 ÷ 1.8 ≈ 17 plus end = 18 posts, about 26 bags of 40 kg concrete at 1.5 per post, with 20 m of rails in 2.4 m stock.

• The whole bill in one count: Posts, panels, rails, concrete and hardware together — no sub-orders from three suppliers.
• Style-specific math: Chain-link and picket fences count differently from panel fences; the tool matches each.
• Post depth that survives winter: Depth guidance and concrete-per-post avoid heaving and leaning fences.
• Live budget: Enter local prices per item and see the material total before you sign anything.
• Gates and corners never forgotten: The extras fields keep the estimate honest for real sites.
• Explainable numbers: Every count follows from length, spacing, style and depth in the working line.
• Export-ready: Text, CSV and JSON reports drop into quotes and purchase orders.
• Free and private: No uploads, no accounts, no logging.