InstaBidsFor homeowners
Types of siding: which one fits your home?
Choose brick veneer for hail and wind-borne debris; fiber cement for wildfire areas that call for a 1-hour fire-resistance rating (PNNL names metal too); stucco for homes that need a non-combustible siding (PNNL names brick and fiber cement too); metal for walls a flood may reach, as a siding that meets FEMA's Class 4 and 5 flood-resistant rating (PNNL names brick, fiber-cement, solid woods and plastic too); vinyl for termite-risk areas (PNNL names metal and fiber cement too); wood for earthquake-prone areas, as PNNL rates solid wood High for earthquake resistance (PNNL rates wood panel, metal and vinyl High too).
The right choice depends on which hazards your area faces: wildfire, hail and wind-borne debris, termites, flooding or earthquakes and whether the siding is installed over OSB or plywood sheathing (the impact-test condition) and properly installed for high winds.
| Type | Best for | Main advantages | Main drawbacks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vinyl | termite-risk areas (PNNL names metal and fiber cement too) | PNNL rates plastic (vinyl) siding High for pest, flooding and earthquake resistance; meets FEMA's Class 4 and 5 flood-resistant rating, as plastic siding | typically not appropriate where fire danger is high, because the plastics melt; some vinyl siding products crack and fracture when struck by a fast-moving object |
| Fiber cement | wildfire areas that call for a 1-hour fire-resistance rating (PNNL names metal too) | flame-spread rating 0, flame-spread Class I; performs well in impact tests when installed over OSB or plywood sheathing; does not attract termites | PNNL: "Wood composites perform better than fiber cement siding, which is more rigid, brittle, and prone to cracking when struck."; may crack during earthquakes |
| Metal | walls a flood may reach, as a siding that meets FEMA's Class 4 and 5 flood-resistant rating (PNNL names brick, fiber-cement, solid woods and plastic too) | likely to meet a 1-hour fire-resistance rating; PNNL rates metal siding High for fire, pest, flooding and earthquake resistance | PNNL: "steel panels perform better than aluminum panels, which are more prone to cracking when struck." |
| Stucco | homes that need a non-combustible siding (PNNL names brick and fiber cement too) | PNNL rates stucco High for fire and pest resistance | rigid and brittle: it will crack once the strength of the cladding is exceeded; thin and brittle: PNNL says it fares worse against moving floodwater than fiber cement siding and brick veneer; may crack during earthquakes |
| Wood | earthquake-prone areas, as PNNL rates solid wood High for earthquake resistance (PNNL rates wood panel, metal and vinyl High too) | can meet the 1-hour fire-resistance rating if treated with a fire-retardant chemical; PNNL rates solid wood (cedar shingles, clapboards, tongue and groove) High for flooding and earthquake resistance | the fire-retardant chemicals need to be reapplied; cedar gives moderate protection against termites; other woods and wood panel sidings perform poorly at deterring them; PNNL rates wood panel siding (plywood, OSB, T1-11) Low for pest and flooding resistance |
| Brick veneer | hail and wind-borne debris | brick and stone veneer walls perform well in impact tests when installed over OSB or plywood sheathing; flame-spread rating 0, flame-spread Class I | PNNL rates masonry (brick, stone) Low for earthquake resistance; the residential code makes the wall's shear strength account for the forces of high-mass finishes such as brick veneer |
InstaBids is an AI-run marketplace for homeowners and property managers: describe a home job once, by chat or through your own AI assistant, add photos, and get multiple written quotes on the same scope, compared apples to apples, with no phone calls or home visits before you pick.
Post your job on InstaBids, and contractors can bid in writing on one written scope.
- Describe it onceBy chat, or through your own AI assistant, and add photos.
- Post it and send itContractors bid in writing on that scope.
- Compare line by lineEvery quote is written against the same scope.
- You chooseContact details stay hidden until you pick and they confirm.
For your AI assistant
MCP connector · REST API · plain HTMLHand any of these to your assistant and it can help you write this job's request; you send the request yourself. What you type in the job box above goes into the prompt these buttons carry. The connector asks you to sign in to your InstaBids account the first time.
- MCP connector URL
https://instabids.ai/api/agent/mcp - Agent API (OpenAPI)
https://instabids.ai/openapi.json - Start-request link
https://instabids.ai/intake?from=options-siding&utm_source=us&utm_medium=page&utm_campaign=options&page_type=options#job=siding%20installation - Prompt for any AI, with your job
- ChatGPTOpens with the prompt
- ClaudeOpens with the prompt
- GrokOpens with the prompt
- GeminiCopies the prompt, then opens
Every page is plain HTML. Steps for every assistant: add to your assistant.
What to put on outside of a house?
PNNL's siding guide for the Department of Energy says to select siding materials that can resist the likely hazards for the home's locale, such as impacts from hail and wind-borne debris, wildfire, pests and moisture.
The guide rates each main siding family High, Med or Low for wind-borne debris and hail impact, fire, pest, sustained flooding and earthquake resistance: metal, solid wood, wood panel, fiber cement, plastic (vinyl), masonry (brick and stone) and 3-coat stucco.
For hail and wind-borne debris, the guide says steel metal panels, fiber cement siding, masonry and brick walls, and brick and stone veneer walls perform well in impact tests when installed over OSB or plywood sheathing. Aluminum panels are "more prone to cracking when struck" than steel panels, stucco will crack once its strength is exceeded, and some vinyl products crack and fracture when struck by a fast-moving object.
On fire, it names stone, stone composites, fiber-cement and metal as the siding materials likely to meet a 1-hour fire-resistance rating, while vinyl and plastic composite sidings are typically not appropriate where fire danger is high, because the plastics melt. For flooding, the sidings that meet FEMA's Class 4 and 5 flood-resistant rating include metal siding, brick, fiber-cement, solid woods and plastic.
What are the different types of wood siding?
PNNL's siding guide rates solid wood (cedar shingles, clapboards, tongue and groove) and wood panel siding (plywood, OSB, T1-11).
It rates solid wood High for flooding and earthquake resistance, and wood panel siding Low for pest and flooding resistance. Cedar provides moderate protection against termites, while other woods and wood panel sidings perform poorly at deterring termites.
Wood can meet the 1-hour fire-resistance rating if it is treated with a fire-retardant chemical, but these chemicals need to be reapplied. The guide adds that wood and hardboard siding can perform well in high winds if properly installed for high winds.
What are the three most common types of siding?
On new single-family houses completed in 2025, the U.S. Census Bureau counts vinyl siding as the primary exterior wall material on 265 thousand, stucco on 262 thousand and fiber cement on 230 thousand, against brick on 164 thousand and wood on 62 thousand.
| Priority | Choose |
|---|---|
| hail and wind-borne debris | Brick veneer |
What does siding installation cost?
For prices, see How much does siding cost?
Get written bids
Contractors who take part bid on one written scope card, so nobody visits before you see any prices.
Contact details stay hidden until the homeowner picks a contractor and they confirm the connection.
Homeowners pay InstaBids nothing.
Sources for the facts on this page
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Building America Solution Center (U.S. DOE), Moisture-, Impact-, Fire-, and Pest-Resistant Exterior Siding guide (last updated 2021-09-23), national laboratory, read 17 October 2026.
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Building America Solution Center (U.S. DOE), Fire-Resistant Wall Assemblies guide (last updated 2021-06-28), national laboratory, read 17 October 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Survey of Construction (exterior wall material, new single-family houses completed), government, read 17 October 2026.