What does a custom wood front door cost?

What do cost guides say a custom front door costs?

Cost guides can only bracket custom doors, because no two are alike. HomeGuide publishes the most detailed ranges, spread across three pages that do not always agree, so each figure below links to the page it comes from.

HomeGuide adds that custom front door replacement through a specialty dealer "can often exceed $10,000, even for a simple door" (HomeGuide). Location matters too: Angi reports lower prices in states like Texas and Idaho and higher prices in places like Connecticut and California (Angi).

These are cost-guide figures, not quotes. Your price depends on the design, the wood, your opening and local labor rates.

What do doors cost around Denver and Boulder County?

Angi's local pages give the closest published figures. They describe ordinary door jobs, not custom wood doors. Angi puts door installation in Denver at $845 on average, with most homeowners spending $420 to $1,304, and that average covers interior and exterior doors together (Angi, Denver). Its Denver exterior-door page puts installation and replacement at $819 on average, with a range of $478 to $1,251 (Angi, Denver exterior doors).

For the door alone, the same Denver page lists a wood door at $530 to $3,180, materials only (Angi, Denver exterior doors). That range describes doors bought from a catalog. A door drawn and built for one opening sits above it, which is why the averages above are a poor guide to a custom quote.

Why do cost guides and real quotes disagree?

Because they price different things. The headline numbers in cost guides mostly describe stock doors swapped into a same-size opening, while a custom quote prices one door, drawn for one house, often with a new frame, glass and finishing included. Two quotes for the same opening can also cover different work.

• Door alone, or a complete unit. A slab is the door only. A prehung unit adds the frame, sill, hinges and weatherstrip.
• Finished, or raw. HomeGuide notes that many new doors come unfinished, and a wood door needs a full finish system on all six sides before it sees weather.
• Hardware. Some makers do not supply it at all. Simpson Door Company, for one, says it "does not supply hardware for its doors".
• Glass, sidelights and transoms. Each is a separate glazed piece, and sidelights need a wider opening.
• Installation and framing. Removing the old door, any framing, trim and paint touch-up, and a permit where one is needed.

Even the cost guides disagree with each other. HomeGuide's front door replacement page says sidelights add $500 to $1,500 or more per side (HomeGuide), while its door installation page says $400 to $2,000 or more (HomeGuide). The fair way to compare quotes is to make sure each one covers the same list of work.

What drives the price of a custom door?

Every custom door quote is built from the same few decisions. Here is what each one does to the number.

A few choices lower the price without changing the character of the door:

• Keep a standard size if the opening allows. Angi suggests choosing "a door that fits your current door opening and frame" (Angi).
• Match the wood to the exposure. Simpson's overhang data sheet says that with an adequate overhang you can choose any of its doors "in any wood type", so a modestly priced fir or sapele door can do the job of walnut under a deep porch.
• Put the light overhead. By HomeGuide's figures, one transom ($200 to $1,000 or more before installation) can cost less than a pair of sidelights ($500 to $1,500 or more each, installed) (HomeGuide).
• Reuse a sound frame. A slab replacement avoids buying a new jamb and sill, as long as the old frame is square and the door size stays the same.
• Finish it yourself, if the maker allows it. Follow the finishing instructions exactly: Simpson, for example, says failing to follow its care and finishing recommendations voids the warranty.

Does a slab or a prehung door cost less?

A slab costs less to buy but takes longer to fit, and it only works when the old frame is sound. A slab is the door alone: it is fitted to your existing jamb, sill and trim, with hinge mortises and lock bores cut to match. A prehung door arrives already hung in a new jamb with a sill, hinges and weatherstrip.

HomeGuide puts a typical prehung installation at 2 to 4 hours and a slab at 3 to 8 (HomeGuide). If the jamb is soft, the sill leaks or you want a different size, plan on a prehung unit. When a maker prehangs the door in the shop, the hinge mortises and lock bores are cut before it ships; Sun Mountain, a door manufacturer in Berthoud, says factory prehanging gives "a clean, consistent reveal", the even gap between door and jamb.

Our guide to measuring for a front door covers both.

What do glass, sidelights and a transom add?

Glass adds up quickly. HomeGuide puts decorative glass at $100 to $1,000 or more over a solid door in the same style, sidelights at $500 to $1,500 or more per side including labor, and a transom window at $200 to $1,000 or more before installation (HomeGuide). Angi puts doors with sidelights or transoms at $1,600 to $4,600 (Angi).

Sidelights and transoms need a larger rough opening than the door alone, so if you are adding either to an existing entry, budget for framing. HomeGuide puts framing work at $7 to $20 per linear foot (HomeGuide).

What do hardware, finishing and installation cost?

• Hardware. HomeGuide lists handlesets at $160 to $320 and smart locks at $120 to $500 (HomeGuide). If you choose a door thicker than 1-3/4 inches, check that the lockset and its screws suit the thickness.
• Finishing. Simpson's instructions for its exterior doors call for a wood conditioner, a stain and at least three clear top coats, with every coat carried onto the top, bottom and side edges. Ask whether finishing is in the price.
• Installation. Angi lists installers at $30 to $90 an hour, plus about $40 to $200 to remove the old door, an additional $60 for disposal and $130 to $380 for a new exterior frame if the new door is a different size (Angi). Ask your building department whether your project needs a permit.

How do I get an accurate quote?

1. Measure the rough opening and wall thickness, or the existing door if you are keeping the frame.
2. Note which side the hinges are on and whether the door swings in or out.
3. Photograph the entry from the street and up close, including any porch roof or overhang.
4. Note which way the door faces. South and west faces get the most sun.
5. Choose a species or two. Our wood comparison can help.
6. List the glass, sidelights, transom and hardware you want, and ask which are included.
7. Say which you want, the door alone, prehung, finished or installed, so every quote covers the same work.

With those details a shop can price the door you want instead of a guess. Get a door quote from us, or use the same list with any maker.