Pricing guide · real Madison County quote

What a 187-foot Privacy Fence Actually Cost in Huntsville (Line by Line)

Most fence cost guides give you a per-foot range and call it done. This one shows you the actual line items from a representative Jones Valley privacy fence we built in September 2025 — what the homeowner paid for, what drove each cost, and what would have changed the total. Then we map the same logic onto chain link, aluminum, and farm fence pricing so you can budget realistically before you call anyone.

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The job: 187 ft of 6ft board-on-board cedar privacy, Jones Valley

Representative project — details adapted from real installs in Huntsville. The homeowner had a rectangular backyard with two existing chain link fences on neighbor property lines and one open road-side run that needed full new privacy. Two 4ft walk gates, one to a side yard, one to a small dog run. UC4B pressure-treated posts. Cap and trim on top.

Line item	Qty	Unit	Subtotal
UC4B 4x4x8 ground-contact pressure-treated posts	26	$28	$728
#57 crushed stone (gravel post base, ~4" per hole)	1.5 yd	$48/yd	$72
Quikrete 80lb concrete (3 bags per post)	78 bags	$5.20	$406
1x6x6 cedar pickets (board-on-board doubles coverage)	374	$8.50	$3,179
2x4x8 PT rail boards (3 rails per section)	78	$11	$858
2x6x16 cedar cap rail	12	$32	$384
1x4x8 cedar trim board	24	$14	$336
Stainless picket screws, brackets, hangers	—	—	$185
4ft walk gate frame + cedar pickets (2 ea)	2	$240	$480
Stanley heavy-duty hinges + thumb-latch (2 sets)	2	$95	$190
Labor: site prep, layout, utility locate coordination	—	—	$340
Labor: post setting (2.5 days, 3-person crew)	—	—	$2,160
Labor: panel build and trim install (1.5 days)	—	—	$1,296
Labor: gate fabrication and hardware install	—	—	$220
Cleanup, debris haul, final walkthrough	—	—	$180
Rock-set surcharge (2 posts hit limestone shelf)	2	$170	$340
Total			$11,354

Working out to roughly $60/linear foot on a 187-foot run with two gates. That's at the higher end of typical Huntsville privacy fence pricing because of the cedar pickets, cap-and-trim profile, and limestone rock work. A solid-panel dog-ear style in pine instead of cedar would have come in around $5,200 — roughly $28/ft.

What drives the per-foot cost

Wood species (biggest variable)

Cedar pickets run about 2x the cost of pressure-treated pine pickets. On a 187-foot fence that's roughly $1,500–$1,800 in material difference. Cedar weathers naturally to silver-gray; pine takes stain better. Neither makes the fence last longer — the posts are the lifespan-determining factor.

Style and detail level

Solid-panel dog-ear: cheapest. Board-on-board: ~25% premium. Cap-and-trim: another ~15% premium. Horizontal slat: ~25% premium plus reinforced framing. Custom heights, mixed styles, decorative caps all add cost.

Gates (each one is labor-heavy)

A walk gate adds roughly $300–$500 to the job vs an equivalent run of fence panel. Drive gates add $800–$2,000+ depending on size. Pool gates add the pool-code hardware premium ($200–$400 in hardware alone).

Terrain

Flat lot with clean access: lowest labor. Slope, rocks, tree roots, narrow access where the post truck can't reach: anywhere from 10% to 40% labor premium. Our contractors measure before quoting; surprises after install are how customers lose trust.

Removal of existing fencing

Old chain link: $4–$6 per linear foot to remove and dispose. Old wood fence: $5–$8/ft. Old vinyl: $6–$9/ft. Concrete-set posts are slower and more expensive to remove than non-concrete posts.

Permits and surveys

Decatur, Cullman, Hartselle, most of Tennessee: $50–$100 permit fee. Decatur requires a stamped survey ($400–$700 from a local surveyor) before the permit will be issued. Our contractors pull permits for you and pass through the actual cost — no upcharge.

Cost ranges by fence type (Huntsville and North Alabama, 2026)

Wood privacy

$25–$60 per linear foot installed. Pine solid-panel at the low end; cedar cap-and-trim at the high end. Most Madison County jobs land $30–$45/ft. See the line-item breakdown above for what's inside that number.

Aluminum ornamental

$30–$55 per linear foot installed. Pool-code installs with MagnaLatch hardware run upper end. Standard 4ft ornamental front-yard fence: middle of range.

Chain link

$15–$30 per linear foot installed. Galvanized 4ft at the low end; vinyl-coated 5ft or 6ft at the upper end. Privacy slats add $3–$5/ft. Gates add $200–$500 each.

Farm fencing

$5–$25 per linear foot installed. Barbed wire: $5–$8/ft. Woven wire: $8–$15/ft. 4-board horse fence: $25–$40/ft. Long runs reduce per-foot cost; corner-heavy properties increase it.

Vinyl privacy

$30–$50 per linear foot installed. Higher upfront than wood; zero maintenance ongoing. Color options limited compared to stainable wood. Popular in Madison and Priceville HOAs.

Automated driveway gate

$4,000–$8,000+ for a complete install: gate, posts, operator, hardware, basic access control. Higher with smart-home integration or solar power systems.

Ranges current as of early 2026. Material prices fluctuate — pressure-treated lumber prices in particular have swung 20–30% across the past two years.

How we quote (and how to compare quotes from multiple contractors)

Walk the property. Our contractors measure footage on-site. Trying to quote from Google Maps or homeowner-measured numbers always under-counts. The on-site walk also catches terrain issues (rocks, slope, tree roots) before they become change-orders.
Itemize materials and labor separately. Quotes with a single "total" lump are hard to compare. Ask any contractor for materials and labor broken out. The line items above are the template we use.
Specify post grade. The single biggest hidden variance between quotes is post treatment grade. UC4B vs UC3B looks identical on a quote sheet that just says "pressure-treated posts." Ask which retention rating.
Confirm gravel base. A quote that omits gravel base at posts is either skipping it or hiding it. Our contractors always list #57 stone as a line item. Other quality contractors do too.
Get permit/survey costs identified upfront. If the city requires a permit or survey, that needs to be a line item, not a surprise after the work starts.

Cost guide FAQ

Why is your quote higher than the "low" quote I got from another contractor?

Almost always one of three things: (1) we're using UC4B ground-contact posts instead of UC3B; (2) we're including a gravel base at every post; (3) we're including permit/survey costs the other quote left off. The line-item walkthrough above shows what real installation costs cover. We're happy to compare our quote against another quote side by side and explain the differences.

Can I save money by supplying my own materials?

Sometimes, but be careful with posts. Our contractors have had customer-supplied posts turn out to be UC3B (above-ground only) instead of UC4B (ground contact). Now we bring our own posts to every job. For pickets, rails, and gates, customer-supplied is fine if the materials match our spec.

Do you offer financing?

We accept credit cards. For larger projects we can discuss payment milestones (deposit, mid-project, completion). We don't offer in-house financing — there are better consumer-financing options through your bank or credit union than we could match.

What's the cheapest way to fence a yard?

Galvanized 4ft chain link is the cheapest functional option ($15–$22/ft). For wood, pine solid-panel dog-ear at 4ft height is the budget privacy option ($22–$28/ft). The cheapest-per-foot isn't always the cheapest over 10 years, though — see the cedar fence lifespan post.

What's the most expensive variable I can control?

Wood species. Switching from cedar to pressure-treated pine on a 200-foot privacy fence saves roughly $1,500–$2,000 in material with no impact on fence lifespan. Stained pine looks excellent and lasts as long as cedar in our climate.

Ready for a real quote?

Tell us about your project. We respond within one business day with line-item pricing.