Fencing
How to tell if a fence quote is fair
How do I know if a fence quote is fair?
Fair is less about the number and more about whether the quote is comparable. If you can't tell from reading it what posts you're getting, whether tear-out is included, and how many gates, the problem isn't the price — it's the scope.
Price only means something against a scope
Two quotes for 'a 6-foot cedar fence' can differ by a large margin and both be honest, because they're describing different fences.
So the first job isn't comparing prices. It's making the quotes describe the same thing. Once they do, the comparison takes ten seconds.
What a comparable quote states
Post material and setting method. Total linear feet. Gate count and type. Whether the existing fence is removed and hauled off. Picket style and layout. Whether stain is included. Who pulls permits.
Any quote missing several of those isn't a quote, it's a number with a company name on it.
Reading a low bid
A meaningfully lower bid is nearly always explained by one of three things: cheaper posts, tear-out excluded, or fewer or lighter gates.
None of those make it dishonest. They make it a different product. The mistake is comparing it to a fuller scope and concluding the other contractor is overcharging.
Reading a high bid
Sometimes it's steel posts, real gate frames, and removal included — that is, it's the same job done properly.
Sometimes it isn't. The way to know is to ask what the extra buys and see whether the answer is specific. Specifics are cheap to give when they're true.
Make the quotes describe the same fence. Then price is easy.