Free Fencing Estimate Template & Generator
A fence estimate is a measured line before it is a price. This one starts with 248 feet staked off survey pins rather than paced along the old chain link, subtracts the gate openings so the panel footage is what you actually build, then prices posts by depth and hole diameter, gates by leaf width and hardware, removal by the foot, and the stepped sections the grade forces on the north run.
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| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fence installed (linear feet) | 180 | $42.00 | $7,560.00 |
| Walk gate | 1 | $475.00 | $475.00 |
| Existing fence removal | 180 | $6.50 | $1,170.00 |
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Use-case checklist
What to include in a fencing estimate
A fence is the most visible thing you will ever build, and it is built on a line two neighbors may not agree on. Set posts eight inches inside the wrong boundary and the remedy is not a credit memo; it is pulling concrete footings and rebuilding, usually at your cost, because the homeowner will say they relied on you. Putting the survey basis on the estimate in writing, and naming who is responsible for staking the line, moves that risk to where it belongs before anyone digs. The same logic runs through the rest of the sheet. Terrain that steps, hardpan that stops an auger at 14 inches, and irrigation lines no public locate ticket covers are all real costs, and they are far easier to bill as named unit rates than to introduce on day two of a per-foot job.
- measured length, height, and material
- post, corner, and gate quantities
- removal and disposal
- terrain, access, and property-line assumptions
- permit, utility locate, and hidden-condition rates
Example starting lines
| Description | Qty | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Fence installed (linear feet) | 180 | $42 |
| Walk gate | 1 | $475 |
| Existing fence removal | 180 | $6.5 |
Complete it cleanly
Record measured footage, fence style and height, post spacing, gate sizes, removal, property-line responsibility, terrain, access, and utility-locate assumptions. List rock drilling or grading as unit-priced additions.
How to make a fencing estimate in 6 steps
Open the estimate generator
Start from this page so the estimate opens with fields and sample lines already set up for fence installers and contractors. No account is needed to create or preview.
Enter both parties
Add your business name, address and contact details, then the customer name and address exactly as they should appear on the record.
Add the fencing lines
Replace each sample line with the real work or goods. Make sure the document shows measured length, height, and material, post, corner, and gate quantities, removal and disposal.
Check the figures
Totals calculate as you type. Confirm quantities, rates, any tax line and the final total against your own records before you send anything.
Set the reference and dates
Give the estimate a unique number and the correct date so it can be traced later and matched to related documents.
Review and download the PDF
Record measured footage, fence style and height, post spacing, gate sizes, removal, property-line responsibility, terrain, access, and utility-locate assumptions. List rock drilling or grading as unit-priced additions. Preview is free; a PDF download costs $4.99, or is included with Unlimited.
Worked example
248 feet of cedar privacy replacing chain link, with two gates
Halverson Fence Co. is quoting a backyard replacement for Dana Whitlock at 41 Prosper Street on April 22, 2026. The existing 4 ft chain link comes out, the new line runs 248 ft off stakes the owner's surveyor set last fall, and the north run falls 14 in across 42 ft.
- Measured line: 248 lf staked off the survey pins, four runs, 3 corners, 2 terminal posts, 2 gate openings
- 248 lf
- Less the gate openings, one 4 ft walk and one 10 ft double drive, leaving panel to build
- 234 lf
- Remove and haul 248 lf of 4 ft chain link, 34 posts pulled with footings, at $4.25 per lf
- $1,054.00
- 6 ft western red cedar privacy, 234 lf at $27.00 per lf installed: 4x4 posts at 8 ft on center, set 30 in deep in 10 in augered holes, 2 bags per hole
- $6,318.00
- North run stepping: 14 in of fall across 42 lf, 6 stepped panels with graded gap closure at $38.00 each
- $228.00
- 4 ft walk gate, welded frame, self-closing hinges and latch
- $485.00
- 10 ft double drive gate, drop rod and cane bolt, 6x6 gate posts set 42 in deep
- $1,240.00
- Priced separately, not in the total: rock or hardpan requiring a rock auger or breaker, per affected post
- $85.00 per post
- Estimate total, line staked by the owner's surveyor, 811 ticket filed by us, private lines not covered
- $9,325.00
Most fence disputes start here: the crew builds to where the old fence stood instead of to staked pins, and a line eight inches off means pulling footings at your cost. Count posts before you quote per foot, since corners, terminals, and gate posts are not line posts.
When this document is the right choice
Use this estimate to set a realistic expected cost before the final scope is known. An estimate is an informed approximation, not a final invoice. State the assumptions that could move the price and replace it with a quote or invoice once scope is confirmed.
Frequently asked questions
The neighbor insists the line is where the old chain link ran. What goes on the estimate?
Put the basis in writing and keep yourself out of the boundary question. State that the fence is built to stakes set by the owner or by a licensed surveyor, that you do not determine property lines, and that relocation required by a boundary dispute is billed as new work. Then price to the stakes, photograph them before you dig. Old fences drift over decades, so the previous line is evidence of habit, not of the boundary. Anything past that is for the owner's surveyor or attorney.
The 10 ft drive gate sags by the end of the first season. What should the estimate have covered?
A gate is the only part of a fence that moves, so price it as its own assembly instead of as a length of fence with hinges on it. The example sets 6x6 gate posts 42 in deep against 4x4 line posts at 30 in, frames the walk gate welded, and adds a drop rod and cane bolt to the double drive, and each of those is something the customer can read and compare. Name the hardware and the frame material on the line. A sag is almost always a post that moved or a leaf that racked, and both were decided at quoting time, not at installation. Write down the adjustment visit too: one return trip to reset hinges and latches after the ground settles is cheap to give and expensive to argue about later.
Does the public utility locate cover the irrigation and low-voltage lines in the yard?
Usually it does not. Public locate services mark utility-owned facilities up to the meter or point of service, and privately owned lines past that point, irrigation zones, invisible pet fence, landscape lighting, pool feeds, and a gas run to a grill, are generally the owner's to mark or to have privately located. Say so on the estimate, ask the owner to flag what they know about, and price repairs to unmarked private lines as extra. Confirm what your own state's one-call program covers before you write that sentence.
The grade falls 14 inches across one run. Should the fence rack or step?
Decide before you quote, because the two cost different amounts. Racked panels follow the grade with a consistent bottom gap and suit gentle, steady slopes. Stepped panels stay level and leave a triangular gap under each section, the usual choice for board fence and rigid frames. The example prices 6 stepped sections with graded gap closure. Show the fall you measured, the method you chose, and whether you are filling those gaps or leaving them, since the gap is the leading callback on a sloped run.
I quote by the foot. Why does the post count keep costing me money?
Because posts are not spread evenly along the footage you priced. Line posts at 8 ft on center are the cheap ones. Corners, terminals, and gate posts are heavier, set deeper, and take more concrete, and this yard carries 3 corners, 2 terminals, and a pair of 6x6 gate posts at 42 in that no per-foot average ever paid for. Runs also refuse to divide evenly, so every one of them rounds up to the next post. Count the posts off your sketch by type before you convert the job into a rate, then write the count, the spacing, and the hole depth on the estimate. Do that and a yard broken into five short runs stops getting quoted like a yard with one long one.
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