Asphalt Shingle vs Metal Roof Cost: 25-Year Compare

How the shingle vs metal comparison works

A roof has three costs over 25 years, not one: the upfront lay, the replacement, and the resale value at the end. Shingle is laid twice over 25 years — at year 0 and again at year 20 — because it lasts about 20 years. Metal is laid once and lasts the full 25 years, so it has no replacement. Metal is also worth about $10,000 to the house when it sells, while shingle is worth about $2,000; the net cost is the gross cost minus that resale value. Divide by 25 and you have the net cost per year.

At the defaults — 2,000 sq ft, shingle $5.00/sq ft installed, metal $12.00/sq ft installed, shingle $2,000 resale, metal $10,000 resale — the shingle upfront is 2,000 × $5.00 = $10,000.00 and the metal upfront is 2,000 × $12.00 = $24,000.00, so shingle wins upfront by $14,000.00. The shingle gross is $20,000.00 and the metal gross is $24,000.00, so shingle wins gross by $4,000.00. And the shingle net is $20,000.00 − $2,000.00 = $18,000.00 while the metal net is $24,000.00 − $10,000.00 = $14,000.00 — so metal wins net by $4,000.00, or $720.00 a year against $560.00.

The worked example, line by line

Setup: 2,000 sq ft; shingle $5.00/sq ft installed, $2,000 resale; metal $12.00/sq ft installed, $10,000 resale; 25-year horizon.

Line 1 — the upfront cost. Shingle: 2,000 × $5.00 = $10,000.00. Metal: 2,000 × $12.00 = $24,000.00. Shingle wins by $14,000.00.

Line 2 — the applications. Shingle lasts 20 years, so over a 25-year horizon it is applied twice (years 0 and 20). Metal lasts 50 years, so it is laid once.

Line 3 — the 25-year gross. Shingle: 2 × $10,000.00 = $20,000.00. Metal: 1 × $24,000.00 = $24,000.00. Shingle wins by $4,000.00.

Line 4 — the 25-year net. Shingle: $20,000.00 − $2,000.00 = $18,000.00. Metal: $24,000.00 − $10,000.00 = $14,000.00. Metal wins by $4,000.00.

Line 5 — the net cost per year. Shingle: $18,000.00 ÷ 25 = $720.00/yr. Metal: $14,000.00 ÷ 25 = $560.00/yr.

Line 6 — the break-even metal price. Metal ties shingle on net cost when its installed price is ($18,000.00 + $10,000.00) ÷ 2,000 = $14.00/sq ft. Buy metal below that and metal wins net; above it, shingle wins net.

Every branch, checked

1,500 sq ft: the shingle upfront is 1,500 × $5.00 = $7,500.00 and the metal upfront is 1,500 × $12.00 = $18,000.00 (shingle by $10,500.00); the gross is $15,000.00 against $18,000.00 (shingle by $3,000.00); and the net is $13,000.00 against $8,000.00 (metal by $5,000.00), or $520.00 a year against $320.00. A smaller roof shrinks every number by a quarter, but the winner is the same at every size.

Shingle at $7.00/sq ft: the shingle upfront rises to 2,000 × $7.00 = $14,000.00, so the gross is $28,000.00 and the net is $28,000.00 − $2,000.00 = $26,000.00 against $14,000.00 for metal — metal wins net by $12,000.00, or $1,040.00 a year against $560.00. Dear shingle loses at every stage: upfront, gross and net.

Metal at $9.00/sq ft: the metal upfront falls to 2,000 × $9.00 = $18,000.00, so the gross is $18,000.00 and the net is $18,000.00 − $10,000.00 = $8,000.00 against $18,000.00 for shingle — metal wins net by $10,000.00, or $320.00 a year against $720.00. Cheap metal wins at every stage: upfront, gross and net.

Resale $0: with no resale value, the shingle net is the gross cost: $20,000.00 against $24,000.00 for metal, so shingle wins net by $4,000.00, or $800.00 a year against $960.00. Metal needs the resale value to win: without it, the metal upfront is too dear to make back.

Reverse — the break-even metal price: metal ties shingle on net cost when its installed price is ($18,000.00 + $10,000.00) ÷ 2,000 = $14.00/sq ft. At $12.00 a square foot metal is below that, so metal wins net by a wide margin; at $16.00 a square foot it is above, so shingle wins net. The $14.00 line is where the two roofs are exactly equal over 25 years.

What the defaults assume

The model counts lay, replacement, and resale only: it does not count the cost of removing the old roof, the deck repair, the gutters, the ventilation, or the flashing. It assumes shingle lasts 20 years and is replaced once at the same price — in reality shingle prices may rise, and shingle in a mild climate may last 25 years. It assumes metal lasts the full 25 years — good metal in a dry climate can last 50 years and longer, but metal in a coastal climate can corrode and need coating, which this model does not count. It assumes the resale values hold: metal adds about $10,000 to a house and shingle about $2,000, but the real numbers depend on the buyer and the market. It assumes prices stay flat for 25 years, which they will not. Rounding convention: money is rounded to cents and all figures are computed from unrounded values, rounded only for display.

Output · formula · meaning

Who uses this

• The homeowner replacing a worn shingle roof: they learn metal costs $14,000.00 net over 25 years against $18,000.00 for shingle — and metal is the roof that stays neat, so the roof that looks better is also the cheaper one.
• The landlord roofing a rental house: they will never see the resale value, but with resale at $0 shingle still wins net by $4,000.00 — so they lay shingle, knowing the metal would need 25 years to pay back.
• The homeowner in a hot climate: shingle in the heat lasts 15 years, not 20, and at 15 years it is bought twice in 25 years anyway — so they check the replacement in the calculator before they trust the default.
• The renovator who found cheap metal: at $9.00 a square foot installed, metal wins net by $10,000.00 — so they buy the metal before the price goes back up.

Accuracy & limitations

The math is exact for the numbers you enter: the upfront is the area times the installed price, the gross adds the replacement, and the net subtracts the resale value. What the model cannot do is know your roof: shingle in a hot climate may curl and need replacing sooner, and metal in a coastal climate may corrode and need coating. It leaves out removal of the old roof, deck repair, gutters, ventilation, and flashing — ask the roofer whether the quote includes those. It assumes the resale values hold, but the real numbers depend on the buyer and the market, and a buyer who plans to re-roof will pay nothing for the roof. It assumes prices stay flat for 25 years, which they will not: metal prices and shingle prices move with steel and with oil. For the pitch of the roof, see roof pitch chart; for the shingles themselves, see shingle coverage chart.