Timber wins the day-one price. Aluminium wins just about everything after that. The real question isn't which fence is cheaper — it's cheaper over how long. This guide compares aluminium and timber fencing on upfront cost, the maintenance each one actually demands, realistic lifespans, and what 15 years of ownership looks like for a typical Australian home.
| Aluminium slat | Timber paling | |
|---|---|---|
| Installed cost per metre (AUD) | $290 – $480 | $180 – $320 (indicative) |
| Maintenance | Wash 2–4× a year | Stain/paint every 3–4 years; replace palings as needed |
| Realistic lifespan | 15–25+ years | 10–15 years with care |
| Biggest enemy | Neglect of the coating near the coast | Rot, termites, warping, splitting |
| 15-year total cost | Close to the install price | Often meets or exceeds aluminium |
Aluminium ranges are our indicative 2026 market bands for supply and install. Timber installed ranges are indicative market ranges, not a quote — timber prices vary widely by species, region and site. Installed prices assume metro areas and flat ground.
Timber paling is the cheapest boundary fence you can buy installed in Australia — typically $180–$320 per metre installed for treated pine, against $290–$480 per metre installed for aluminium slat. On a 20-metre run, that's roughly a $2,000–$4,000 day-one saving for timber.
That saving is real, and for a rental property or a short-term hold it can be the right call. But it's also the last time timber is cheaper. Everything below is where the money goes back.
Supply-only, the gap is similar: aluminium slat supply runs about $95–$170 per metre (indicative), while timber materials are roughly half that. If you're comparing quotes, make sure both include the same things — posts, concrete, fixings, gates and old-fence removal are where cheap quotes hide exclusions. Run both options through our free fence calculator to compare like-for-like materials lists.
| Aluminium | Timber | |
|---|---|---|
| Routine care | Hose or soapy wash 2–4× a year | Annual inspection; re-stain or repaint every 3–4 years |
| A repaint cycle costs | — | Materials plus a weekend (DIY) or a painter's day rate, every few years |
| Common repairs | Rare — touch up scratches, tighten a fixing | Replace warped, split or rotted palings; re-nail loose boards; treat termite damage |
| Coastal areas | Rinse quarterly; marine-grade coating if very exposed | Salt air shortens timber life noticeably — more frequent oiling needed |
| Time over 15 years | A few hours total | Multiple weekends plus 3–4 full repaint cycles |
Put a dollar figure on your own time and timber's "cheap" starts looking expensive fast. Three to four repaint cycles over 15 years — each one materials plus labour, whether that's your weekends or a painter's invoice — is the cost timber owners consistently underestimate. See how to clean aluminium slat fencing for what "maintenance" actually means on the aluminium side: it's a hose and dish soap.
The practical consequence: a timber fence installed today is likely facing major rebuild costs right when an aluminium fence is barely middle-aged. If you're planning to stay in the home 10+ years, lifespan alone usually settles the argument.
Take a typical 20-metre side boundary, installed on flat ground in a metro area. These are illustrative figures built from the ranges above — your site will differ, but the shape of the comparison holds:
Illustrative comparison using indicative ranges, not a quote. Timber maintenance costs vary enormously between DIY and hiring painters — run your own numbers, but don't run them at zero.
The crossover point — where timber's total cost passes aluminium's — typically lands around year 8–12 for an average home. Before that, timber is cheaper. After that, aluminium was the cheaper fence all along.
Whichever you choose, compare installed quotes on identical inclusions — posts, concrete, gates, removal — and ask us for a factory quote on the aluminium option so you're comparing real numbers, not brochure ones.
Fencing rarely makes a valuation report, but it shapes first impressions — and first impressions shape offers. A straight, clean aluminium fence reads as "maintained home" to buyers and valuers; a weathered timber fence with leaning palings reads as "deferred maintenance", which is exactly the phrase you don't want in a buyer's head.
Estate agents consistently report that street appeal affects both time-on-market and final price. A fence is one of the largest visible surfaces of a property — replacing a tired timber boundary with aluminium before listing is one of the cheaper pre-sale improvements per square metre of visual impact. If a sale is on the horizon within a few years, aluminium's higher upfront cost is partly a marketing expense, not just a fence expense.
Both materials have a defensible story and both have a weak spot:
Over a full lifecycle, the analyses tend to converge: the material you don't have to replace twice usually wins. Don't buy either fence primarily on green credentials — buy on total cost and maintenance, and let the longevity do the environmental work.
Upfront, no — timber paling is cheaper per metre installed. Over 15 years, aluminium usually ends up cheaper because timber needs repainting every few years and typically needs rebuilding sooner.
10–15 years with good care (treated pine, kept off the soil, repainted on schedule). Neglected or in wet/termite-prone areas, less.
Slowly, over many years in harsh sun — quality powder-coat holds colour well, and darker colours show fading first. It's cosmetic, not structural, unlike timber rot.
Yes — wood-grain powder-coat on aluminium slats gives the timber appearance with aluminium's maintenance profile. It's one of the most popular finishes for exactly this reason.
Aluminium, clearly. Salt air accelerates timber decay and rusts steel, while powder-coated aluminium just needs a quarterly rinse. Specify marine-grade coating within a kilometre or two of the surf.
It's mixed. Timber is renewable but needs chemical treatment and regular recoating; aluminium is energy-intensive to produce but 100% recyclable and lasts decades with no chemical upkeep. Over a full lifecycle the difference is smaller than either side's marketing suggests.
Yes — a common approach is aluminium on the long boundary runs and keeping timber (or rebuilding in timber) on a short feature section. Just plan the junction: use a proper post at the transition rather than butting the two materials mid-bay, and expect the aluminium section to outlast the timber one by a decade or more.
Comparing real numbers?
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