What new seamless gutters cost in Dallas, and what moves the number

The short answer on gutter pricing

On our website we state that most property owners spend between $1,000 and $5,000 for a professional gutter installation. Where your house lands in that range depends on how many feet of gutter it needs, how high and steep the roof is, the gutter size, the material and color, the number of downspouts, and whether the fascia behind the old gutter is sound. A firm number only comes after someone has walked the roofline, which is why our estimates are free and written.

At The Brothers that just do Gutters, gutters are the only thing we install, so we price them every day. Below is how each of those factors works, so you can read any quote, ours or someone else's, and know what you are paying for.

Footage, height and the shape of the roof

Linear footage is the base of every gutter price. It is measured along each eave that needs a gutter, plus the downspouts that carry water from the gutter to the ground. A long single-story ranch can need more gutter than a compact two-story, which surprises people who assume the bigger-looking house costs more. Footage is also where quotes quietly differ: one company measures every eave, another skips the short runs over a porch or a bay window, and the second quote looks cheaper until water pours off the unguttered section.

Height and pitch come next. A second or third story means taller ladders, more setup and more time on every run, and a steep roof adds safety work. Rooflines with many corners cost more than a simple rectangle, because every inside and outside corner is a joint that has to be cut, fitted and sealed. Valleys, where two roof planes meet and pour water into one spot, often call for a larger gutter or an extra downspout right there.

• Total feet of gutter along every eave
• Number and length of downspouts
• Number of stories and roof pitch
• Corners, bump-outs and valleys along the roofline

Gutter size and the number of downspouts

We install 5-inch, 6-inch and 7-inch seamless gutters. A larger gutter uses more metal and wider downspouts, so it costs more per foot, but it can also mean fewer downspouts on a long run. Our sizing guidance notes that a 6-inch gutter, only an inch wider than a 5-inch, can carry about 40 percent more water.

Mixing sizes is often the cost-effective answer. A house might need 6-inch only along the back, where a large roof plane drains into one run, and 5-inch everywhere else. I explain how we decide in a separate guide on choosing between 5-inch and 6-inch gutters. The point for your budget is simple: be wary of a quote that puts the same size on every side of the house without explaining why.

Material and color: the biggest single choice

Aluminum is the standard for most homes and the most economical choice. Our colored aluminum comes in almost twenty colors, and you can split them so the gutter matches the trim while the downspouts match the brick. Copper Penny and Dark Bronze give a copper look for a fraction of what real copper costs.

Specialty metals cost more. We install copper, galvanized and Galvalume gutters in both k-style and half-round profiles. Galvalume is steel coated with a mix of aluminum and zinc and is priced below copper. Copper is the premium option, usually chosen for historic or high-end homes where the look matters as much as the drainage. Steel and vinyl are also available. Half-round gutters, common on older and traditional homes, generally take more labor than k-style because the hangers and fittings are different.

• Aluminum, white or colored: the usual choice and the lowest cost
• Galvalume and galvanized steel: stronger, priced between aluminum and copper
• Copper: the highest material cost, chosen for appearance and longevity
• Half-round profiles: more fitting work than standard k-style

Seamless versus sectional: why the cheap run costs more later

Some low quotes are for sectional gutters, sold in short pieces and joined on the house. Every joint is a seam held together with sealant, and sealant dries out in the sun. Seamless gutters are formed on site from a continuous coil, so each run is one piece from corner to downspout, and the only joints are at the corners and outlets. The forming machine and a trained crew cost more than a stack of store-bought sections, which is part of why seamless is priced higher.

Our repair page puts the long-term side plainly. Older systems fastened with spikes and ferrules, an obsolete way of attaching a gutter to the roofline, are usually better replaced than patched, and a new installation could last as long as three decades. When you compare quotes, a seamless run on hidden hangers and a sectional run on spikes are not the same product, even if the footage on paper matches.

The line items people do not expect

The biggest surprise on many quotes is the fascia, the board the gutter hangs from. When an old gutter has leaked behind itself for years, the wood is soft, and a new gutter screwed into rotten fascia will pull loose. Replacing that board is carpentry on top of gutter work, and it can only be priced once the old gutter comes down or the wood is probed. We would rather tell you up front that it may be needed than discover it on install day.

Other items that move the total: extra downspouts on a house that never had enough, extensions or drainage work to carry water away from the slab, and removal of the old system. Ask any company whether removal and haul-off are in the price. If your current gutters are mostly sound, read our guide on whether to repair or replace gutters before you pay for a full new system.

Guards add cost now and remove it later

Gutter guards are an add-on, and they raise the installation price. What they buy you is fewer cleanings. Our guards page notes that with guards in place a yearly service may be enough, instead of the two to four cleanings a year that unprotected gutters usually need.

Whether that trade makes sense depends on your trees. A house under live oaks or pecans fills its gutters fast; a house with no trees nearby may not need guards at all, and we will say so. Our BroGuard guard uses a heavy-gauge aluminum frame with a stainless steel micro-mesh insert, which costs more than a plastic screen from a store. I cover the real pros and cons in what gutter guards do and do not do. On a house with trees on one side only, guards on that side alone keep the cost down.

Cleaning, repair and replacement are three different budgets

Not every gutter problem needs a new system. A cleaning in the Dallas–Fort Worth area normally runs around a few hundred dollars, depending on how involved the job is, according to our cleaning page. A repair, such as re-pitching a run, re-securing hangers and elbows, or replacing a damaged downspout section, usually sits between a cleaning and a new install.

Replacement makes sense when the system is old, sectional and leaking at the joints, undersized for the roof, or hung on rotted wood. If water is spilling over the edge and pooling near the slab, start with our guide to overflowing gutters and water at the foundation, which walks through what to check before you decide.

There is also a cost to waiting that never shows up on a quote. Clogged or failing gutters let water back up behind the gutter, and our cleaning page lists what follows: rotted fascia, water working into the attic and ceiling, and mold and mildew that are expensive to fix. A few hundred dollars of cleaning or a modest repair this spring is almost always cheaper than fascia, drywall and gutter work together next year.

How to compare two gutter quotes fairly

Two quotes for the same house can differ by a lot, and the cheaper one is not always cheaper. Lay them side by side and check that they are quoting the same thing. A lower number often means a smaller gutter, fewer downspouts, sectional pieces instead of seamless runs, or no allowance for fascia repair.

Ask each company to put the following in writing. If one cannot, that tells you something on its own.

• Total footage, gutter size and profile for each side of the house
• Material, gauge where relevant, and color for gutters and downspouts
• Number and placement of downspouts, and how far they will discharge
• Whether the runs are seamless and formed on site
• Fascia repair or replacement, priced or explained as a possible add
• Removal and haul-off of the old system
• Guards, if included, and the written terms of any warranty

Financing, scheduling and the next step

If you would rather spread the cost, we offer financing through Wisetack for projects up to $25,000, with terms from 3 to 120 months and APRs from 0 to 35.9 percent depending on credit. Checking whether you prequalify does not affect your credit score. Whether to finance is your call; I would only suggest comparing the rate to any other option you have.

The estimate itself costs nothing. You call, text or book online, a Solutionist comes out, usually within a few days, and measures the roofline, pitch, overhang, fascia and valleys. You get a written recommendation with options, not a single take-it-or-leave-it number. After approval and a deposit, most projects across Dallas and the surrounding cities are completed within one to two weeks, depending on scope and material availability.

Questions people ask me