The Homeowner’s Complete List of Pros and Cons to Metal Roofing

The most popular roofing type in America is asphalt shingles. And for good reason—it’s affordable, has a lot of variety in style, and it is easy to find an installer.

However, more homeowners are choosing metal roofing in recent years. Due to it’s environmentally friendly materials, long-lasting lifespan, and low maintenance, metal roofing is now the second most popular roofing type in the United States across all climates.

So how do you decide which type of roofing best suits your needs?

With nearly 20 years of experience installing both asphalt shingles and metal roofing, our team can tell which style of roofing will fit your home (and wallet) best.

So let’s jump right in: what are the pros and cons of metal roofing?

The Honest Advantages to Metal Roofing

If you’re reading this article, you’re probably already aware of some of the merits to metal roofing and want to weigh the benefits yourself.

There are three main benefits to metal roofing we prioritize explaining to our customers:

1. Metal roofing requires the least amount of homeowner maintenance for the price.
2. The lifespan of metal roofing is much longer than asphalt shingles.
3. Metal roofing is incredibly environmentally friendly and sustainable, often saving homeowners money in the long run with its energy efficient properties.

#1 Metal Roofing is Low Maintenance

Sometimes, homeowners have a hard time wrapping their head around what low maintenance actually means.

So here’s a comparison: we recommend homeowners to do a casual inspection annually on their asphalt roof, as well as light cleaning at the turn of every season. Because asphalt shingles have a lot of nooks and crannies, you must regularly remove any moss or mildew growing on your roof.

Without this regular maintenance, water pools together and causes rot underneath your asphalt shingles.

In contrast, metal roofing only requires a perfunctory inspection and hose-down every year. And you can’t just hose down asphalt shingles, as that will cause granular loss. But for a metal roof? That’s all you really need.

#2 The Lifespan of Metal Roofing Exceeds Asphalt Shingles

Let’s say you hate maintenance. We get it: your life is busy, you have a ton of commitments to take care of both in and out of the workweek, and you don’t want to have a needy roof.

Even without consistent, recommended maintenance, a metal roof’s lifespan outlasts an asphalt roof’s by nearly 50 years, with the lifespan of architectural asphalt shingles being 15 to 25 years and metal roofing easily lasting 50 to 75.

#3 Metal Roofing is Environmentally Friendly and Energy Efficient

Not only is it low maintenance, it’s also beneficial for the planet as well. Many metal roofing manufacturers pride themselves on using partially recycled metals—our West Coast supplier, Nu-Ray Metals, uses a minimum of 25% recycled metal in their roofing materials—as well as their roofs being fully recyclable at the end of their lifespan.

Additionally, lighter-colored metal roofs have proven to reduce the energy load to cool homes in hot and humid areas by 18 to 35%. That means if your electricity bill for AC was $100 a month, just having a light-colored metal roof could save you anywhere from $18 to $35 dollars per month.

Inversely, for our North American clientele, having a dark-colored metal roof will help retain heat, thereby keeping their homes more energy efficient for the colder months.

Putting it into clearer numbers is a comparison between a metal roof in Surrey Beige from McElroy Metal Roofing and asphalt shingles in Sandcastle from Owens Corning.

McElroy’s metal roof retains 8% less heat than Owen’s Corning asphalt shingles.

The Pros Explain the Downsides of Metal Roofing

Any excellent product is sure to come with a few downsides, and metal roofing is no exception. Straight from the installers, here are the top cons of choosing metal roofing for you home:

1. Metal roofing is much more expensive upfront than asphalt shingles.
2. Repairs can cost more and require a more specialized service.
3. In extreme weather conditions, such as heavy hailstorms or windstorms, metal roofing can dent easier.

#1 Metal Roofing Costs More

There’s no easy way around it: metal roofing is just more expensive.

Our metal roofing prices (as of October 2025) for a 2000-square-foot home starts at $27.42 per square foot. In contrast, our pricing for asphalt roofing starts at $8.35 or $9.61, depending on which market your home is in.

#2 Repairs Cost More

While the homeowner-recommended maintenance for metal roofing beats asphalt roofing, the repairs can cost a lot more.

Asphalt shingles are manufactured in a way that allows for small repairs to be conducted on certain damaged parts. However, metal roofing is constructed in panels. The panels are also much larger than your average asphalt shingle is.

Repairs on metal roofing would require cutting out the damaged part and then repairing it in a way that 1) wouldn’t allow water to leak in and 2) would still blend in nicely with the non-damaged parts of the roof. Homeowners in this situation prefer to hire a qualified metal roof repair service as a result.

#3 In Extreme Weather, Metal Roofing Dents Easier

If you live in an area with frequent windstorms or hailstorms, your metal roof will be more prone to damage than an asphalt roof.

When something—like hail—hits an asphalt roof, it will knock some of the granule coating off, but generally the fiberglass mat base of an asphalt shingle will absorb the shock. However, with a metal roof, there is no natural “built in” shock absorber—meaning that the metal panels themselves take the brunt of the impact.

Get a Custom Quote and Advice on Metal Roofing

To move away from asphalt shingles to metal roofing can be confusing. The price point between the two materials is different and requires thorough research and planning.

Let’s do a quick rundown on the comparisons between metal roofing and asphalt shingles.

There are legitimate pros and cons to installing a new metal roof on your home, but as we like to say here: Every home is different. Every homeowner is different, and needs vary by each person.

If metal roofing isn’t for you, check out some of our resources:

• How to Choose the Best Roofing Material for Your Home and
• A Roof Replacement Guide for Homeowners

But if energy efficiency and a longer lifespan are your priorities, then get your personalized estimate with an experienced estimator by filling out the form below.