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Formaus Journal

5 Front Door Styles: Costs, ROI & What Each Says About Your Home

Compare Craftsman, Modern, Colonial, Farmhouse, and Steel & Glass front doors — installed costs, best-fit home types, and resale ROI, from a design advisor with 15+ years of architectural design experience.

Formaus Design Team · August 1, 2026

Your Front Door Makes 70% of the First Impression

Curb appeal starts at the entry. Before a buyer walks through your home — before they even step out of the car — the front door has already told them a story about the house. Here are the five door styles we see most across American homes, what each one costs installed, and which homes they belong to.

By the Formaus design team — 15+ years of architectural design experience.

What Are the Most Popular Front Door Styles?

The five styles below cover the vast majority of U.S. single-family homes: Craftsman, Modern, Colonial, Farmhouse, and Steel & Glass. Each pairs best with a specific architectural era and facade type.

How Much Does a Craftsman Front Door Cost?

Craftsman front door with divided glass panels, solid wood, and wide flat trim
Craftsman — divided glass, solid wood, wide trim. $1,500–$3,500 installed.

$1,500–$3,500 installed. Craftsman doors feature a divided glass panel in the upper third, solid wood construction, and wide flat trim casing. They belong on bungalows and homes built between the 1900s and 1930s. If your home has exposed rafter tails or a deep porch, this is almost always the right answer.

How Much Does a Modern Front Door Cost?

Modern flush slab front door in matte charcoal with vertical steel pull bar
Modern — flush slab, hidden hardware. $2,500–$8,000+.

$2,500–$8,000+. A modern entry door is a flush slab: no panels, hidden hinges, and an oversized vertical pull bar. It suits contemporary builds and minimalist facades. The wide price range reflects material — painted fiberglass at the low end, custom pivot doors at the top.

How Much Does a Colonial Front Door Cost?

Colonial six-panel front door in warm white with sidelights and brass hardware
Colonial — six panels, sidelights, brass. $1,200–$4,000.

$1,200–$4,000. The six-panel Colonial door is the most common door in America. Raised panels, symmetry, and optional sidelights make it the default for traditional two-story homes. Brass hardware and a knocker complete the look.

How Much Does a Farmhouse Front Door Cost?

Sage green farmhouse front door with X-brace detail and matte black hardware
Farmhouse — X-brace, matte black hardware. $1,800–$4,500.

$1,800–$4,500. Farmhouse doors use an X-brace or Dutch split design with matte black hardware. They pair with Modern Farmhouse exteriors — board-and-batten siding, black window frames, gabled rooflines.

How Much Does a Steel & Glass Front Door Cost?

Steel and glass front door with thin black industrial grid frame
Steel & Glass — light, security, statement. $3,000–$10,000.

$3,000–$10,000. Thin black steel frames with industrial glass grids deliver light, security, and a statement at once. Most common in urban renovations and design-forward remodels.

What Is the ROI of Replacing a Front Door?

A front door replacement is one of the highest-ROI exterior upgrades you can make. According to the 2025 Cost vs. Value Report, a standard steel entry door replacement recouped 216% of its cost at resale nationally — an average job cost of $2,435 returning $5,270 in resale value. That figure is based on a basic 20-gauge steel unit; premium styles like wood Craftsman or steel-and-glass doors cost more and won't necessarily match that percentage, but the takeaway holds: the entry is where a renovation dollar works hardest for first impressions.

Which Front Door Style Fits Your Home?

Style is not a matter of taste alone — it's a match between the door and the architecture around it. A Craftsman door on a 1990s builder colonial reads as a mistake; the same door on a 1920s bungalow reads as restoration.