Every week someone asks us what a gate costs before they are ready to book a visit. Here is the honest answer, with the same starting points we quote on site.
Reviewed by the Austin Estate Gate team
A single ornamental driveway gate up to 12 feet starts around $10,000 installed in the Austin area. A basic gate opener with remotes adds about $5,000 and a cellular call box with live streaming video about $5,000, so a turnkey entry starts around $20,000. Five things decide where a specific property lands above those starting points, and one of them is unique to the Hill Country.
01How Wide Is the Opening?
Width is the first multiplier. Wider openings need more material and heavier hardware, and past a certain span a single gate stops being practical. That pushes you to a double gate with two operators instead of one, which changes both the fabrication and the automation cost.
Our figures: a single gate covers an opening up to 12 feet and starts around $10,000 installed. From 13 feet up it takes a dual gate, which starts around $15,000, plus about $7,500 for basic dual gate opener equipment.
What it changes
- Material volume and frame weight
- Hinge and post specification
- One operator or two
- Operator duty class, because heavier gates need more machine
Measure the clear opening between your columns or fence ends before you call. It is the single most useful number you can give us on the phone.
02Swing Gate or Slide Gate?
Neither is automatically cheaper. The site usually decides for you.
How the site decides
Swing gates need clear space for the gate to arc open and near-level ground through that arc. On a flat entrance with room to swing they are typically simpler and less expensive. On a driveway that slopes up from the road, a swing gate either will not clear the grade or needs an expensive workaround. Slide gates run along the fence line instead of arcing, so slope and clearance stop being the problem. They need a track or cantilever system and a longer run of level ground to the side.
A sliding gate can be up to 20 feet long as a single gate, and a turnkey sliding gate of 16 feet or more starts around $25,000. At a home, sliding gates carry more liability risk and need more maintenance. Sometimes the property makes a sliding gate the only option.
Stand at the road and look at your driveway. If it climbs, expect a slide gate to be the workable answer on a sloped Hill Country lot.
03What Is the Gate Made Of?
Plain ornamental iron sits near the starting point. Iron with a wood fascia, custom scrollwork, privacy infill or a designed pattern moves up from there, and custom gate entry projects can run past $100,000.
Where the money goes
Custom fabrication is labor, and labor is most of the difference between a gate near the starting point and one well above it. Two gates of identical size can differ by five figures purely on design complexity. See custom driveway gates for what we build.
Want a real number for your driveway? Call (512) 296-2671 for a free estimate.
04Is There Power at the Gate?
This is the line item people miss, and on a long Hill Country driveway it is often the biggest surprise in the quote.
Common causes of a higher number
- Trenching from the house through caliche and limestone
- Long conduit runs on properties set well back from the road
- Landscaping repair where the trench crosses a finished yard
- Solar as the alternative when trenching does not make sense
Check whether there is an existing power source near your entrance. If there is not, ask for the solar option to be quoted alongside the trenched one. A solar power package runs $500 to $2,000 and is often the cheaper answer on a long drive.
05What Access Control Do You Want?
A basic keypad is one thing. A cellular callbox that rings your phone, a video intercom, card readers or smartphone entry are each a step up from it. A keypad or basic access control runs $300 to $2,500, and a cellular call box with live streaming video is about $5,000.
Common causes of a higher number
Properties on long driveways get the most from a cellular callbox, because it works whether or not anyone is up at the house. More detail on callbox and access control.
Decide who needs to get in and how often. Deliveries and service crews are what usually justify moving up from a keypad.
06What Does It Cost, Line by Line?
These are the figures we publish across our service areas. Every job still starts with a free on-site estimate, because the property decides the final number.
| Standard repair visit (depending on issue) | $75 – $500 |
| Solar system repair (battery, panel, controller) | $75 – $400 |
| Full operator replacement | $800 – $2,500 |
| Mobile welding repair | $200 – $600 |
| Single gate up to 12 ft, installed | Starts around $10,000 |
| Basic gate opener with remotes | About $5,000 |
| Cellular call box with live streaming video | About $5,000 |
| Turnkey: gate, opener and video call box | Starts around $20,000 |
| Dual gate for openings 13 ft and up, installed | Starts around $15,000 |
| Basic dual gate opener equipment | About $7,500 |
| Turnkey dual gate | Starts around $27,500 |
| Turnkey sliding gate, 16 ft and up | Starts around $25,000 |
| Keypad or basic access control | $300 – $2,500 |
| Solar power package | $500 – $2,000 |
New installation figures are starting points, not a quote. Your property, opening width and power situation set the final figure, which is why the estimate is free and on site. You can install the gate first and add the opener later.
07What Is Not in the Quote?
Worth knowing before you put two estimates side by side. A lower number with the operator or the electrical left out is not a lower number.
Commonly excluded
- Fence or column repair, if the existing structure is not sound
- Permits and HOA approval, which vary by jurisdiction and neighborhood
- Trenching for power, when quoted as a separate line
- Landscaping repair where a trench crosses a finished yard
Ask each bidder to list exclusions in writing. Compare scope first, price second.
Common Questions About Gate Cost
How much does a driveway gate cost in Austin?
A single ornamental driveway gate up to 12 feet starts around $10,000 installed in the Austin area, and a turnkey entry with a basic opener and a cellular call box with live streaming video starts around $20,000. Openings 13 feet and wider take a dual gate, which starts around $15,000, or around $27,500 turnkey. Where a project lands depends on opening width, swing or slide, material and design, whether power is already at the gate, and what access control you add.
How much does it cost to automate a gate I already have?
Less than a full installation, because the gate itself is the largest line item and it is already standing. A basic gate opener with remotes is about $5,000, or about $7,500 for dual gate opener equipment. If the gate already has an operator that has failed, a full operator replacement runs $800 to $2,500. A solar power package adds $500 to $2,000, and a cellular call box with live streaming video is about $5,000.
Why is my quote higher than the national cost guides?
National guides do not account for caliche and limestone close to the surface, long driveway conduit runs, or solar where there is no power at the gate. All three are normal on Hill Country properties and all three are real cost.
What is not included in a typical gate quote?
Fence or column repair if the existing structure is not sound, permits and HOA approval, trenching for power when it is quoted separately, and landscaping repair where trenching crosses a finished yard.
Do you charge for an estimate?
No. Estimates are free and there is no diagnostic fee. You get the real number for your property in writing before anything is ordered.
Getting an Actual Figure for Your Property
The figures above will put you in the right neighborhood. They will not tell you what your driveway costs, because that depends on the width, the slope, the power situation and what you want on it. We give free estimates on site with no diagnostic fee and no obligation, and you get the number in writing before anything is ordered. Same-day visits are available in most cases across Austin and the Hill Country. If your gate is already installed and simply not working, start with automatic gate repair or gate openers and operators instead.