Metal Roof Cost Calculator

Price a metal roof by profile, metal, thickness, tear-off and complexity. Covers steel, aluminum, copper and zinc, with a total range and a cost per square.

By CalcBuilt Editorial TeamUpdated September 14, 2026Formulas checked against manufacturer specs, see how we calculate.

Quick answer: Price a metal roof by multiplying the footprint by the pitch factor, then applying an installed rate per square foot and adding tear-off and underlayment. A 40 x 30 ft footprint at 6/12 in 24 gauge snap-lock standing seam runs about $18,200 to $31,500 installed.

Your measurements

Gable end: pitch is the rise over a 12 in run; the factor from that pitch turns footprint into roof area.

Roof footprint lengthftMeasured at the ground along the eave side, walls only. The overhang is small next to the price spread, so it is left out.Roof footprint widthftThe gable-to-gable dimension at the ground. On an L-shaped house, price each rectangle and add the results.Roof pitchSets the pitch factor that turns footprint into sloped area. A 6/12 roof has 12 percent more surface than its footprint, an 8/12 roof 20 percent more.Panel profileExposed fastener panels are screwed through the face. Snap-lock seams press together by hand; mechanically seamed panels are closed by a seaming machine and are the choice on low slopes. Shingles, shakes and tiles are stamped panels that lock to each other and read like a conventional roof from the ground.MetalThe metal moves material cost far more than labor, so it is priced apart from the profile. Against painted steel, aluminum is about twice the material, zinc three times and copper four times, while the labor premium is 5, 25 and 30 percent. That is why a copper roof is about 72 percent material and a steel one 45 percent.Steel gauge24 gauge is the residential standing seam standard and 29 gauge is the agricultural exposed fastener panel. Smaller numbers are thicker: 24 gauge carries about 70 percent more steel than 29 and resists oil canning and hail denting.Tear-off of the existing roofIRC R908.3.1.1 allows a recover over one existing layer only. Two or more layers, or a wet or buckled deck, means everything comes off.UnderlaymentMetal decks run hot. Most panel makers require a high-temperature synthetic rated to 240 degrees F or more under standing seam; standard synthetic can wrinkle and telegraph.Roof complexityEvery valley, dormer, skylight and chimney is hand-cut flashing and hours of trim work. This scales the panel and trim line, not the tear-off.

Results update as you type. The link in your address bar saves these entries.

Total installed range$18,200 to $31,500All results

Results

Total installed range: $18,200 to $31,500; 1,342 sq ft of roof surface in 24 ga steel, snap-lock profile, some roof
Cost per square: $1,356 to $2,348 per square; $13.56 to $23.48 per sq ft over 13.4 squares. A roofing square is 100 sq ft
Material and labor split: $8,600 to $14,800 material; Labor, tear-off and disposal are $9,600 to $16,700. 49% of the panel line is material in steel, against 45% for the same profile in painted steel. Galvalume is an aluminum-zinc coated steel and is the mainstream residential panel
Tear-off and underlayment: $1,900 to $3,900; One layer of asphalt shingles plus high-temperature synthetic. Deck repairs are found after the old roof is off and are billed on top
40 years of asphalt instead: $24,300 to $44,100; Architectural shingles installed three times over 40 years with two extra tear-offs, in today's dollars, against $18,200 to $31,500 once for this metal roof. Service life here is 40 to 60 years

Metal Roof Cost formula

Roof area = Length x Width x Pitch factor,  factor = sqrt(1 + (rise / 12)²)
Material unit = profile material share x metal factor x thickness factor
Labor unit = (1 - profile material share) x metal labor factor
Panel line = Roof area x profile rate per sq ft in steel x complexity factor x (Material unit + Labor unit)
Tear-off + underlayment = Roof area x (tear-off rate + underlayment rate)
Total = Panel line + Tear-off + Underlayment
The metal scales the two halves apart because copper is about 4 times the material of steel but only 1.3 times the labor

Worked example

A 60 x 28 ft ranch at 4/12 getting 29 gauge exposed fastener R-panel over one existing layer of shingles, standard synthetic underlayment, simple gable. Footprint is 1,680 sq ft and the 4/12 factor is 1.054, so the roof surface is 1,771 sq ft, or 17.7 squares.

Exposed fastener is 40% material, so 29 gauge steel scales the line by 0.40 x 0.82 + 0.60 x 1.00 = 0.928. The panel line is 1,771 x $4.50 to $9.00 x 0.928, which is $7,395 to $14,791. Tear-off is zero on a recover. Standard synthetic at $0.30 to $0.60 adds $531 to $1,063. The total lands near $7,900 to $15,900, or $4.48 to $8.95 per square foot. The same roof in 24 gauge snap-lock would run roughly three times that, and in copper about six times.

Quick reference

Typical 2026 US installed cost per sq ft of roof surface, on a simple roof, at 26 gauge steel, 0.032 in aluminum, 0.7 mm zinc or 16 oz copper
Profile and metal	Per sq ft	Per square	Typical service life
Exposed fastener, painted steel	$4.50 to $9.00	$450 to $900	25 to 40 years
Shingle or shake, painted steel	$10 to $18	$1,000 to $1,800	30 to 50 years
Tile or shake, stone-coated steel	$11 to $19.80	$1,100 to $2,000	40 to 50 years
Standing seam snap-lock, painted steel	$10 to $17	$1,000 to $1,700	40 to 60 years
Standing seam seamed, painted steel	$13 to $22	$1,300 to $2,200	50 years or more
Standing seam, aluminum	$14.80 to $25.10	$1,480 to $2,510	50 years or more
Standing seam, zinc	$20.40 to $34.60	$2,040 to $3,460	80 to 100 years
Standing seam, copper	$25.60 to $43.50	$2,560 to $4,350	100 years or more
Architectural asphalt, for comparison	$4.50 to $8.00	$450 to $800	18 to 25 years

What actually drives the price of a metal roof

Two separate choices set the price, and most quotes and most calculators run them together. The profile is how the panel is formed and fastened: exposed fastener corrugated and R-panel typically run $450 to $900 per square installed in 2026 in painted steel, metal shingles and shakes $1,000 to $1,800, snap-lock standing seam $1,000 to $1,700, and mechanically seamed $1,300 to $2,200. The metal is what the panel is cut from, and it multiplies the material half of that rate: stone-coated steel by about 1.2, aluminum by 2, zinc by 3 and copper by 4.1. Labor barely moves by comparison, 5 percent for aluminum and 25 to 30 percent for zinc and copper, which is skilled sheet metal and soldering rather than a different roof.

After the system, the three things that move a bid are area, complexity and what has to come off first. Area is the footprint times the pitch factor, not the footprint: a 6/12 roof is 12 percent larger than the plan view and an 8/12 roof is 20 percent larger. Complexity is hand work, since every valley, dormer and curb is cut and flashed one at a time. Tear-off is $1.00 to $2.00 per square foot for one layer of asphalt and $2.50 to $5.00 for wood shake or tile, plus whatever rotten decking shows up underneath.

Which metal, and what it changes

Painted Galvalume steel is the default for good reasons: it is stiff, it dents and oil cans less than anything softer, and it is the cheapest way to get a 40 to 60 year roof. Galvalume is an aluminum-zinc coating over steel, so the cut edges and the fasteners are what eventually decide its life, not the field of the panel. Aluminum costs about half again as much installed and does not rust at all, which settles the argument within a few miles of salt water; the trade is that it is softer, dents more easily, and expands about twice as much, so the pans run shorter and every clip has to float.

Copper and zinc are a different purchase. Copper is roughly two and a half times a steel standing seam roof, about $2,600 to $4,400 per square installed, and close to three quarters of that is the metal itself, so the quote tracks the commodity market rather than the labor market. Zinc lands between aluminum and copper at about $2,000 to $3,500 and self-heals fine scratches into its own patina. Both want a crew who have worked them before, both are typically specified on a roof meant to last a century, and neither pays back against asphalt inside a 40 year window. Two practical notes: runoff from either one stains limestone, concrete and painted trim, and eats an aluminum gutter, so the gutter goes in the same metal; and copper must not touch bare aluminum, zinc or Galvalume anywhere, fasteners included.

Gauge, coating and the 40 year arithmetic

Gauge is thickness, and smaller numbers are thicker. 29 gauge is about 0.014 in and is the agricultural panel; 26 gauge is about 0.018 in; 24 gauge is about 0.024 in and is the residential standing seam standard. Going from 26 to 24 gauge adds about 18 percent to the steel itself, which is around 8 percent of an installed standing seam price, and buys a panel that resists oil canning and hail denting. Thickness only touches the material half: a heavier panel forms no slower once it is on the roof. Ask what the coating is as well: a PVDF finish such as Kynar 500 typically carries a 30 to 40 year chalk and fade warranty, while the SMP finish on a cheap ag panel typically carries 20 to 30 years.

The comparison that matters is not metal against asphalt today, it is metal against asphalt bought three times. Architectural shingles typically last 18 to 25 years in most US climates, so a 40 year window holds three asphalt roofs and two extra tear-offs. The row above runs that arithmetic in today's dollars with no inflation and no discount rate, so read it as an order of magnitude, not a forecast. Two side effects rarely make the bid: many carriers discount premiums for a Class 4 impact rated metal roof, and a standing seam roof takes solar clamps with no roof penetrations at all.

What this calculator leaves out

Trim and flashing packages, which run 15 to 25 percent of a standing seam job on their own: ridge, rake, eave, sidewall, endwall, valley, pipe boots and curbs. Snow guards in snow country, typically $8 to $20 per linear foot of eave. Deck repair found after tear-off, gutter replacement, skylight replacement while the roof is open, permit fees, and a crane or boom for panels over about 20 ft. Solar clamps, ridge vent, and the specialty fastener and closure counts are in the metal roofing calculator instead.

Code limits that apply

IRC R905.10.2checked
Lapped panels 3:12, or 1/2:12 with lap sealant; standing seam 1/4:12
If you miss it: Corrugated panels on a 2:12 porch siphon water back up the side lap and stain the ceiling below
IRC R908.3.1.1checked
No recover where two or more layers of roof covering are already on the deck
If you miss it: Panels laid over two shingle layers are red-tagged and the whole assembly comes off again
IRC R905.10.1
Panels go on a solid deck, or on spaced supports the panel is listed for
If you miss it: Panels screwed to purlins when the listing calls for a solid deck oil can and pull at the fasteners
IRC R905.10.4
Attachment follows the manufacturer's installation instructions and the panel listing
If you miss it: Clip spacing stretched to save labor shows up as a peeled seam in the first real wind event
IRC R903.2
Flashing at walls, valleys, chimneys, penetrations and changes of roof slope
If you miss it: Sealant instead of a formed sidewall flashing leaks within a season and rots the sheathing under the panel

Provision	Limit	If you miss it
IRC R905.10.2checked	Lapped panels 3:12, or 1/2:12 with lap sealant; standing seam 1/4:12	Corrugated panels on a 2:12 porch siphon water back up the side lap and stain the ceiling below
IRC R908.3.1.1checked	No recover where two or more layers of roof covering are already on the deck	Panels laid over two shingle layers are red-tagged and the whole assembly comes off again
IRC R905.10.1	Panels go on a solid deck, or on spaced supports the panel is listed for	Panels screwed to purlins when the listing calls for a solid deck oil can and pull at the fasteners
IRC R905.10.4	Attachment follows the manufacturer's installation instructions and the panel listing	Clip spacing stretched to save labor shows up as a peeled seam in the first real wind event
IRC R903.2	Flashing at walls, valleys, chimneys, penetrations and changes of roof slope	Sealant instead of a formed sidewall flashing leaks within a season and rots the sheathing under the panel

Rows marked checked produce a warning in the results when an entry crosses the limit. The others are on the plans or on site and this calculator does not test them. Local amendments can be stricter; the adopted edition and the inspector govern.

Mistakes that cost money

A quote priced off the footprint instead of the sloped area is short by 12 percent at 6/12 and 20 percent at 8/12.
Exposed fastener panels need every screw and washer replaced at about year 20; budget it, because the panels outlast the gaskets.
Standard synthetic underlayment under metal softens and wrinkles at deck temperatures over 200 degrees F; the ripples show through the pan.
Bare steel fasteners against an aluminum panel, or copper flashing on a Galvalume roof: the dissimilar pair corrodes at every contact point. Copper takes copper or stainless fasteners only, and copper should not touch bare aluminum, zinc or Galvalume anywhere on the roof.
Copper and zinc runoff stains whatever it lands on. Water off a copper roof streaks limestone, concrete and painted trim green, and it eats an aluminum gutter it drains into; plan the gutter in the same metal.
Solar or snow guards added later to exposed fastener panels mean more holes; on standing seam they clamp to the seam with no penetration.
A bid that omits ridge, rake, eave, sidewall and endwall trim: trim and flashing are commonly 15 to 25 percent of a standing seam job.

Key facts

Metal roofing is priced by the square of 100 sq ft. Typical 2026 US installed cost is about $450 to $900 per square for exposed fastener steel, $1,000 to $1,700 for snap-lock standing seam steel, $1,500 to $2,500 in aluminum, $2,000 to $3,500 in zinc and $2,600 to $4,400 in copper.
The metal is a material cost, not a labor cost. Copper sheet runs about four times painted steel per square foot and zinc about three times, while the labor premium for either is only 25 to 30 percent. That makes a copper roof roughly 72 percent material against 45 percent for the same profile in steel.
Aluminum expands about twice as much as steel, roughly 1.5 in per 100 ft of panel for a 100 degree F swing against 0.8 in for steel, which is why aluminum pans run shorter and are held with floating clips.
IRC R905.10.2 allows lapped metal panels at 3:12 without lap sealant, at 1/2:12 with applied lap sealant, and standing seam systems down to 1/4:12.
24 gauge steel roofing is about 0.024 in thick and 29 gauge about 0.014 in, so the heavier panel carries roughly 70 percent more steel.
PVDF finishes such as Kynar 500 typically carry 30 to 40 year paint warranties, while the SMP finishes used on most 29 gauge panels typically carry 20 to 30 years.
Architectural asphalt shingles are typically replaced at 18 to 25 years, so a 40 year window holds two or three asphalt roofs against one standing seam roof.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a metal roof cost on a 1,500 square foot house?

A 1,500 sq ft footprint at 6/12 is about 1,680 sq ft of roof surface. In 24 gauge snap-lock standing seam steel with one layer torn off, that typically runs about $22,700 to $39,400 installed in 2026. The same roof in exposed fastener R-panel runs roughly a third of that.

Is a metal roof cheaper than shingles in the long run?

Usually, over 40 years. Architectural shingles are replaced every 18 to 25 years, so a 40 year window holds three asphalt roofs and two extra tear-offs. Standing seam is typically two to three times the price once and lasts the whole window.

What is the cheapest metal roof?

Exposed fastener corrugated or R-panel in 29 gauge steel, typically $450 to $900 per square installed. It is screwed through the face, so plan on replacing every screw and neoprene washer at about year 20. IRC R905.10.2 also holds it to a 3:12 minimum slope without lap sealant.

How much does a copper roof cost?

Typically $2,600 to $4,400 per square installed in 2026 for 16 oz snap-lock standing seam, which is about two and a half times the same roof in steel. On a 1,500 sq ft footprint at 6/12 that is roughly $50,000 to $87,000. Almost three quarters of that is the copper itself, so the price tracks the metals market rather than the labor market, and 20 oz sheet adds about another quarter to the material. It does not pay back against asphalt on a 40 year view; it pays back on a 100 year one.

Aluminum or steel roofing?

Aluminum costs about 50 percent more installed and does not rust at all, which settles it within a few miles of salt water. Inland, painted Galvalume steel is stiffer, dents less, oil cans less and costs less, so it wins on most houses. Aluminum also expands about twice as much, so the pans are shorter and every clip has to float.

Can metal roofing go over shingles?

Over one layer, yes. IRC R908.3.1.1 blocks a recover once two or more layers are on the deck. Put a slip sheet or high-temperature underlayment between the shingles and the panel, and use screws long enough to reach the deck. Some panel makers require 1x4 purlins instead, so read the installation sheet before you price it as a recover.

Sources and references

Chapter 9 Roof Assemblies, Section R905.10 Metal Roof Panels, 2021 IRC (ICC)
Metal roofing styles: exposed fastener, standing seam and stone-coated (Metal Roofing Alliance)
Metal roofing materials: steel, aluminum, copper and zinc (Metal Roofing Alliance)
DECRA stone-coated steel metal tile roofing product page (DECRA Roofing Systems)
Copper in Architecture Design Handbook, roofing systems and sheet weights (Copper Development Association)

Next steps for this project

The usual order for a roofing & siding project. See all roofing & siding calculators.

Results are estimates based on standard formulas and typical product specifications. Confirm quantities with your supplier and local code before ordering.