Privacy Fence Cost and Styles: 6-Foot and 8-Foot Options Compared

A privacy fence isn't a single product — it's a category with six common styles and a 60% price spread between the cheapest and most expensive. The right style depends on your budget, your privacy priority, and whether you care what the back side looks like.

The six standard privacy styles

Dog-ear stockade

Cheapest. Vertical pickets butted tight against each other with the corners cut off the tops. $25–$35/ft installed in pressure-treated pine, $35–$45/ft in cedar.

Flat-top stockade

Same as dog-ear but with full square tops. Slightly more modern look. Same price as dog-ear.

Board-on-board

Pickets alternate on both sides of the rail, overlapping at the edges. 100% private from both sides — no 'good side' vs 'bad side.' $35–$50/ft installed.

Shadowbox (good-neighbor)

Like board-on-board but with gaps between pickets — partial privacy that looks identical on both sides. $32–$45/ft installed.

Horizontal

Modern look. Pickets run horizontally between posts. Requires premium materials (the look fails with cheap pine). $45–$65/ft installed.

Tongue-and-groove

100% solid panels with no visible gaps even after wood shrinks. Most expensive. $50–$70/ft installed.

6-ft vs 8-ft

Six feet is standard and what most cities allow without a permit. Eight feet adds true second-story privacy but bumps cost 25–35% (more material, deeper posts, more concrete, often a permit). Worth it for pool privacy or against a tall neighboring structure.

What drives style choice

1. Care about the 'back side' (the neighbor's view)? Pick shadowbox or board-on-board.
2. Maximum privacy? Tongue-and-groove or board-on-board.
3. Tight budget? Dog-ear stockade.
4. Modern home aesthetic? Horizontal.