Fence Picket Calculator

This picket fence calculator will help you estimate the number of pickets needed for your fence.

Posts1513 bays need 14 posts, plus 1 for the gate

Bays13sections between posts

Even post spacing7.6923 ftspread evenly instead of leaving a short last bay

Last bay if spaced exactly4 ftat 8 ft per bay

Rails393 per bay

Linear feet of rail300 ft

Pickets2003.5 in wide with a 2.5 in gap

Pickets per bay16

Linear feet of picket1,200 ft

Post length to buy8 ft6 ft above ground plus 2 ft buried

Fence face area600 sq ftfor staining or painting

Fence length100 ft30.48 m

The method

posts = bays + 1; pickets = run ÷ (picket width + gap)

Posts outnumber bays by one

A 100-foot fence at 8-foot spacing needs 13 bays and 14 posts, because both ends need one. Forgetting the last post is the classic error, and it is also why every gate adds a post rather than replacing one.

Rather than leaving a stub bay at the end, divide the run by the number of bays and space the posts evenly. Thirteen bays over 100 feet gives 7 feet 8⅔ inches each — comfortably within the strength of a 2×4 rail and far better looking than twelve 8-foot bays and a 4-foot remnant.

Bury a third of the post’s exposed height. A 6-foot fence wants 2 feet in the ground, so buy 8-foot posts; in soft soil or high wind, go deeper.