Summary: Summary: A privacy fence costs $15 to $30 per linear foot installed for pressure-treated pine, $25 to $45 for cedar, and $30 to $60 for vinyl in 2026. The per-foot price should include posts set in concrete, pickets or panels, and basic hardware; gates, permits, old-fence removal, and difficult terrain cost extra. Measure your property line carefully, confirm it with your survey, and compare quotes on identical specs.
A legitimate per-linear-foot quote covers materials (posts, pickets or panels, rails, concrete, hardware), labor to set posts and hang the fence, and basic cleanup. Posts should be set in concrete at least 24 to 30 inches deep; shallow or dirt-set posts are how cheap quotes cut corners, and they are also how fences lean within two years. Ask every bidder for post depth and concrete in writing.
What it usually does not include: gates ($150 to $400 each), permit fees ($50 to $200), old fence tear-out and disposal ($3 to $5 per foot), and terrain premiums for slopes or rock. A quote that bundles everything into one per-foot number is fine as long as you can see the line items. A quote that will not itemize is a quote you cannot compare, which is exactly the point.
Walk the property line with a measuring wheel, a 100-foot tape, or a phone GPS measuring app, and record each straight run separately. Subtract the widths of your house, garage, and any existing structures the fence will tie into. Add 5 percent for jogs and measurement error. For a rectangular quarter-acre lot, expect roughly 150 to 200 linear feet of backyard fencing; a full perimeter can reach 300 feet.
Then confirm the line itself. Your property survey or plat map shows the legal boundary, and many fence disputes start with a fence built a foot over it. If you cannot find your survey pins, a surveyor charges $300 to $600 to re-establish them, which is cheap insurance against a neighbor dispute that costs ten times more. Some cities require the finished side of the fence to face outward; check local code before you build.
Pressure-treated pine: $15 to $30 per linear foot installed. The most common privacy fence in America, available everywhere, stainable any color. Budget for staining every 2 to 3 years and a 8 to 12 year lifespan. Cedar: $25 to $45 per foot. Naturally rot-resistant, beautiful even unstained, 15 to 25 year lifespan. The premium over pine pays for itself if you dislike maintenance.
Vinyl (PVC): $30 to $60 per foot. Never stain, never rot, 25 to 40 year lifespan. Watch for wind: tall vinyl privacy fences need deep, well-concreted posts or they can blow over in storms. Composite: $40 to $65 per foot. Wood-look boards with plastic durability, the longest life and the highest price. For most homeowners the real choice is pine vs cedar vs vinyl, decided by budget today versus maintenance tomorrow.
Height is the first mover: a 4-foot fence uses roughly two-thirds the material of a 6-foot fence, so dropping to 4 feet where code allows saves real money. Style matters too: board-on-board (overlapping pickets, no gaps) uses about 15 percent more lumber than standard spaced pickets and costs accordingly. Decorative caps, lattice tops, and horizontal layouts all add labor.
Site conditions are the second mover. Rocky soil that needs an auger or jackhammer, steep slopes that need stepped panels, and tight access that forces hand-carrying materials each add 10 to 25 percent. Clearing brush or small trees along the line is often billed separately. Get the installer to walk the line before quoting, not after, so these show up in the bid instead of as change orders.
Ask each bidder for the same five facts: total linear feet they measured, material and grade (not just wood, but pressure-treated pine, number 2 grade or better), post depth and concrete spec, number and width of gates, and what is excluded. Two quotes at $28 and $34 per foot are not comparable until you know the $28 quote excludes gates and the $34 quote includes two.
Check license and insurance, read recent reviews mentioning fences specifically (not just the company's general rating), and ask for two addresses of fences they built more than two years ago. Drive by. A two-year-old fence tells you everything about post depth and workmanship that a fresh one cannot. Pay a deposit of 30 to 50 percent at most, with the balance on completion and your walkthrough approval.
Data current as of October 2026. Sources: HomeGuide and contractor pricing data. Estimates only, not a quote. Always get multiple written quotes from licensed local fence installers.