Whether a metal roof suits your house, which panel type to choose, what Pennsylvania's code and your town ask for, and what moves the price against shingles, explained by the crew that does the work.
Metal roofing brings the same few questions: will it outlast shingles, will it cost too much, and will it hold up through a Pennsylvania winter. The answers depend on your house. In Dauphin County, 62% of the homes were built before 1980. In Perry County the share is 56%, and in Cumberland County it is 53%. That is a lot of older roofs, and many owners are now deciding what goes on next.
We look at the roof and the attic, measure the slopes, and photograph what we find. Then we put the panel type, the underlayment, the flashing and the trim in a written scope, line by line, so you can set metal beside shingles with real figures in front of you. This page follows the order most homeowners ask in.
A metal roof makes sense when you plan to stay in the house and want to stop planning around the next tear-off. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development puts the service life of a roof's first layer at about 20 years, so a roof that is already near that age is a fair time to ask about metal.
Signs that point toward metal:
Signs that point away: a cut-up roof with many small planes adds flashing work and cost, a rotted deck has to be fixed first, and a short stay in the house may not repay the higher price.
If you are not sure the roof needs replacing at all, start with a roof inspection or look at roof repair. If shingles are still in the running, our roof shingles page covers them.
Metal roofing is a family of products, and the type you pick sets the price, the look and the upkeep.
| Type | How it goes on | Fits best | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standing seam | Raised seams joined over hidden clips; no screws in the face of the panel | Houses you plan to keep, simple slopes | Highest price of the group; seams and flashing need a skilled crew |
| Ribbed or corrugated, exposed fastener | Screws with rubber washers through the face | Garages, porches, additions, tight budgets | Washers age in sun and cold; plan to recheck screws |
| Stone-coated steel | Shingle- or tile-shaped steel panels with a granule face | Owners who want a shingle look | More pieces and more laps than a long panel |
| Copper | Seamed or shingled panels | Accent roofs such as a porch or bay | Price; trim and fasteners must match the metal |
Which type is best? For a main roof on a house you mean to keep, we lean toward standing seam steel, because the fasteners are hidden and the panels can move with the temperature. Whether it is worth the higher price turns on how long you will own the house and how many penetrations the roof has. For a lean-to or a detached garage, ribbed panels often do the job at a lower price.
The biggest problem with metal roofs is rarely the metal. It is the detail work around it.
Partly. This metro sits in IECC climate zone 4A, with 4755.7 heating degree days and 1230.3 cooling degree days a year. Heating outweighs cooling by a wide margin, so the attic matters more to your bills than the roof covering does.
Where metal helps is the summer sun. A light-colored finish reflects more heat, and the panels shed it quickly instead of holding it the way dark shingles do. That takes some strain off the attic in July.
In winter, the covering does little. Your heat loss is set by the insulation on the attic floor, the air sealing around the ceiling, and the ventilation above. Pennsylvania's changes to the 2021 residential code touch roof ventilation and ridge framing, and we build the vent and ridge details to the code as the state adopted it.
If you want the roof to lower your bills, put the attic in the scope too. Our roof ventilation page explains what we check.
Winter here is a freeze-and-thaw affair. The area logs about 17 days a year when the high stays below freezing, and Harrisburg's snowfall averages about 30 inches and can pass 40 in some winters. Panels and fasteners have to be chosen for that, and the roof structure has to carry the snow.
The design figures we can print come from Upper Allen Township's own design table: a ground snow load of 30 psf and a wind speed of 90 mph. The same table says an ice barrier is required. Other townships print their own tables, so we read yours at the permit stage and do not assume it matches Upper Allen's.
On a metal roof we lay the ice barrier along the eaves under the panels where the table calls for it. We fasten panels and clips to the maker's printed instructions for your wind speed, and we do not promise a nail or screw count that the maker does not print.
Your Pennsylvania roofing code guide has the statewide rules behind these figures.
Pennsylvania uses one Uniform Construction Code statewide. It adopts the 2021 International Residential Code with the state's changes, and that version took effect January 1, 2026 (34 Pa. Code § 403.21). A municipality may adopt standards that equal or exceed the code, but not a lower or different edition (34 Pa. Code § 403.102). The permit steps still differ from town to town. Where a permit is required, we pull it.
| Town | What its records say |
|---|---|
| Harrisburg | Roofing is listed on the building permit application. Any contractor named must hold a valid Mercantile License. The permit goes void if no inspections happen within 6 months. |
| Mechanicsburg | Replacing the roof covering on a house needs no building permit unless structural members are involved. Work that needed a permit and had none can draw fines of up to $1,000.00 per day. |
| New Cumberland | Roof replacement is listed among the projects that may need a building permit, and work waits until the borough issues it. |
| Camp Hill | The residential fee is $90.00 plus 1.2% of the estimated project value. A third-party plan review takes between 14 and 30 days. |
| Steelton | Residential applications must be approved within 15 business days, and the form asks for the contractor's home improvement registration number. |
Metal costs more up front than shingles on most houses. We will not print a number here, because the roof in front of us sets the figure. These are the things that move it:
The fair comparison is cost over the years you will own the house, not the day-one price. A shingle roof costs less now and, going by the HUD figure of about 20 years for a first layer, may be replaced again while you are still there.
If a storm caused the damage, the claim, the policy and the deductible stay yours. We inspect, photograph and write a scope you can send your insurer. See storm damage.
The work follows the same order on every house.
When you are ready, ask for a visit on the free roof estimate page. If the roof needs a full tear-off, roof replacement explains the steps in more detail.
Usually the details, not the metal. Worn washers on exposed screws, poorly made flashing at chimneys and valleys, and panels that cannot move with the temperature cause most trouble. Good flashing and the right clips prevent most of it, which is why we list them in the written scope.
Shingles cost less on day one for most houses. Metal can cost less over the years you own the house if it spares you a second tear-off. Roof size, pitch, flashing work, deck repair and panel type decide the actual figure, and our estimate shows each line.
It depends on the house. For a main roof you plan to keep, we lean toward standing seam steel with hidden fasteners. Ribbed panels suit garages and additions, stone-coated steel suits owners who want a shingle look, and copper suits small accent roofs.
In summer, a light finish reflects heat and the panels shed it. Here, heating needs are far larger than cooling needs, with 4755.7 heating degree days against 1230.3 cooling degree days, so attic insulation, air sealing and ventilation do more to cut your bills than the covering.
It can be, if you will own the house a long time and the roof has simple slopes. You pay more for hidden fasteners and long panels. On a cut-up roof or a short stay, ribbed panels or shingles may be the better use of money.
Under Pennsylvania law, a buyer may cancel a contract signed at home until midnight of the third business day after the sale. Read the cancellation notice in any contract you sign, and ask for the scope and the panel type in writing before you do.
Metal roofing across the Harrisburg-Carlisle, Pennsylvania metro. Each city has its own page with the permit rule and code edition that apply there:
Sources: Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code adopts the 2021 IRC, 34 Pa. Code § 403.21 · Municipal standards under the code, 34 Pa. Code § 403.102 · Upper Allen Township design table: snow load, wind speed, ice barrier · Harrisburg building permit application · Mechanicsburg reroof permit rule · New Cumberland roof replacement permit · Camp Hill building permit fee and review · Steelton permit approval time and registration number · HUD Residential Rehabilitation Inspection Guide, roof service life. Codes, programs and prices change; confirm the current rule with your city before you rely on it.
Free inspection, a written scope, and photos you keep either way.
Book my free inspection →