Western Red Cedar trees are well known for their great heights, huge trunk diameters and in turn being decay resistant. All this makes for one of the more durable home siding options with unmatched natural beauty.
Cost Basics
The average cost to install cedar shake siding ranges from $8.50 to $14.50 per square foot, depending on job complexity and location.
You can expect to pay between $17,000 and $29,000 for a contractor to install new cedar shake siding on a typical house with 2,000 square feet of siding. Add an extra $1,000 to $3,000 if needing your old siding removed and disposed of.
![]() $7,500 Average price |
![]() $14,500 Average price |
![]() $8,225 Average price |
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Stylistic Considerations and Pricing Factors

Besides Western Red Cedar, Northern White Cedar provides the lumber that are transformed, by sawmills, into shake. It used to be shakes were axe cut by hand and shingles were the lumber that went the route of sawmill cutting. Not anymore. For the most part, all cedar shakes are produced using power equipment.