Count posts, rails and pickets for a wood fence run so your material list is right before you dig the first hole.
A fence is posts, rails between them, and pickets across the face. We count each from your run length and picket dimensions.
Eight-foot spacing is standard; six-foot resists wind and sagging on taller privacy fences. Set each post in concrete — plan on about two 60 lb bags per hole. Add gate hardware separately.
Eight feet on-center is the common maximum for wood fences. Use six-foot spacing for tall privacy fences, windy sites, or heavier panels, since closer posts sag and rack far less over time.
For solid 5.5-inch boards butted tight, about 2.2 pickets per foot. Add a gap — say 2 to 3 inches for a spaced picket fence — and the count drops. The calculator uses your exact width and gap.
Plan on roughly two 60 lb bags of fast-setting concrete per post hole for a standard 6-foot fence. Deeper holes for gate and end posts, or sandy soil, will use more.
Two rails suit fences up to about four feet tall. Six-foot privacy fences want three rails — top, middle and bottom — to keep the pickets from cupping and the run from sagging.
The Home Renovation Project Manager rolls every calculator into one budget — room by room, with a shopping list, contractor quote comparison and a live over-budget warning.