House Siding Options, Plus Costs, Pros & Cons

There are several different material options for house siding: wood, metal, stone and stone veneer, vinyl, brick, fiber-cement, stucco and more. But, looking at the materials for siding is just scratching the surface! Delving deeper, we see many more options and sub-options.

The only limitations are your imagination. We’ll cover primary options plus a few sub-options in this guide. Special note: all cost related information is based mostly on the 2024 information. As you can guess, the cost of materials and installation have gone up by double digits compared to previous year due to supply chain issues and rampant inflation.

1. Wood
2. Vinyl
3. Fiber Cement
4. Stucco
5. Brick
6. Metal
7. Stone

Material Category: Wood (4 Primary Options)

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The main options relate to how the material is installed, such as: bevel, shingles, board-and-batten, and split-log.

There are numerous sub-options, as wood has several grains, many ways to cut / shape it, and thousands of color choices.

Within this category, we also include Engineered Wood siding. Also known as composite wood, man-made wood, or manufactured board.

Natural wood obviously comes directly from timber, while the man-made version is manufactured from wood fibers, saw dust, and bonding agents. It’s a strong, lightweight and less expensive alternative. Instead of pieces cut from logs, the material is shaped to match the order for a job.

Wood Siding Costs Installed: Natural Wood vs. Engineered Wood Siding, Plus ROI

Natural wood material is relatively expensive, considering the cost of initial investment and the ongoing maintenance costs.

On average, natural wood siding costs between $10.50 to $17.50 per square of natural wood siding installed, depending on the project scope and complexity, trim options, and your home’s location. This price range also depends heavily on the grain and grade of wood used, as well as specific style and options.

Average Cost To Install Wood Siding Typical Range: $10,230 - $15,360
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The recent increase in costs is tied to the overall spike in the prices of lumber, as well as tighter supply of home remodeling pros.

Prices will be higher in more affluent areas, as natural wood is considered a premium material that can also help a property stand out in a neighborhood with other higher-priced homes.

For engineered wood siding, you can expect to pay between $9.50 and $15.50 per square foot installed. The $12.50 to $14.50 per sq.ft. range is in between the midrange and the high-end, while a somewhat fairer price range would fall in between $10.50 and $13.50 per sq.ft. installed.

Pricing for the installation on the entire house will have a fairly wide range, but this is usually due to your home’s region and local real estate values, as well as normal variations (that can be quite wild) in pricing among different contractors in your area.

To install natural wood as cladding for an averaged sized home, it will cost between $21,000 and $35,000 for a typical house with 2,000 sq.ft. of siding.

With Engineered Wood, your total project cost will be between $19,000 and $31,000 for a typical house with 2,000 sq.ft. of siding.

ROI (Cost-to-Value Return) for the Engineered Wood siding is nearly 79% (cost-to-value return), which is higher than the natural wood’s 77% cost-to-value return normally recouped at resale.

Average Cost To Install LP Siding Typical Range: $9,210 - $13,750
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Vinyl Siding vs. Stucco Cost, Plus Pros & Cons 2023

The #1 siding material versus the #2 siding material in America. Think you know which is #1 already? Don’t be so quick with that guess.

Comparing Stucco and Vinyl – Top Factors

While both siding materials offer great variation of styles and profiles, each has two primary applications. For vinyl that includes hollow-back (non-insulated) and foam-back (insulated) siding.

Likewise, for stucco, it is usually applied in a single coat (less insulation) or in three coats (greater insulation).

Cost Factor

Cost is generally a determining factor for most homeowners. Insulated vinyl siding is more expensive (at $9.50 to $12.50 per sq. ft. installed) than non-insulated (at $7.50 to $9.50 per sq. ft. installed).

Yet, the high-end insulated vinyl costs about the same as the low end of Stucco (at $9.50 to $12.50 per sq. ft. installed).

Stucco, on average, goes as high as $16.50 per sq. ft. installed, which translates to $33,000 for 2,000 square feet of stucco installed on a typical house. Being more budget-friendly is a significant reason why vinyl is such a popular siding option.

Average Cost To Install New Siding Typical Range: $5,240 - $8,130
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Durability Factor

Durability is the measure of how tough the siding material is and how well it will hold up over time. Both materials score well. With vinyl, the thickness of the siding matters significantly. — This doesn’t include foam-back, but rather it is about the thickness of material itself.

The mid-range options are .042 to .046 inches, while top of the line is .055 or higher. Compare this to a single coat of stucco which hovers around a half inch, or about 10 times the thickness of vinyl. 😉

Both materials are fairly tough. Vinyl can withstand wind speeds up to 110 mph, while Stucco can handle wind gusts up to 130 mph. Vinyl gets mixed results on resistance to hail damage.

Obviously, thicker siding means more resistance, but even top of the line is susceptible to some damage. Stucco offers better impact resistance, though large enough pieces of hail or other materials could lead to cracks.

Assuming proper installation and avoidance of disasters, both materials will last more than 50 years. With care, vinyl last between 40 and 75 years before needing replacement.

Stucco can last 60 to 100 years before it needs replacing, thus making if the more durable option.

Insulation Factor

Comparing the less insulated versions of either is not all that fair, though surprisingly vinyl would win.

Stucco gets .20 per inch R-value, or the standard for measuring insulation. The single coat, half inch is going to be fairly low, while hollow-back vinyl comes in around .60.

The triple coat of stucco raises the R-value to, at most .75. While that is decent, it is not even in the same ballpark as the 1.75 R-value that foam-back vinyl achieves. 😉

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