A wooden front door has no single price because each one is made to measure. The cost depends on the timber, size and design, glazing, locks and door furniture, the frame and any side panels, the finish and the fitting work. A useful figure is a written fitted quote for your measured opening, with inclusions and exclusions stated.
Why is there no single price for a wooden front door?
A front door is a piece of joinery made for one opening. Two doors that look alike in a photograph can differ in timber, panel layout, glass, locking hardware and frame. A headline price per door hides those differences, and it says nothing about the work needed to remove the old door and finish the opening afterwards.
Our timber entrance doors are made-to-measure wooden front doors specified for the opening and the property. The survey establishes the size, threshold and opening arrangement before the final door specification and quotation are agreed. That is why this guide does not give you a figure: a number that ignores your doorway is unlikely to match the door you end up buying.
What it can do is explain the choices that move the price, so you can ask for the door you actually want and compare proposals on the same terms. We offer a free home survey and a no-obligation quotation.
Which choices shape the door specification?
| Choice | What to put in the quote request |
|---|---|
| Size and opening | Width and height of the opening, which way the door opens, and the threshold you need. |
| Design | Panel layout and style: heritage, classic or contemporary, a stable door, or a match for an existing door. |
| Timber and finish | Named timber, treatment and coating, and the colour inside and out. |
| Glass | Solid or glazed; the type of glass unit and any decorative or privacy glass. |
| Locks and furniture | Locking system, hinges, handles, letter plate and any knocker or numerals. |
| Frame and surrounds | A new frame, side panels or a fanlight, and how the frame meets the wall. |
| Fitting | Removal of the old door, fitting, disposal, access and the extent of making good. |
Treat the table as a checklist rather than a menu of add-ons. Each line is a decision the supplier has to make anyway; if your request leaves it open, the supplier fills the gap with their own assumption. Write the choices down, attach photographs of the doorway inside and out, and note anything unusual, such as steps, a narrow path or an existing door you want copied. Approximate dimensions are fine for a first conversation, but they do not replace survey measurements.
How do timber and finish affect the quote?
Ask for the timber to be named rather than accepting a description such as “wooden door”. Schnauber makes entrance doors in hardwood or softwood engineered timber from sustainably sourced, FSC-certified timber. Different timbers are different specifications, so a difference in price between two proposals is a difference in what you are buying, not yet a saving.
The finish belongs in the same line. Our doors are treated in the workshop and come in an unlimited range of colours, including Farrow & Ball options, and alu-clad options are available for lower upkeep. Ask what arrives finished, whether the inside and outside colours differ and what care the finish needs afterwards. Our wooden front door care guide covers the routine once the door is fitted, so there is no need to price a maintenance plan you may not need.
Does glazing change the cost of a front door?
Glass adds a component and the details around it, so it should be priced as its own line. Decide first what the glass is for: daylight in a dark hallway, a decorative panel that suits a period house, or privacy where the door faces the street. Our doors can be specified with double, triple or vacuum glazing, and the heritage designs include panel doors with decorative glazing.
When two quotes describe the glass differently, ask each supplier to state the glass unit and where it sits in the door. A small glazed panel and a door that is mostly glass are different products, even if the brochure photographs look similar.
Why do locks and door furniture matter to the price?
Hardware is easy to treat as an afterthought, and it should not be. Multi-point locking systems and precision-built frames are standard on our entrance doors, and the remaining choices, from hinges and handles to the letter plate, are part of the specification. Our advice is never to cut corners on the locking mechanism or door furniture: a well-made door deserves security to match.
Ask for the locking system and each item of furniture to be named in the quote, rather than “hardware included”. If security is the main concern, our guide to whether timber doors are secure explains what to ask about the complete doorset; this guide will not repeat it here.
What about the frame, threshold and side panels?
Some projects replace only the door leaf; most replace the door and frame together. Side panels and a fanlight change the size and amount of joinery, and the threshold has to suit the step and how the door will be used every day. These details are settled at the survey, because they depend on the opening you have rather than the door you have picked.
If you are considering a different arrangement, such as adding side panels or replacing a pair of doors, ask for it to be priced separately from the like-for-like option. You can then judge the difference on its own merits. Our timber doors page shows the wider range, from entrance and stable doors to French and patio doors.
What should a fitted front door quote include?
“Fitted” needs a written definition. Removing an old door and frame can leave work around plaster, render, trims or the step, and someone has to have allowed for it. Installation typically takes a full day, depending on the property, locking system and door furnishings required.
- Confirm whether the total includes VAT, delivery, removal of the old door and frame, and disposal.
- Ask whether the frame, threshold, side panels and fanlight are included, and which are optional.
- Describe the making good you expect inside and outside, and whether decoration is included.
- Ask how concealed damage found after removal would be reported, priced and approved.
- Check payment stages, the written guarantee terms and how aftercare is requested.
Replacement external doors can fall under the building regulations. The Planning Portal explains the building regulations considerations for doors and windows. Schnauber is FENSA registered, and a FENSA certificate is the homeowner’s proof that a registered installation complies with the regulations and has been registered with the local council. Ask any installer which route applies to your door and what paperwork you will receive.
How can you compare two door quotes fairly?
Imagine two quotes for the same front door. One names the timber, glass, locking system and finish, and includes the frame, removal and making good. The other says only “timber front door supplied and fitted”. Their totals cannot tell you which is better value until the second supplier fills in the scope. This is an illustrative comparison, not a past Schnauber job or a price example.
- Give both suppliers the same photographs, measurements and written list of choices.
- Mark every difference in timber, design, glass, hardware, frame and finish.
- List fitting, VAT, disposal, access and making good side by side.
- Ask for upgrades as separate additions so the base proposals stay comparable.
- Get unclear inclusions and exclusions confirmed in writing before accepting a quote.
If the budget is tight, say which parts matter most. Keeping the important details and simplifying the rest is usually more useful than quietly removing the locking system or the frame from the quote.
Do period or listed homes change the approach?
On a period house the door is often the focal point of the front, and the design has to suit it. Our heritage collection includes Victorian panel doors, Edwardian and Georgian six-panel designs, 1930s, cottage and farmhouse doors, and reproductions for listed and conservation properties. Matching an original door means more decisions about panels, mouldings and glass, so allow time to settle them before treating a quote as final.
Where the property is listed or in a conservation area, check what is allowed before you commit. The Planning Portal guidance on doors and windows explains when planning considerations arise; your local planning authority is the place to confirm them. Include any drawings or application work in the budget and agree who is responsible for them.
How do you get a front door quote around Cambridge?
Schnauber’s head office is at 44 Mill Road, Cambridge, and we have service pages for Cambridge, Ely and Saffron Walden. Tell us the property postcode, send photographs of the doorway inside and out, and mention any planning restrictions or difficult access.
Use our contact page or the quote form below to request a free survey. The aim is a measured proposal you can understand: the door specified, the work included and any exclusions you need to budget for.