Step 1 - Raised Beds
Metal vs Wood Raised Garden Beds
One lasts longer, one looks better, and the price gap is smaller than it first appears once you price real depth.
Janet H. - the hands-on owner behind Janet Media Group.
Published - last updated
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Buy metal if you want to buy a bed once. Buy cedar if the bed sits somewhere visible and you want it to look like part of the garden. Nearly everything else is detail.
| Coated steel | Untreated cedar | |
|---|---|---|
| Lifespan | Years to decades depending on coating | Years; boards at the soil line go first |
| Typical depth available | 12 to 32 in in one kit | About 7 in per tier; stack for depth |
| Assembly | Bolt-together, under an hour | Often tool-free dovetail corners |
| Soil temperature | Warms earlier in spring; hot walls in extreme heat | Neutral |
| Appearance | Reads as equipment | Reads as garden furniture |
| Cost for 12 to 14 in of depth | One kit | Usually two stacked kits |
| Maintenance | None | None if untreated; expect eventual replacement |
Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Top pickVego Garden 17" Modular Metal Raised Bed17 in deep, modular Aluzinc steel panels | Most first gardens | 9.2 | Check price on Amazon |
| 2 |  Greenes Fence Cedar Raised Garden Bed KitUntreated North American cedar, dovetail corners | People who want wood | 8.4 | Check price on Amazon |
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Scores are our own editorial judgment, formed from published specifications and independent sources. They are not aggregated customer ratings, and they are not the result of hands-on testing, which we do not currently do. See how we choose.
The price comparison people get wrong
Cedar looks cheaper because a single-tier kit is cheaper. But a single 7-inch tier only grows salad and herbs, so the honest comparison is two stacked cedar kits against one steel bed of similar depth. Run that comparison and the gap narrows sharply, and sometimes reverses.
Add replacement into the calculation as well. A cedar bed is a consumable on a multi-year cycle; a coated steel bed is usually not replaced at all.
Does steel overheat the soil?
The outer few inches against a sun-facing panel run warmer than the center of the bed. In cool and temperate climates that is a benefit -- the bed warms earlier and you can sow sooner. In a genuinely hot climate with full afternoon sun it is worth managing with mulch and by planting a little in from the hottest side.
It is not a reason to avoid steel. It is a reason to mulch, which you should do regardless: extension guidance credits mulch with a substantial reduction in irrigation need and with steadier soil moisture.
Safety, both ways
Coated steel is fine for food. The zinc coating is stable at vegetable-bed pH and zinc is a plant micronutrient. Untreated cedar is also fine, by definition. The material that generates genuine debate is pressure-treated lumber, and residential treatments moved away from arsenic-based CCA in 2003 to copper-based preservatives.
Choose metal if
- You want to build it once and not think about it again.
- You want 17 inches or more of depth without stacking anything.
- Your climate is cool or temperate and an earlier-warming bed helps.
- Assembly speed matters more than appearance.
Choose cedar if
- The bed is somewhere visible and you want it to look like garden furniture.
- You want zero treatment chemistry anywhere near a food bed, with no discussion.
- You are happy to stack two tiers for depth and to replace it eventually.
- Your climate is dry enough that wood in soil contact lasts well.
Either way, the next step is the same: work out the fill on the soil calculator. For the full steel lineup see metal raised garden beds, and for the wooden one cedar raised garden beds.
The picks in full
Top pick
Vego Garden 17" Modular Metal Raised Bed
Vego Garden
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The modular panel system is the reason to pay the premium: you can reshape the same bed into a different footprint next season without buying a second kit.
Vego is the brand most people meet first, and the modular panel system is the actual reason for that rather than the marketing. The kit arrives as flat corrugated panels plus corner pieces; you bolt them into whichever of the listed footprints suits your yard. If the 4 x 8 rectangle turns out to be wrong for your space, the same panels rebuild into a narrower or L-shaped bed next spring.
The steel matters more than the shape. Aluzinc is a zinc-aluminum-magnesium coating rather than plain galvanizing, and it is the finish you want on something that will sit in wet soil for years. That is the part of the price that buys durability rather than convenience.
Depth is the other thing to weigh. At 17 inches you can grow anything a beginner is likely to want, including carrots and potatoes, without hitting the bottom. The 32-inch version exists mainly so you can garden standing up, which is worth the extra soil cost if bending is the problem you are solving.
What works
- Panels unbolt and rebuild into a different shape
- Aluzinc coating is the better of the two steel finishes in this category
- 17 in is deep enough for carrots, potatoes and tomato roots
- Rolled safety edge along the top rail
What does not
- The most expensive metal bed of the ones we looked at
- Modularity is wasted if you build it once and leave it
- Steel warms fast in full afternoon sun in hot climates
Skip it if: you already know the exact shape you want and will never move it. You are paying for flexibility you would not use, and Vegega gives you the same steel for less.
| Material | Aluzinc-coated steel (zinc-aluminum-magnesium) |
|---|---|
| Depth | 17 in (a 32 in extra-tall version is also sold) |
| Shape | Modular panels, reconfigurable into several footprints |
| Assembly | Bolt-together panels, no cutting |
| Soil needed | About 32 cu ft for a 4 x 8 ft bed at 12 in of fill |
People who want wood
Greenes Fence Cedar Raised Garden Bed Kit
Greenes Fence
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Real untreated cedar with tool-free dovetail corners -- the honest wood option, with the shorter lifespan that comes with wood.
Cedar is chosen for looks and for the fact that it is untreated, which matters if you are uneasy about what a pressure-treated board leaches into a bed you eat from. Cedar's natural oils slow rot without any chemistry at all.
The dovetail corner system is the reason to buy this particular kit rather than cutting boards yourself: the ends slot together, no hardware, and a second kit stacks on top to take a 7-inch tier up to 14 inches. That is worth doing -- one tier is too shallow for much beyond lettuce and herbs.
Set expectations on lifespan. In a wet climate a cedar bed is a multi-year item, not a permanent structure, and the boards touching soil go first.
What works
- Genuinely untreated cedar, no chemical concerns for food crops
- Tool-free dovetail corners go together in minutes
- Stack a second kit to double the depth
- Looks right in an ornamental garden
What does not
- Wood is a consumable -- expect years, not decades
- A single tier is shallow for root crops
- Cedar prices move a lot season to season
Skip it if: you want to buy a bed once. Even cedar is a wearing part in a wet climate, and steel is the better long-run answer.
| Material | Untreated North American cedar |
|---|---|
| Depth | Stackable boards, commonly 7 in per tier |
| Assembly | Dovetail corner joints, no tools required |
| Expandable | Kits stack to add depth |
| Soil needed | About 18 cu ft for 4 x 8 ft at 7 in |
Common questions
Are metal or wood raised beds better?
Metal lasts longer and gives more depth per kit; wood looks better in an ornamental setting and needs no coating debate. For a working vegetable garden that you want to build once, coated steel is usually the better buy. For a bed on a visible patio, cedar often wins on appearance.
Do metal raised beds heat the soil too much?
The soil within a few inches of a sun-facing panel runs warmer than the middle of the bed. In cool and temperate climates that is an advantage. In hot climates, mulch the surface and keep planting a few inches in from the hottest wall.
Is cedar cheaper than a metal raised bed?
A single-tier cedar kit is cheaper, but one tier is only about 7 inches -- enough for salad, not for most vegetables. Compare two stacked cedar kits against one steel bed of similar depth and the price gap narrows considerably, sometimes reversing.
How long will a wooden raised bed last?
Years rather than decades, with the boards in soil contact failing first. Drainage and climate matter far more than the grade of timber. Keeping soil off the top rail and siting the bed on ground that drains will both extend its life.
Sources
Factual claims on this page are backed by the published sources below, and product specifications are the manufacturers’ own. Where a figure is not published, we say so rather than estimating it.