What tools does doing it yourself actually require?

At minimum a post hole digger or hired auger, a level, a string line, a saw and a way of mixing concrete. Hire costs are real money and belong in the comparison — an auger for a weekend is not a rounding error on a small fence.

What goes wrong most often on a first fence?

Posts out of line and posts set at inconsistent depth. Both are hard to correct once the concrete has gone off, and both come from setting posts one at a time instead of running a string line and setting to it. It is the part worth being slow about.

Is a hybrid approach sensible?

Frequently. Paying a crew to set the posts and doing the rails and pickets yourself removes the hardest, least forgiving part of the job while keeping most of the saving. Not every contractor will quote it, but it is worth asking.

Does doing it myself affect a warranty or a permit?

It can affect both. Some material warranties assume professional installation, and where a permit or inspection is required the responsibility falls on you rather than a contractor. Check with your building department before starting rather than after.

Fence Ledger

How much do you save building a fence yourself?

The saving from building a fence yourself is real, it is large, and it is almost exactly equal to the value of several very physical days.

Labour on 150 ft

$1,500–3,750

That is the part you take on yourself. Labour runs $10–25 per foot against $25–55 installed; materials alone are $8–20.

What the usual answer misses

The honest way to read the gap is as an hourly rate you are paying yourself. It is not a discount on a fence — it is the labour line of the quote, moved onto your own weekends, minus the tools you have to hire and the mistakes a first-timer makes that a crew does not. People who enjoy the work do very well out of it. People who do not, frequently stop halfway and pay someone to finish, which costs more than either option alone.

Work out your own

Every assumption above is editable. Change the length, the spacing, the hole size — the numbers and the working update as you go.

Units

Shape

Fence length

Height

Gates

Advanced options

These are typical values, not requirements. Post depth in particular is governed by your local frost line and building code — check before you dig.

Post spacing

Gate width

Picket gap

Hole diameter

Hole depth

Gravel base

Bag yield

Waste allowance

Posts

Sections

Pickets

336

Concrete

35 bags

Estimated cost

Materials only (DIY)

$1,400 – $3,600

Professionally installed

$3,950 – $8,850

National planning ranges compiled from published US construction cost guides, last checked September 2026 (confidence: medium-low). Prices vary sharply by region, season and contractor. These are estimates for planning, not quotes.

Sources: homeguide.com, calcsummit.com, angi.com, ergeon.com, homewyse.com

Shopping list

Bill of materials for this fence
Material	Size	Quantity
Posts	4x4	21
Rails incl. waste	2x4	63
Pickets incl. waste	1x6	336
Concrete mix		35bags
Gravel		8bags
Exterior screws		≈2,200
Walk gate kit		1

Why these numbers

How we got the section count

Run 1: 146 ft ÷ 8 ft = 18.25, rounded up to 19 sections

How we got the post count

3 posts are fixed by the shape itself
2 at the open ends
1 carrying a gate
18 line posts spaced between them
21 posts in total

How we got the picket count

Each picket covers 5.5 in plus a 0.25 in gap, so they repeat every 5.75 in
146 ft of fence needs 305 pickets
Plus 10% for offcuts, rounded up to 336

How we got the concrete

Each 10 in hole is 30 in deep, less 4 in of gravel base, leaving 26 in of concrete
The 4x4 post itself takes up part of that, so each hole needs the remainder
Across 21 posts
Divided by the 0.6 cu ft a bag yields: 34.91, so buy 35 bags

Common questions

What tools does doing it yourself actually require?: At minimum a post hole digger or hired auger, a level, a string line, a saw and a way of mixing concrete. Hire costs are real money and belong in the comparison — an auger for a weekend is not a rounding error on a small fence.
What goes wrong most often on a first fence?: Posts out of line and posts set at inconsistent depth. Both are hard to correct once the concrete has gone off, and both come from setting posts one at a time instead of running a string line and setting to it. It is the part worth being slow about.
Is a hybrid approach sensible?: Frequently. Paying a crew to set the posts and doing the rails and pickets yourself removes the hardest, least forgiving part of the job while keeping most of the saving. Not every contractor will quote it, but it is worth asking.
Does doing it myself affect a warranty or a permit?: It can affect both. Some material warranties assume professional installation, and where a permit or inspection is required the responsibility falls on you rather than a contractor. Check with your building department before starting rather than after.