Bracket Kit for a DIY Pergola (Small Backyard) - Any Size Up to 12' x 12'

This DIY kit for building a pergola for a small space does not include the following items, which you will need to purchase at a local home improvement store or lumber yard:

Wood - Lumber is a) very expensive to ship and b) readily available to most people at local home improvement and building supply stores. By buying your wood locally, you also have more options on the exact type of wood you'd like that is appropriate for your area's climate.

Anchoring Hardware - Because the hardware you need will vary based on the type of material you're mounting the base brackets to, the kit does not include anchoring hardware for securing the base brackets to a secure foundation (i.e. cement pad, deck, landscape toppers, concrete footing, etc.). The kit does, however, include stainless steel wood screws for securing all of the wood posts/slats into the steel brackets.

As noted above, wood (lumber) is NOT included in this bracket & hardware kit for a backyard pergola, nor is the hardware you'll need to anchor the base brackets to a secure foundation. Before you can build your small shade pergola, you'll need to purchase the following items from a local building supply store or lumber yard (assuming you plan to build a 12' x 12' pergola that is 8' tall):

• Four (4) 8' long 4x4 posts
• Four (4) 12' long 4x4 posts
• Fifteen (15) 12' long 2x4 slats
• Anchoring hardware (16 pieces)

The estimated cost for the above lumber and anchoring hardware is $380. This is only an estimate; actual costs will vary depending on the type of wood you decide to buy, your location, local stores & availability, and various other factors.

Make your small-size pergola even better by adding a bracket kit for:

• Privacy wall(s)
• Corner supports
• Side railing(s)

Assembling a Zen Pergola is quite easy (even for novices) and only requires basic tools. Following these simple instructions, it should only take 2-3 hours for you and a helper to assemble your pergola for a little back yard.

Shipping is free on all orders delivered within mainland USA. Shipping fees will apply for orders being delivered to Alaska, Hawaii & Canada. Click here for more details. Although we reserve the right to use any carrier we choose, we typically ship products via UPS or USPS.

All products ship directly from our Boise, ID facility within 1 business day, so you'll be ready to assemble your back yard pergola in just a few days.

Click here to learn more about how we handle returns.

We stand behind this pergola kit for a small backyard pergola. We will gladly replace any bracket that breaks, cracks, chips or corrodes within 5 years of purchase. Read more about our 5-year limited warranty.

What size of wood do I need to buy?

The wood sizes listed on this page & throughout our website use standard U.S. lumber sizes (where the actual dimensions are a half-inch smaller than the name implies):

• Our 4x4 brackets are designed for "four-by-fours" (actual size: 3.5" x 3.5")
• Our 2x4 brackets are designed for "two-by-fours" (actual size: 1.5" x 3.5")
• Our 6x6 brackets are designed for "six-by-sixes" (actual size: 5.5" x 5.5")
• Our 2x6 brackets are designed for "two-by-sixes" (actual size: 1.5" x 5.5")

If you stick with these standard lumber sizes, the wood will slide right into the brackets and fit perfectly.

Make sure NOT to get "rough-cut" of "rough-sawn" lumber, which is slightly bigger than standard dressed lumber. Rough-cut lumber will not fit into our brackets.

What type of wood do you recommend?

In general, any straight dry lumber will work just fine. Some types of wood may just require a little more maintenance than others. The two most common types of wood to use are western red cedar and redwood. They are naturally insect- and rot-resistant and have natural oils & resins that make them more resilient to the elements. Another great option is pressure-treated pine, as the pressure-treating process makes the wood more weather- and insect-resistant. This is far from a complete list of lumber options; there are many other types of wood that will work great.

What height do you recommend for the posts?

We recommend using 8-foot lumber for the pergola's posts. The parts list and estimated costs shown in the 'Required Lumber & Estimated Cost' section (above) assumes that you will be using 8-foot lumber. That said, many of our customers opt for 10-foot posts instead, in which case we recommend adding corner support brackets to make the pergola more stable. Posts should not be taller than 10 feet.

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Is a 12x12 pergola really exactly 12' x 12'?

The answer depends on whether you're referring to the inside dimensions of the pergola's roof (i.e. the "roof opening") or the outside dimensions of the roof (i.e. the full outside-edge-to-outside-edge measurement). 

When we say a pergola is 12' x 12', we're referring to the roof opening (i.e. the inside dimensions of the roof) which is exactly 12' wide x 12' deep.

But the overall outside-edge-to-outside-edge dimensions of a "12x12 pergola" built using 4x4 brackets will be 12 ft. 7.3 in. x 12 ft. 7.3 in. (Note: If you're using 6x6 brackets, the outside dimensions will be 12' 11.3" x 12' 11.3".)

To give the pergola maximum strength and stability, we've designed our 3-, 4- and 5-arm brackets (as well as the "L" and "T" brackets, for that matter) to have the vertical post go all the way to the top of the brackets. Thus, the horizontal roof beams only slide in to the end of the horizontal channel they're sitting in (rather than going all the way through the bracket). To put it another way, a roof beam only slides halfway into a 3-arm corner bracket (since the "other half" of the bracket is already occupied by the top part of the vertical post going down to the ground).

So if you're looking at the roof of a pergola with 12-foot-long roof beams, you've got the following (going from left to right):

• 3.65 inches of the "left half" of the 3-arm corner bracket on the left side (which is occupied by the top part of the left vertical post) +
• 12 feet for the 12' long roof beam (with approximately 3.5 inches sitting inside the horizontal channel of the 3-channel corner bracket on both the left and the right side) +
• 3.65 inches of the "right half" of the 3-arm corner bracket on the right side (which is occupied by the top part of the right vertical)

This gives you a total edge-to-edge width of 12 ft. 7.3 in. (But again, the inside dimensions of the roof opening are exactly 12' x 12'.)

What if you want the edge-to-edge width and/or depth to be exactly 12 feet? Simply use a circular saw (or hack saw or miter saw) to trim 7.3 inches off the 12-foot posts. This will make the overall edge-to-edge dimensions exactly 12' x 12' and the inside dimensions of the roof opening 11' 4.7" x 11' 4.7". (Important Note: Our shade canopies are specifically designed to fit roof openings that are exactly 8x8, 8x10, 8x12, 10x10, 10x12 and 12x12. If you're purchasing a kit that includes a shade canopy, you cannot trim down the roof beam posts.)

How many people will I need to assemble my pergola?

The majority of the steps in the