Classic Agricultural: How Much Metal Tin Roofing

Chances are, if you’re asking how much metal “tin” roofing costs in Nassau County, you’re expecting it to land somewhere between shingles and fancy architectural metal-and you’re mostly right, but I’ll put real numbers to it. Basic “tin look” agricultural panels run about $3.50 to $6.00 per square foot installed, while higher-end traditional tin-style standing seam systems typically fall between $7.00 and $12.00 per square foot in this area, and the rest of this article will unpack exactly why those bands move up or down depending on what you choose and what your roof needs.

What “Tin” Roofing Really Costs in Nassau County-Numbers First

When I lay out those price bands for folks, I’m talking about the two main categories I see every week: farm-style exposed-fastener panels that give you that classic ribbed or corrugated “tin” look, and the slightly fancier standing seam systems that people call “traditional tin” even though most panels today are painted or galvanized steel. On a typical Nassau garage or shed, the cheaper end of that range-$3.50 to $6.00 installed-covers your basic 26-gauge galvalume or painted steel panels in a simple exposed-fastener profile, while the $7.00 to $12.00 band gets you heavier-gauge material, more durable paint systems, and concealed-fastener standing seam that looks a little cleaner and lasts a little longer. Your project might end up above or below those bands depending on pitch, tear-off, trim, and whether you’re chasing a “farm shed simple” look or building a “showpiece porch fancy” that lights up the whole street.

Most Modern “Tin” Roofs Are Actually Painted Steel-Not Pure Tin

Let’s clear up one thing about “tin” roofs first: almost nobody installs actual tin anymore because it’s rare and expensive, so when you say “tin” what you usually mean is some kind of metal panel with that nostalgic farm-shed vibe-and nowadays that’s galvanized steel, galvalume, or even painted aluminum. I mention this up front because each material lives in its own cost lane, and the words matter when you’re comparing quotes. True tin or tern-coated steel might run 50-75% more than painted steel, which is why I’ve spent the last 15 years steering Nassau homeowners toward modern ag-style steel panels that give them the classic look without the historic price tag. People call them “tin roofs” because that’s what their grandparents called them, and honestly it rolls off the tongue easier than “26-gauge galvalume with a PVDF coating,” but knowing what’s really going on helps you understand why one contractor’s “tin roof” might be $4 per square foot and another’s is $10.

Around Nassau County I see these roofs pop up everywhere from Massapequa Park to Levittown-sometimes it’s a backyard shed that somebody wants to turn into a proper workshop, sometimes it’s a detached garage that needs to match an old farmhouse feel, and once in a while it’s a front porch where the homeowner is chasing that rainy-afternoon sound they remember from childhood. On most of these projects, folks are choosing between two or three “tin look” options before we even talk about trim or tear-off, so the first step is figuring out which category you’re actually asking about. Once you know that, the numbers fall into place pretty fast.

Step One-Figure Out Which Kind of “Tin” Roof You’re Actually Asking About

On a simple 1,000-square-foot garage roof in Nassau County, a basic exposed-fastener ag panel job might land around $5,500 to $7,000 total including tear-off and trim, while a mid-range standing seam “tin look” could climb to $9,000 to $13,000 on the same building, and for context a plain three-tab shingle job on that garage would run maybe $3,500 to $4,500. Those numbers give you the starting point, and from there everything else is about which features push you up or down inside each category.

Three Main “Tin” Categories: Farm Panels, Standing Seam, and Specialty Systems

When I sit down with a homeowner, I break it into three lanes: first, you’ve got your classic exposed-fastener ag panels-usually corrugated or rib profile, screws show on top, simple and cheap, somewhere between $3.50 and $5.50 per square foot installed; second, there’s standing seam “tin look” that’s still mostly steel but uses concealed fasteners and vertical seams, running $6.00 to $10.00 per square foot and looking a bit cleaner; and third, specialty tin-coated or tern-plate systems that mimic old-time tin but cost $10 to $15 or more per square foot because you’re paying for rarity and historical accuracy. Most Nassau projects land in the first or second lane because the look and longevity are good enough, and the price makes sense next to what people were already planning to spend on shingles.

One crisp October in Oyster Bay, I re-roofed an old carriage house behind a big colonial where the owner was obsessed with matching the “tin roof” from photos of his grandfather’s farm upstate. He had those black-and-white pictures spread out on the kitchen table, and I could see the corrugated panels clear as day. I priced out both corrugated and standing seam options in different gauges-29-gauge vs 26-gauge, painted vs bare galvalume-and walked him through why a simple exposed-fastener system in heavier 26-gauge would give him the traditional look at roughly half the price of a high-end concealed standing seam job. We literally did the math on a notepad right there: basic exposed-fastener came in around $4.75 per square foot installed, while the standing seam with matching trim would’ve pushed past $9.50. He went with the exposed-fastener in a matte silver finish, and every time I drive past that carriage house now it looks like it’s been sitting there since 1920.

I cut my teeth on this stuff 15 years ago, back when my uncle hauled me out to a horse farm in Suffolk County and taught me how to lay “old-fashioned tin” on a creaking barn roof. That summer I learned the difference between ag panels and architectural metal, and I learned that half the customers who ask for “tin” really mean “anything that isn’t shingles and looks like a barn.” These days I’ve got a foot in both worlds-I grew up in Nassau, so I know the suburban side where folks want their garage to match the main house, but I also remember sweating on those Suffolk barns where nobody cared if the seams were perfect as long as the panels shed rain and didn’t leak. That balance helps when somebody in Levittown or Seaford says they want a “classic tin roof” but they’re not totally sure what that means yet.

If you stand in your driveway and look up at the roof you want to change, count how many different planes or faces you see-every valley, every dormer, every spot where the garage meets a porch-because each break adds trim and labor, which nudges the price up a notch. A straight gable with no interruptions is the cheapest roof to do in any material, and that’s doubly true for metal because we can run long panels from ridge to eave without a bunch of custom cuts. Add a couple hips, a dormer, or a complicated valley, and suddenly your “simple tin garage” grows an extra few hundred bucks in flashing and careful fitting.

On that same 1,000-square-foot example, exposed-fastener might end up $2,000 to $3,000 cheaper than standing seam once you add it all up.

Why One “Tin Look” Roof Costs Half of Another

Most of what you’re paying for in a classic “tin” look roof boils down to three things: the type and thickness of the metal itself, the panel style and fastening method, and how complicated your roof is to install. Metal thickness-called gauge, where lower numbers mean thicker, stronger panels-affects both cost and durability: a 29-gauge panel might save you $0.50 to $1.00 per square foot over a 24-gauge, but it’ll dent easier and feel flimsier under your boots if you ever need to walk the roof. Paint or coating matters too: a basic polyester enamel is cheaper than a high-performance PVDF finish like Kynar, and the difference shows up not just in the invoice but also in how the color holds up after ten Nassau winters. Then there’s the panel profile-exposed-fastener ag panels are faster to install and use less trim, while standing seam takes more time and skill because every seam has to be tight and every fastener has to hide under the next panel, so labor costs climb even if the material cost per square foot only goes up a little.

During a muggy June in Farmingdale, I helped a couple turn their plain backyard shed into a “mini barn” with red siding and silver “tin” roofing. They’d found a too-good-to-be-true online price-something like $2.50 per square foot for panels-and asked if I could match it. I walked them through the difference between those thin, paint-only panels you see advertised and the heavier, galvanized agricultural-style sheets I usually recommend: the cheap ones were 29-gauge with a basic baked enamel that would start chalking and fading within a few years, especially in our salty coastal air, while the galvanized 26-gauge panels I quoted were only about $1.20 more per square foot but would hold color and resist rust way longer. I explained that saving $600 up front on their little shed would likely cost them in rust spots, dents from falling branches, and a repaint or re-roof within five or six Nassau County winters. They went with the heavier stuff, and two summers later they thanked me because a neighbor’s cheap shed roof already looked tired and streaky while theirs still gleamed.

On windier spots-think near the water in Merrick, Baldwin, or Long Beach-I’ll often bump up the fastener schedule or suggest a slightly heavier gauge even if the homeowner’s budget is tight, because metal panels can lift or oil-can in high wind if they’re not spec’d right. That upgrade might only add $0.25 to $0.50 per square foot, but it’s the difference between a roof that hums in a nor’easter and one that sounds like it’s trying to peel off. I’ve learned over the years that skimping on fasteners or going to the absolute thinnest, cheapest panel in salty or windy pockets of Nassau is a false economy-you’ll spend more patching and painting than you saved on the install.

So that’s why your neighbor’s “tin” roof might have cost half what a standing seam job runs-different metal, different profile, different level of finish, and maybe a simpler roof shape that let the crew fly through the install. Once you see those four rows in the table, it’s pretty obvious that “farm shed simple” and “showpiece porch fancy” aren’t even playing the same game, and the trick is matching your building and your budget to the right tier before you fall in love with a price or a look that doesn’t fit.

Comparing “Tin” to Shingles on Real Nassau Projects

Back on that little produce stand in Glen Head I mentioned earlier, the owner needed a hard number before opening for the season, so I put together a tight cost comparison: three-tab shingles would’ve been around $3.00 per square foot installed on his small, low-slope roof, while a classic-rib exposed-fastener “tin look” metal came in at about $5.25 per square foot including trim, underlayment, and labor. That breakdown-$3.00 shingle vs $5.25 metal-became my go-to example whenever someone asks what metal tin roofing really runs in this area, because it shows the typical premium without any fancy extras. On a 600-square-foot stand, that meant roughly $1,800 for shingles or $3,150 for metal, and he went metal because he wanted the nostalgic look, the better wind resistance near the road, and the longer lifespan before he’d have to touch it again.

If you generalize from Glen Head to a typical Nassau porch or small addition, the pattern holds: shingles usually land between $2.50 and $4.50 per square foot installed depending on the grade, while a basic “tin look” exposed-fastener metal sits around $4.00 to $6.50, so you’re paying an extra $1.50 to $3.00 per square foot for the metal upgrade. That premium pays off in looks if you love the sound and style, and it pays off in lifespan because a properly installed metal roof will outlast shingles by a decade or more without needing periodic repairs. On a working garage where looks aren’t the main event, shingles might make more sense; on a showpiece porch that faces the street or a shed you want to turn into a backyard hangout, the “tin” look usually wins even at the higher price.

On small projects, spending an extra $800 to $1,500 total for metal instead of shingles often feels worth it once you see the finished roof.

Which Price Level Makes Sense for Your Barn, Garage, or Porch Dream?

Once we decide whether you’re after “farm shed simple” or “showpiece porch fancy,” the path forward gets clearer, and I usually frame it this way: barn roof (basic exposed-fastener, 29-gauge) ≈ $4.00/sq ft / basic garage (heavier exposed-fastener, 26-gauge) ≈ $5.50/sq ft / showpiece porch (standing seam, 24-gauge with premium paint) ≈ $9.00/sq ft. Those three numbers let you mentally sort yourself into a tier before you ever call TWI Roofing or any other contractor, and they give you a reality check against online prices that might be leaving out tear-off, underlayment, or the extra trim Nassau roofs always seem to need. If your building is purely functional-a garage for tools, a shed for lawn equipment-then sticking close to the bottom of the range makes perfect sense, and you’ll still get that classic “tin roof” sound when it rains. If your porch is the first thing guests see and you light it up at Christmas, then stretching toward the top of the range buys you a cleaner look, better color retention, and the confidence that the roof won’t need attention for 30 or 40 years.

From here, your next steps are pretty straightforward: measure your roof area or at least pace it off so you know if you’re talking 500 square feet or 1,500; note the pitch and any tricky spots like valleys or dormers when you stand in the driveway and look up; and when you get quotes from TWI Roofing or anyone else, ask which “tin” category they’re quoting-exposed-fastener ag panel, standing seam, or something specialty-because that one question will tell you if you’re comparing apples to apples. For a typical 1,000-square-foot Nassau garage in the “working garage” tier, expect a ballpark total around $5,500 to $6,500 installed with tear-off and standard trim, and if someone quotes you way below that, ask what they’re leaving out or which corners they’re cutting. That number won’t blow your budget, it’ll give you a roof that looks and sounds like the barns and farmhouses folks remember, and it’ll last long enough that you probably won’t be shopping for another roof anytime soon.