What is this useful for?

Comparing quotes apples-to-apples between contractors who quote different total lengths, or checking whether a per-foot quote you received is in a reasonable range compared to a total-project quote you calculate this rate from.

Does this work for materials priced per linear foot, like trim or gutter?

Yes — enter the total material cost and total length purchased to back out the effective per-foot rate, useful for comparing suppliers or checking a receipt.

Should corners or posts be counted differently?

This calculator treats the total run as one flat length — if posts, corners, or gates carry a different cost than straight runs in your quote, you may want to separate those into their own calculation.

Financial-Adjacent

Cost Per Linear Foot Calculator

Find the cost per linear foot for fencing, trim, gutters, or any other length-priced project.

Answers as you typeNo submit button
Every formula citedNamed published standards
Calculated in your browserNo account, nothing uploaded

SettingsSettings for this calculationUS

Market

Imperial · sales tax

Total Cost

The total quoted or actual cost for the whole run.

Include materials and labor if you want an all-in installed rate, or materials only for a supply-only rate.

Total Length

The total length the cost covers.

Measure the full run — for fencing this is the total perimeter or run length, not counting height.

Cost per linear foot

20 $/linear ft

High confidence

Total length: 150 linear ft
Same cost per linear m: 65.62 $/linear m

Then change the inputs to see how far the answer moves.

Show calculation logic

How this was calculated

Formula source(s)

Cost per linear foot = total project cost / total length

Inputs used

Total Cost: 3000
Total Length: 150 ft

Intermediate steps

Total length: 150 linear ft
Same cost per linear m: 65.62 $/linear m

Final result20 $/linear ft

What this calculation does not cover

A per-foot rate carries no specification. Fence height, post spacing and embedment depth, picket gauge, gutter profile and trim size all change what a foot costs while leaving the run length identical, so two quotes only compare on this number when they describe the same product. A 6 ft board fence and a 4 ft one around the same perimeter are different rates, not a better and a worse price.
The ground the run crosses is not in it. Rock, tree roots, slope, a hand-dig where no machine can reach and spoil that has to be carted off all sit in the labor half of a per-foot price. A rate lifted from a job across flat lawn does not transfer to a run along a bank or to a boundary a mini excavator cannot reach.

Schematic, drawn to the proportions you entered — not to scale on screen.

Computed in your browser — nothing you enter is uploaded. Presented in US customary units and US trade terminology. Where a formula follows a published standard, that standard and its edition are cited beside it on this page; where none governs, the page says so. Local amendments override model codes — verify against the code in force where you build.

Sources checked 2026-09-06 · in the site-wide review of 2026-09-06 · v1.0.1

Regulatory standards & verification citations1

Cost per linear foot = total project cost / total length

Cite this page

Your workspace

Most jobs need more than one number. Add the calculators you need next and they open right here, underneath this one — your figures stay on screen and nothing is lost to a page change.

Now that you have the number

These guides cover the work this quantity is for — the first ones run this calculator inside the section that raises the question.

Building Up a Unit Rateuses this calculator
A rate is a quotient, and the quantity underneath it was measured by somebody else to rules you have not read. Everything else is the easy half.
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The set-out left one line on the wall. This is the day eleven carcases have to meet it, and the floor, the wall and the doors all disagree about where it is.
Pricing a Deck: Boards, Rail, Footings and Stairsuses this calculator
Four price lists, one deck: board feet for the frame, metres for the rail and fascia, a rate per hole and a rate per riser.

Called something else where you work? Plinth and toe kick — the term in each market, how close the equivalence really is, and the standard that governs it.

Already gone wrong? My worktop is swelling or lifting at a joint

How to calculate cost per linear foot in 3 steps

Total CostThe total quoted or actual cost for the whole run.
Total LengthThe total length the cost covers.
Cost per linear footThe tool computes the cost per linear foot from those figures and shows the formula, its sources, and a confidence rating alongside it.

Cost per linear foot by total length

Page defaults, not your figures above.

Total Length	Cost per linear foot (currency/linear ft)
100 ft	30
150 ft	20
200 ft	15
250 ft	12
300 ft	10

Frequently asked questions

What is this useful for?: Comparing quotes apples-to-apples between contractors who quote different total lengths, or checking whether a per-foot quote you received is in a reasonable range compared to a total-project quote you calculate this rate from.
Does this work for materials priced per linear foot, like trim or gutter?: Yes — enter the total material cost and total length purchased to back out the effective per-foot rate, useful for comparing suppliers or checking a receipt.
Should corners or posts be counted differently?: This calculator treats the total run as one flat length — if posts, corners, or gates carry a different cost than straight runs in your quote, you may want to separate those into their own calculation.

Preliminary estimate, not certified engineering. This tool produces an indicative quantity calculation for planning purposes only — it is not a certified structural analysis, a guaranteed material takeoff, or a substitute for building department approval. Always verify measurements on-site and have a licensed contractor or structural engineer review any load-bearing, code-sensitive, or safety-critical work before purchasing materials or starting construction. Spotted an arithmetic or standards error? Report it to contact@craftquantities.com with your inputs — a confirmed fix gets a permanent check of its own, so the same mistake cannot come back.