Most are aluminum. This Old House calls it one of the most widely used gutter materials because it balances cost, durability and ease of installation, and puts its life at about 25 years. The other common choices are vinyl, galvanized steel, copper and zinc. Each trades cost against strength, weight or how long it lasts.
The material decides what wears out first: dents, rust or cracks.
Backed by Wood & Wood Seamless Gutters, more than 30 years in the gutter business.
The five materials
This is how This Old House describes each one.
- Aluminum: resists rust and comes in a range of colors, but can dent or wear more easily than heavier metals.
- Vinyl: won't rust, but is more likely to crack or warp over time. About 10 to 15 years.
- Galvanized steel: stronger than aluminum, but can rust if the protective coating is damaged.
- Copper: one of the most durable, lasting decades with little upkeep. It develops a patina as it ages.
- Zinc: long-lasting and low-maintenance, with a protective patina that forms over time.
What is on your house now
Painted steel and painted aluminum look alike from the ground. InterNACHI's inspector training says tapping them with a finger tells them apart. InterNACHI adds that vinyl gutters are fragile and often turn up broken or pulled loose.
What we install
When a house needs new gutters, a certified installer forms seamless aluminum on site from a coil, with the guard built in. The Alu-Rex hangers and guards are aluminum too. Are seamless gutters better? explains how the gutter is formed.
We do not sell vinyl, steel, copper or zinc gutters, so we do not price them.
What it costs
New aluminum gutters with T-Rex start at $25 a foot installed, or $30 with DoublePro. Over sound gutters, Gutter Clean Pro is from $18 a foot.
Call to install: every step
Three ways to start
- Call (617) 401-9301. It is answered any hour, and a missed call gets called back.
- Send the short form on the home page with your street address, and your number lands in your inbox.
- Text or chat through the chat window on this site.
Understand what you actually need
About fifteen minutes on the phone: the length of the roofline, the number of stories and the trees around the house. The roofline is measured remotely, so nobody comes to the house to sell. You get your price the same day, from the published per-foot rates.
- Gutters still in good shape: Gutter Clean Pro goes over the gutters you already have, from $18/ft.
- Gutters that need replacing: new gutters with the guard built in. T-Rex (continuous hanger) from $25/ft, or DoublePro (two filtration layers) from $30/ft.
- Fascia that cannot be drilled: Hover Pro, quoted for your house.
- Complex rooflines, third stories and copper are quoted separately, and we say so on the call, never after arrival.
Your plan, in writing
You get a written quote and your StormRail plan: photos of your house, the system, the gutter size and your color choices. The certified installer works from that same plan, so you and the installer are never on different pages.
A deposit capped at one third
Massachusetts law caps a home-improvement deposit at one third of the contract. We hold to that in every state we work in. Your quote names the exact figure before you pay anything.
Material ordered and confirmed
Your Alu-Rex system is ordered through the Alu-Rex distributor and confirmed before an install date is set, so the date you get is one the material can meet.
Scheduled with a certified installer in your county
A certified Alu-Rex installer working in your area takes the job, and you get the date without chasing anyone. In season we're typically booking four to six weeks out. We'd rather tell you that now than promise you Tuesday and send whoever happened to be free. Emergency work — a collapsed run, active water in the basement — gets triaged ahead of the queue.
Installed
The installer fits the system on the plan you already approved. Any balance is due as your quote states.
After the install
We check in after the job is done. Each system carries its own written Alu-Rex warranty:
- Gutter Clean Pro: manufacturing lifetime limited, clog performance lifetime limited, including coniferous areas
- T-Rex: manufacturing lifetime limited, clog performance 25-year prorated limited
- DoublePro: manufacturing lifetime limited, clog performance lifetime limited, including coniferous areas
Questions homeowners ask
Are gutters aluminum?
Most are. Vinyl, galvanized steel, copper and zinc are the other common materials.
Which gutter material is best?
Each trades cost against strength and life. Aluminum is the common middle ground.
How do I get a price?
Call (617) 401-9301 and tell us what your gutters are made of now. We price the job on the call.
Compare the systems before you call: all gutter guards, Gutter Clean Pro, T-Rex, DoublePro, and the full price list.
Sources
- This Old House: Types of gutters and how to choose one (2026) www.thisoldhouse.com/gutters/types-of-gutters
- InterNACHI: Roof drainage systems, part 1 www.nachi.org/roof-drainage-systems-part1-23.htm
Get a number for your roofline
One call is enough to start: the address, how many stories, and what grows over the roof. The published per-foot rate is the starting point, and the full scope and total are confirmed in writing before you pay anything.
Call (617) 401-9301