Standard Garage Door Sizes

Garage Door Sizes

Garage doors can be custom ordered in almost any size, although a few standard garage door sizes are considered stock. Overhead door sizes have been gradually increasing to matched the increased size of vehicles. Garage doors are now sized to accommodate work trucks, boats and campers. Overhead doors are made up of different size pieces called sections. Various sections are combined to fit specific heights and widths of openings. Here are some things to remember when constructing your door openings.

Stock Door Sizes

Most garage door companies keep an inventory of stock overhead doors. Since they can’t afford to stock every possible size or model of door , they pick a select few common doors. Standard garage door sizes are 16′ wide by 7′ tall and 9′ wide by 7′ tall.  As mentioned above, door sizes have been increasing to match the increase in vehicle size. Door sizes of 18′ wide by 8′ tall and 10′ wide by 8′ tall are increasingly common. The popularity of pole barns in recent years has also caused taller doors of 9′,10′ and 12′ to be common. Here are the major reasons to build standard garage door openings:

  • In Stock – No Waiting
  • No Extra Special Order Upcharge
  • Better Resale Value

Sectional Garage Door Sizes

Garage door panels come in three different sizes, 18″ , 21″ and 24″. Manufactures have determined over the years that these section sizes accommodate the most common height doors with the least amount of panels possible . The are also small enough to turn around the track radius efficiently, leaving adequate headroom spacing. Sections can be arranged in a manner that accommodates almost any door height. A door height of 7’3″ (87″)is not available, because no combination of 18″,21″ and 24″ sections can equal 87″. Here are some examples of common residential door sizes and layouts:

  • 7′ Tall Doors (4) 21″ Sections
  • 8′ Tall Doors (2) 21″, (3) 18″ or (4) 24″ Sections
  • 9′ Tall Doors (6) 18″ Sections

Overhead Door Size Limitations

Garage doors are usually available in 1″ increment widths depending on the style or model of door. Overlay and carriage house doors may have higher restrictions due to the overlay designs on the face of the doors being engineered. Heights are restricted to 3″ increments since doors are made up of 18″,21″ and 24″ sections. Although custom door heights are available they are generally considered special order. This means that they are priced higher and you will have to wait longer for arrival. Standard size doors are lower in price and usually in stock.

What Size Should My Rough Opening Be?

One of the most common questions about framing is, “What size should I frame my opening to?” Garage door openings should be framed to the exact same size as the door you have purchased. In other words, a 16×7 door should also have a 16×7 opening. Any imperfections in the frame work will be covered up by your jamb weatherstripping and bottom seal. If you want to be a perfectionist you could make a case for cheating the opening down up to 1″ on each side. Build your opening 15′ 10″ x 7′ or just order your garage door 16′ 2″ x 7′. This would allow up to a full inch on each size to “lay” up against the door for a better seal. The height of your rough opening should always match your door size. The bottom seal on your garage door will naturally raise the door an extra 1/2″ off the floor.

Garage Door Guide Cal
Hello, I’m Cal – owner of Garage Door Guide LLC    

I write tutorials about garage door repair, installation and maintenance. With over a decade of experience in the overhead door industry I’ve learned a lot and I’d like to share my knowledge with you.

20 thoughts on “Standard Garage Door Sizes

  1. David F Sutton says:

    I’m planning an oversize 2 car garage. The oversize area is for my motorcycle and would accommodate a 6′ x 7′ overhead door. Is that available?

    • Garage Door Guide says:

      A 6′ wide x 7′ tall door would definitely be a special size door but I’m pretty sure its possible. We use to sell doors for backyard storage sheds that were 6wide x 6tall. Expect to pay extra – you will probably pay a standard 8wide x 7tall price x 10% extra.

  2. G Hayes says:

    What is the size of a five panel garage door? I have a rough opening of 16′ wide with right now unlimited height. The additional height is needed for special vehicles, thinking for the future.

  3. Garage Door Guide says:

    Panels are made up of 18″-24″ sections…. So based on that you could have a door anywhere between 7’6″ and 10ft tall with 5 panels.
    (18, 18, 18,18,18) 7’6″
    (24,24,24,24,24) 10’0″

    As for thinking about additional height…
    Usually you can go up to 14ft height in residential model (raised panel) doors. If you want to go taller than that you would have to go to a commercial panel door. Motorhomes and some lite duty farming equipment can reach heights of 14ft easily – in which case a 16×16 (8 panels 24″ each) door would make sense.

    • Garage Door Guide says:

      You should be able to get that size garage door special order as a “sectional” garage door. It would be standard as a mini storage “rollup” type door. Would have to contact someone local in your area for quotes.

  4. Scott Hansen says:

    Looking for a 8′ wide by 7′ high overhead door.
    What clearance do I need for standard and what clearance for low headroom track?
    Also what additional width is needed for the track and brackets?

    • Garage Door Guide says:

      For manual door operation (no opener)
      12″R track you need 12″ of headroom
      15″R track you need 14.25″ of headroom

      Too add an opener you need 3″ for the rail to the above measurements.

      Low clearance (headroom) track buys you about 3″ of headroom meaning you can deduct -3″
      There is no additional width needed for the track. The drums flip to the outside of the bearing plate and the bottom brackets are outside hookup. How much headroom do you have? There are plenty of additional options including 10″ Radius track w/ torsion springs OR extension springs and even less headroom needed.

  5. Patrick Kwong says:

    We have a rare size garage door opening, looking out from the inside of the garage, the left height is 92 3/8″
    the right height is 94 38″
    and the width is 15′-5 1/2″
    Can we have this door made ?

    • Garage Door Guide says:

      Hire a carpenter to frame the door opening down to 15’5 x 7’8″. Then you can purchase a 15’6″ x 7’9″ door to install in that opening allowing for a small door overlap. If you don’t want to frame the opening down then your next best bet is to order a 15’6″ x 8′ door.

      Doors cannot be made different heights at each end of the door. The sections that make up the garage doors are always symmetrical. They mainly come in 18″,21″ and 24″ panel arrangements. Some manufacturers offer sizes in between, but that is the exception not the rule.

    • Garage Door Guide says:

      16w x 6″6″ tall might not even be special order depending on where you are located. That is 2-21″ panels and 2-18″ panels. Shouldn’t be any problem at all. It just depends on how big the dealers warehouse is. We use to stock that size at my prior place of employment.

  6. Mark G says:

    Our existing garage door is 16’ w by 7’ h. We are purchasing a “ teardrop” trailer that we wish to store in our garage. We need an opening height of a minimum of 8’ 4”. We plan to get quotes to expand the opening. Would you recommend (6) 18 inch panels or (5) 21 inch panels ? Thank you!

    • Garage Door Guide says:

      If the minimum needed it 8’4″ you will need to go with an 8’6″ garage door (102″. Many garage door suppliers use 3″ height increments.

      That would mean (4) 21″ panels and (1) 18″ panel. I’d stick the 18″ section in the middle of the door but it really doesn’t matter.

      Just curious, how much room above your current opening do you have (headroom)?

  7. Shelby says:

    The opening for our garage door is 15’10’ by 6′ 9 1/2″. Is this a custom size or would a 16′ by 7′ work?

    • psonline says:

      A 16×7 door should work just fine. The perimeter door framing/jambs will cover up 2.5 inches at the top of the door and 1-inch on each side of the door.

    • psonline says:

      You usually have to buy locally as it is uneconomical to ship just one door… I recommend CHI and CLopay brand garage doors since I sold them for 12 years and have confidence in the quality. Clopay offers their box store brand called “IDEAL” doors which can be purchased at home depot/lowes.

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