Two wood window quotes arrive for the same house, and one is clearly higher. Same number of windows, same architect, same species name on the page. The usual reaction is to ask which supplier is cheaper. The better question is which line of the specification is different, because with wood the price lives in the specification.
The price of wood windows is set by nine things: unit size, species, finish, profile depth, glazing, opening type and hardware, open timber versus aluminum cladding, grids and shapes, and freight and customs scope. I quote European wood windows and aluminum-clad wood windows per project from drawings, so there is no price list on this page. What I can give you is the order in which these factors matter and what to hold constant when you compare two quotes.
How much do wood windows cost?
A fair answer is "it depends on the schedule", and the nine drivers below are what it depends on. A published per-window number would hide all of them: a small fixed light and a tall tilt-and-turn sash with triple glass are both "a wood window" and sit far apart on a quote. If you want a budget range before drawings are final, the estimator gives a rough range for timber and aluclad that is explicitly not a quote. A real figure needs your sizes, species, finish and glass.
The nine cost drivers
| Driver | What changes on the quote |
|---|---|
| 1. Size and count | Each size is checked against sash weight, glass and hardware |
| 2. Species | Pine is the most affordable, then meranti, then oak, with mahogany at the top |
| 3. Finish | Opaque colors go on finger-jointed pine; transparent stains need selected, cleaner timber |
| 4. Profile depth | Timber Classic is 68 or 78 mm (2 11/16 or 3 1/16 in); Timber Estate is 92 mm (3 5/8 in) with three sealing lines |
| 5. Glazing | Double or triple, plus any coating, laminated or sound-control build-up |
| 6. Opening type and hardware | Fixed, tilt-and-turn or casement; hardware sized to sash weight |
| 7. Open timber or clad | Clad lines add an aluminum shell, clips and extra assembly |
| 8. Grids, arches, shapes | Divided lights and arched heads are extra joinery |
| 9. Freight, customs, delivery | Scope and treatment confirmed with the quote |
The drivers are listed roughly in the order I look at them on a schedule; which one dominates depends on the project. Hold all of them constant when you compare two quotes.
Size and species: the two big levers
Size. European wood windows are built to the opening, so there is no catalog grid with price steps. Cost rises with timber volume, glass weight and the hardware that has to carry the sash. A sash that is wide and tall on a shallow frame needs a different glass and hardware choice than the same size on a deeper one, which is why I check each size against the system rather than quoting by square foot. The sizing logic is in custom wood windows from Europe.
Species. Pine is what the European plants build most of, and it is the standard on the systems I quote. The cost order is pine, then meranti, then oak, with mahogany at the top; larch and spruce come on request. Oak is also roughly 30% heavier than pine for the same section, which feeds back into hardware on large sashes. The full comparison is in the wood window species guide.
Finish: the line most quotes do not make obvious
"Pine" on a quote can mean two different things. Opaque (painted) colors go on finger-jointed pine, where the joints disappear under the paint. Transparent stains and glazes go on select pine, where the lamellas are chosen so the grain looks right - more timber is rejected in selection, and that waste is part of the price.
So if two quotes differ and both say pine, check the finish. One may be priced for paint and the other for stain. If the windows will be painted, ask for the finger-jointed build and do not pay for selection you will cover with color.
Profile depth and glazing
The deeper system is more timber, more sealing lines and a heavier sash. Timber Estate has a 92 mm (3 5/8 in) frame and sash, three sealing lines and a double drip cap, and takes triple glazing comfortably. Timber Classic is slimmer at 68 mm (2 11/16 in), or 78 mm (3 1/16 in) in the XL version, with two sealing lines. The construction detail is in wood window frames explained.
Glass is the other half. Triple glazing adds a pane, weight and cost over double; coatings, laminated glass or an acoustic build-up add more. Timber Classic takes double or triple, and Timber Estate takes triple comfortably. It is worth deciding by climate and code, not by habit. Energy requirements are set by the jurisdiction, so confirm the whole-window U-factor you need for the permit before you pick the glass.
Open timber or aluminum-clad: why the clad line costs more
Clad windows are two products in one. The factory builds the timber window and then adds an aluminum shell, the clips that carry it, the covers and the silicone sealing, so there is more material and more assembly than on open timber. Compared with a thermally broken aluminum window, a clad window also carries the timber work: profiling, selecting, and finishing the interior. I would not expect aluclad to be the cheaper way to get an aluminum exterior. I go through the reasons in aluclad vs aluminum vs wood windows.
What clad buys you is an aluminum shell over the exterior wood, in any RAL color, with timber left on the inside. Every material still needs cleaning and inspection; the maintenance side is in how long do wood windows last.
Grids, arches and special shapes
Divided lights are timber bars, and each pattern is extra joinery plus extra glass handling. Arches and other shapes are different pieces of joinery from a standard rectangle: fixed arched units are the straightforward case, and operable ones get a drawing and written confirmation first. Settle the bar profile before pricing, because it has to match the frame profile.
What is not in the window price
Installation is done by the local team and is a separate scope. Freight, customs treatment and delivery arrangements are confirmed with the quote and shown separately, so you can compare windows against windows. Lead time is confirmed per order once the drawings are approved; I do not give a week count in advance. Ask every supplier the same thing, and see the warranty page for what is covered once the windows are installed.
How to compare two wood window quotes
Hold these constant before you look at the totals:
- Same unit sizes and quantities, from the same schedule.
- Same species, and the same finish type (paint or stain).
- Same profile depth and sealing lines.
- Same glazing, including coatings and any laminated or acoustic glass.
- Same opening types and hardware.
- Open timber or clad, stated the same way on both.
- Same delivery point, with freight and customs treatment shown separately.
The buyer's checklist for premium wood windows covers the same ground from the other side, as questions to ask a supplier.
FAQ
How much do wood windows cost? It depends on size, species, finish, profile depth, glazing, cladding, hardware and any shapes or grids, so I quote each project from drawings rather than publishing a per-window figure. The estimator gives a rough range, labeled as not a quote.
What makes one wood window quote higher than another? Usually the specification: species, finish type, profile depth, glazing, open timber or clad, and shapes or grids. Check those before comparing totals, and ask for both options quoted like for like.
Which wood species is cheapest for windows? Pine is the most affordable and the standard on the systems I quote, followed by meranti, oak and then mahogany. Painting rather than staining pine also avoids paying for timber selected for its grain.
Does triple glazing cost much more than double? It adds a pane, weight and cost. Timber Classic takes double or triple; Timber Estate takes triple comfortably. Choose by climate zone and local energy code, and confirm the whole-window U-factor for the actual sizes.
Is aluminum-clad wood more expensive than plain wood? Clad windows involve the timber window plus the aluminum shell, clips and extra assembly, so they are two products in one. The aluminum shell shields the exterior wood, but it does not make the window cheaper.
Next Step
Send me your schedule or drawings through the quote form and I will come back with a like-for-like quote for wood and aluminum-clad wood, with freight and customs treatment shown separately. To settle species, depth and opening types first, build a direction in the Studio.