Seamless Gutters in St. Louis: What $9–$16 a Foot Actually Buys
Three companies measure the same 1980s two-story in Ballwin. One quotes $2,100, one $2,800, one $3,300. Same house, same footage. The difference is never the aluminum coil — it's everything else on the line, and most quotes don't itemize it. Here's what each dollar of the per-foot price is paying for in St. Louis, so you can ask.
The per-foot range
Seamless aluminum installed runs $9–$16 per linear foot across the metro in 2026. A 5-inch system with 2x3 downspouts on a simple ranch sits at the bottom; 6-inch with 3x4 downspouts, hidden hangers on 18-inch centers and a dozen corners sits at the top. The cost page has whole-house totals. What follows is what's inside the number.
What's inside the number
Gauge: .027 versus .032
Aluminum gutter coil comes in two common thicknesses. Most crews run .027 because it's cheaper and forms easily. .032 is about 18% thicker, costs a dollar or so more per foot, and it's the difference between a gutter that dents when a ladder touches it and one that doesn't. In St. Louis the case for .032 is ice: a run holding a hundred pounds of frozen water in January bows in .027 and holds its shape in .032. Ask which gauge is being quoted. If the answer is "standard," it's .027.
Hangers: the part you can't see afterward
Spike and ferrule — a long nail through the gutter into the fascia — was standard on every West County subdivision built before 1995, and it's why those gutters sag. The spike backs out a little with every freeze-thaw cycle. Some crews still use them because they're fast.
Hidden hangers are a bracket that clips inside the gutter and screws into the fascia and rafter tail. They cost more per piece and take longer to set. Spacing matters as much as type: 24 inches is the standard, 18 inches on long runs, north-facing eaves that hold ice, and anything under a big roof. A crew quoting hangers "every three feet" is saving about $80 on the job and giving you a gutter that sags by year eight.
Downspouts: 2x3 versus 3x4
A 2x3 downspout is the builder default. A 3x4 carries roughly double the water and costs about $10–$15 more per downspout in material. On a two-story St. Louis home in a two-inch-an-hour storm, that's the difference between water reaching the ground and water going over the back corner. A quote that includes 3x4 downspouts and a second downspout on the long back run is quoting the house properly; one that matches the builder's layout is quoting the cheapest thing that fits.
Corners and miters
Every inside and outside corner is a miter — two runs cut at 45 degrees and sealed, or a pre-formed corner box. Corners are where gutters leak, and they're where the labor is. A gable ranch in Florissant has four corners; a hip-roofed two-story in Chesterfield can have twelve. Price per foot goes up with corners per foot, and a quote that doesn't ask how many corners there are wasn't done from a ladder. Ask what sealant is used, too: a polyurethane or tripolymer gutter sealant stays flexible through freeze-thaw; general-purpose silicone from the hardware store doesn't.
Fascia and tear-off
The old gutters have to come down and go somewhere. Haul-away should be in the price. And behind the old gutter there's fascia that may be soft under a corner or two. A good quote includes a screwdriver check of every foot and prices any replacement per foot, on the estimate, before the job. A bad quote finds the rot on install day and hands you a number then.
Comparing the three quotes
| Line item | $2,100 quote | $2,800 quote | $3,300 quote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gauge | .027 | .032 | .032 |
| Size | 5-inch throughout | 5-inch, 6-inch on back | 6-inch throughout |
| Downspouts | 2x3, four | 3x4, five | 3x4, six |
| Hangers | Spike, 36 in. | Hidden, 24 in. | Hidden, 18–24 in. |
| Fascia check | No | Yes, per foot | Yes, per foot |
| Extensions | No | Included | Included |
| Haul-away | Extra | Included | Included |
The middle one is usually the right buy. The first is the gutters you're replacing, hung again. The third is worth it on a big roof under trees, and overkill on a small ranch.
Questions that sort quotes in five minutes
- What gauge?
- What hanger, and how far apart?
- Downspout size, and how many?
- Corners: how many, and what sealant?
- Is fascia checked, and what's the per-foot price if it's soft?
- Where do the downspouts end?
- Is haul-away included?
Anyone who quotes seamless gutters for a living can answer those on the spot. Ours are on the installation page, and the crew you'd meet is described in what to expect on installation day.
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