External Doors

The cost of a good quality exterior door can range anywhere from £200 to £5,000, depending on the style and material you choose.

This dramatic difference is down to the different types of door available. A big external bifold door, with it’s beautiful bright glass panels and space-changing flexibility, costs a lot more (ours start at just over £1600) than a single-leaf solid engineered oak exterior door (with a median cost of around £300) for example.

Other factors will feed into the cost as well. One of the biggest impacts is the material the door is made from. A high-quality aluminium-framed bifold or French door will give long-lasting, sleek, modern good looks whilst being naturally thermal efficient and corrosion resistant. It makes sense that these cost a little more than uPVC doors for example, which offer a more affordable option but may not offer the same lifespan.

Generally speaking, bifold and French doors will cost between £500 and £1500 to install and oak doors less. The cost will depend on a few things, such as whether you’re replacing old doors, whether there’s already an aperture and of course, who you go to.

Make sure you shop around for a good price and go with an option you can trust. If you are particularly skilled with DIY and doing handy work, then it may not be a bad idea to think about having a crack at it yourself. Just exercise extreme caution and only do so if completely confident in your ability.

There is no ‘best external door’ that will suit everyone, regardless of their interior styles or lifestyle.

If you love open-plan living and you want to use your garden as an easy-flowing extension of your living space, then exterior bifold doors are the perfect choice. As well as making your interiors feel larger and lighter, those luxurious glass panels will create a more open feel. Even on chilly winter days when the doors are pulled shut.

If you like rustic interiors, with warm bright spots and a little extra design detail, then classic French patio doors might be a better choice. Heritage style patio doors are a particularly popular choice and are perfect for adding a splash of character to your home. These steel look patio doors, with lightweight aluminium frames, contrast nicely with brickwork to create an attractive design feature for the exterior of your home, as well the interior.

If you’re cost-conscious, a set of uPVC sliding doors may suit you more than a set of contemporary aluminium frames. The size of the door required will also change which style works for you.

In terms of durability of the frames, composite doors are known to be the most secure external doors currently on the market.

The material they are made from was deliberately designed to address the flaws sometimes found in doors made of single materials, such as uPVC or timber. They feature a solid wood door, steel frame, and a GRP (glass reinforced plastic) veneer which make them incredibly hard to damage or break.

Pair this with a steel frame, and a strong locking system and you will get a robust, secure external door that will withstand the most determined intruder attempt. That's not to say other materials aren't secure though. The quality of manufacturing plays a big part, so always ensure the external doors you're buying are of the highest quality, regardless of material and style.

A composite door is the most energy-efficent door type available, for the same reason it is the most secure. The material used to make it was specifically designed for that purpose and to omit the flaws that can present themselves when a door is made from a single material.

When it comes to bifold and French external doors, some people could worry about energy efficiency due to large glass panels that dominate the door design. This is why all Climadoor glazed external doors feature Low E glazing with a super-low U value of 1,5w/m2K or less.

The real answer is, it depends. Often it comes down to the manufacturer. Fro example, all of our bifold and French doors come with a matching door frame. This doesn’t just ensure a visual design cohesion to keep your doors looking fantastic, it also means that they will offer the highest levels of security and insulation possible, as they will fit the frame perfectly. In fact our folding door systems even come pre-hung, so that easy installation is guaranteed too.

Door frames for external single leaf doors tend to be supplied separately. It's always worth checking if the door you want to buy is supplied as part of a set.