Patio Privacy Fences

A patio without privacy feels like eating dinner in a fishbowl. Whether your patio faces a busy street, overlooks a neighbor's yard, or sits in a shared apartment complex, the right privacy fence transforms it into a secluded outdoor room.

The best patio privacy fence options depend on whether your patio is ground-level or elevated, and whether you can make permanent modifications. For ground-level patios with soil access, a standard privacy fence (wood, vinyl, or composite) installed along the patio perimeter provides the most complete and permanent solution. For patios on concrete slabs, surface-mount post brackets eliminate the need to dig — posts bolt directly to the concrete.

For renters or those who prefer non-permanent solutions, the top patio privacy options are privacy screen panels on freestanding frames (weather-resistant fabric or reed screens on weighted bases — $50–$200 per section), planter box privacy walls (tall narrow planters with built-in trellis panels for climbing plants — $100–$300 per unit), outdoor curtains on tension rods or cable systems (weather-resistant fabric hung from overhead structures — $30–$100 per panel), and lattice panels with climbing plants (lattice mounted to the patio edge or existing structure, planted with fast-growing vines — $5–$15/ft for the lattice plus plants).

For the most natural look, combine hardscape and plants. A 4-foot solid fence or screen at the base, topped with lattice or trellis that supports climbing jasmine, clematis, or bougainvillea, creates layered privacy that feels like a garden room rather than a walled enclosure.

Patio privacy fences typically don't need to be as tall as property-line fences. Because you're sitting down on a patio (chair height is about 18 inches), a 4–5 foot fence or screen provides effective seated-level privacy, compared to the 6-foot minimum needed for standing privacy in a yard.