Fence Picket & Material Calculator
Independent — we don't sell lumber · Every table printed below the tool · No email required
The short answer
An 8 ft section of 6 ft privacy fence takes 18 butted 1x6 pickets, three rails and one more post — so 100 ft needs about 219 pickets before a 5% cull. Board-on-board takes 20–25% more. Enter your fence below for the full list: pickets, rails, posts, concrete and screws.
How many pickets per 8 ft section and per 100 ft
The counts the calculator produces, printed so you can check them without touching a control. Widths are the actual dressed size — a 1x6 picket is 5½ inches, not 6, which is the single most common reason a lumber order comes up short.
| Picket | Butted (privacy) | Spaced, 2″ gap | Board-on-board, 1″ overlap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1x4 (3½" actual) | 28 / section · 343 / 100 ft | 18 / section · 219 / 100 ft | 39 / section · 480 / 100 ft |
| 1x6 (5½" actual) | 18 / section · 219 / 100 ft | 13 / section · 160 / 100 ft | 22 / section · 267 / 100 ft |
| 1x8 (7¼" actual) | 14 / section · 166 / 100 ft | 11 / section · 130 / 100 ft | 16 / section · 192 / 100 ft |
Counts are for fence line only, before the 5% cull. Subtract gate openings from the length first. Shadowbox uses the same maths as board-on-board.
Complete fence material list by length
For the most common fence — 6 ft tall, butted 1x6 pickets, 4x4 posts at 8 ft centres, an open run with no gates, in ground that doesn't freeze — here is what a lumber yard order looks like. Pickets include the 5% cull; screws cover pickets and rails.
| Fence length | Pickets | Posts | 8 ft rails | 60 lb concrete | Screws |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 ft | 116 | 8 | 21 | 26 bags | 744 |
| 100 ft | 230 | 14 | 39 | 45 bags | 1,470 |
| 150 ft | 345 | 20 | 57 | 64 bags | 2,196 |
| 200 ft | 459 | 26 | 75 | 83 bags | 2,922 |
| 300 ft | 688 | 39 | 114 | 124 bags | 4,386 |
In cold climates the frost line sets post depth, and that changes both post length and concrete. Pick your state in the calculator, or use the post depth calculator for the full depth-by-state table.
How to calculate fence pickets by hand
Every picket count is one division: the length of fence in inches divided by how far each picket moves the fence along. What changes between styles is that second number.
- Butted privacy: the board's actual width. 1x6 = 5.5″.
- Spaced pickets: width plus gap. 1x6 with a 2″ gap = 7.5″.
- Board-on-board and shadowbox: width minus overlap. 1x6 overlapping 1″ = 4.5″.
Worked example: 150 ft of fence with one 4 ft gate is 146 ft of fence line, or 1,752 inches. Butted 1x6 pickets: 1,752 ÷ 5.5 = 318.5, so 319 pickets, and 335 with a 5% cull. Board-on-board instead: 1,752 ÷ 4.5 = 390, so 410 with the cull — 75 more boards for the same fence.
Posts are the other half of the list. An open run needs one post per section plus one for the far end, and every gate adds a post because it splits the fence in two. Rails are simply rails per section times sections: two up to 4 ft tall, three at 5–6 ft, four above that.
What the list leaves out
The calculator counts the structural materials. A few things still need adding to the order: gate kits (hinges, latch, anti-sag cable), post caps, a pressure-treated kickboard if you want one along the bottom, gravel for the base of each hole, and stain or sealer — work out the gallons here. Buying the boards yourself only saves the labour line; price the installed fence to see what that is actually worth.
Keep going
Frequently asked questions
- How many pickets do I need for a 100 ft fence?
- About 219 butted 1x6 pickets, or 230 with a 5% cull. Spaced at 2″ it's about 160; board-on-board about 267.
- How many pickets are in an 8 ft fence section?
- 18 butted 1x6 pickets (a 1x6 is really 5.5″). 13 with a 2″ gap, 22 board-on-board.
- How many pickets are in a 6 ft fence section?
- 14 butted 1x6 pickets, 10 with a 2″ gap, 16 board-on-board.
- How do you calculate fence pickets?
- Net length in inches ÷ the distance each picket covers: width (butted), width + gap (spaced) or width − overlap (board-on-board). Round up and add ~5%.
- How many more pickets does board-on-board take?
- About 20–25% more — each board advances the fence 4.5″ instead of 5.5″ with a 1″ overlap.
- How many rails does a fence need?
- Two rails up to 4 ft, three for 5–6 ft, four above that. 8 ft spacing uses 8 ft 2x4s; 6 ft spacing uses 12 ft boards cut in half.
- How many screws or nails do I need for fence pickets?
- Two per picket per rail — six per picket on a 3-rail fence, about 110 per 8 ft section. Plus four per rail at the posts. Galvanized or stainless only.