Gable vs Hip Roof: Which Is Better?

Cost, Wind Resistance, Attic Space, Ventilation & Framing

A gable roof has two sloping planes meeting at a ridge with a vertical triangular wall at each end; a hip roof slopes on all four sides with no end walls. Gables are cheaper to frame and to re-roof, typically by 10 to 20%, because rafters repeat and shingle courses run straight across, and they give far more usable attic headroom. Hip roofs resist wind better — there is no large vertical gable for wind to push against, which is why wind mitigation programmes in hurricane states often recognise hip geometry — but every course meeting a hip is cut at an angle, waste factors run 12 to 15% instead of about 10%, and four hip lines need cap shingles instead of one ridge. This guide compares both shapes on cost, framing, ventilation, snow shedding and leak-prone details, and explains why changing shape on an existing house is a framing project rather than a roofing one.