Fence Post Depth Calculator

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The height of the fence panel or rail above the finished ground level.
ft
Fraction of above-ground fence height to bury. The IRC standard is 1/3 (0.33). Gate posts or high-wind areas often use 0.40.
Soft or shifting soils need more depth for lateral stability. Rocky compacted ground holds posts well and can use a shallower embed.
Solid panels act like sails and require deeper embeds in exposed locations. Open-rail designs tolerate more wind with less depth.
The depth below grade at which soil freezes in your region. Posts must reach below this line to prevent frost heave. Enter 0 if frost is not a concern.
in
Gate posts carry extra load from the swinging gate. Add 6 in (15 cm) to the embed depth.
Width of a square post or outer diameter of a round post. Used to size the concrete hole.
in
Total post count for the project. Used to calculate total concrete and total post material.
posts
Embed depthStandard post
2.18

Depth to bury the post below finished grade

Total post length needed8.18
Hole diameter11
Concrete per post1.44
80 lb bags per post2.7
Total bags (all posts)27
2.7 bags
Light<1.5Standard1.5-3.5Heavy3.5-6Very heavy6+
Embed depth2.18
Total post length8.18

Bury posts 2.18 ft deep; buy 27 bags of concrete total.

  • Buy posts at least 8.18 ft long to allow for the 2.18 ft embed plus the above-ground height.
  • Dig each hole to about 11.0 in diameter, roughly 2.75 times the post width.
  • You will use about 2.7 bags of 80 lb concrete per post.

Next stepAfter setting posts in concrete, allow at least 24 hours of curing before attaching panels.

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