Composite Window Cost, and What Composite Means

Composite window prices depend heavily on which cost survey you read. Fixr reports $300 to $2,500 per composite window (updated January 21, 2026) ¹. Modernize reports $1,000 to $1,800 for composite on its cost calculator page (updated September 22, 2026) ³, and This Old House reports an average of $513 per composite window from its 2026 homeowner survey (updated August 11, 2026) ². Those three figures measure different things, as the table below shows.

The harder question is what you are buying. "Composite" is not one material. Andersen uses the word for a blend of wood fiber and plastic, Pella uses it in its spec sheets for a fiberglass frame, and one cost survey uses it for clad wood. Ask what a quoted composite window is actually made of before you compare its price with anything else.

Composite window prices by source

For the same pages' other materials: Fixr reports $350 to $800 for vinyl and $400 to $1,500 for fiberglass ¹; Modernize's calculator reports $900 to $1,400 for fiberglass ³; This Old House reports averages of $472 for vinyl and $544 for wood ².

Why the figures differ so much

• Method. This Old House says its main figures come from a 2026 survey of 1,000 homeowners who completed a window replacement, plus Homewyse data and published prices ². Modernize says its national average draws on 1,061,338 homeowner projects and includes material and labor, though its material section does not say whether the composite range is installed ³. Fixr does not say whether its material ranges include labor ¹.
• Definition. Modernize's frames page labels its composite row "clad wood" ⁴, which is a wood window with an exterior skin, not a wood-fiber blend. A survey that groups clad wood with composites will report a higher range than one that groups wood-fiber blends with vinyl.
• Spread of products. Fixr's range runs from below its vinyl range to above its wood range ¹, which fits a category that covers everything from entry-level blends to premium lines.

For a longer look at why surveys disagree, see how the cost surveys differ.

What each manufacturer means by composite

Andersen: wood fiber and polymer

Andersen says its 100 Series products are "made of our exclusive Fibrex composite material inside and out" ⁶. Its materials page says a true composite "combines the strength of two or more materials" and describes Fibrex as wood fiber combined with a thermoplastic polymer, with each cell of wood fiber filled and encased by the polymer ⁵. The page does not give the ratio of wood fiber to polymer ⁵. Andersen's own performance claims for Fibrex are summarized in window frame materials compared.

Pella: fiberglass called composite

Pella's Impervia line is sold as fiberglass. In its detailed product description, Pella describes the frame as "Duracast fiberglass composite," a five-layer pultruded fiberglass material reinforced with an interlocking mat ⁷. The same company's spec sheet compares its fiberglass against "wood/plastic composites" as a separate category ⁸. So within one manufacturer's paperwork, composite can mean the material itself or a competing one. If a quote says "composite" and the brand is Pella, it may be describing fiberglass.

JELD-WEN: a composite line that was discontinued

JELD-WEN announced its Auraline composite windows on April 26, 2022, describing the material as a structural fiber, such as wood fiber, blended with synthetic polymers and a co-extruded color layer ⁹. On April 11, 2024, the company said market factors had made the composite line hard to sustain, that it would be discontinued, and that it planned to close the Vista, California plant that made it ¹⁰. If you are matching or repairing existing Auraline windows, ask the installer what parts and service are still available.

What this means for a quote

Because the word covers wood-fiber blends, fiberglass and, in at least one survey, clad wood, ask each installer three things:

1. What is the frame made of, in the manufacturer's own words?
2. Is the color built into the material or painted on, and can it be painted later?
3. What does the warranty cover for the frame, and for how long? The window warranties explained article goes through the terms.

How composite compares with vinyl, wood and fiberglass

Composite blends are usually sold as a middle path: the low upkeep of vinyl with more stiffness, and a wood-like look without wood's painting. Fixr groups fiberglass and composite frames as the most energy-efficient frame materials and describes them as often among the least cost-effective materials up front ¹. This Old House lists composite's key benefit as durability and low maintenance and its trade-off as a higher price ².

The frame's share of the window is not small. The Efficient Windows Collaborative, part of NFRC, says the sash and frame make up 10 to 30 percent of the total area of a window unit, and that frame material has a major impact on the window's thermal performance ¹¹. Still, the material name does not tell you how a particular window performs. The NFRC label does: U-factor measures how well a product keeps heat in, on a scale of 0.20 to 1.20 for windows, and lower is better ¹². Compare the labels on a composite quote and a vinyl or fiberglass quote rather than the material names. See window U-factor explained.

For the full material comparison, read window frame materials compared; for two direct match-ups, see vinyl vs. fiberglass windows and vinyl vs. wood windows. Fiberglass pricing on its own is in fiberglass window cost.

What else moves the price

The frame is only one line on a quote. Glass package, size, operating style and installation method all move the total. Fixr puts labor at roughly 30 percent of the total and reports $150 to $300 in labor for smaller windows ¹. An insert into a sound existing frame usually costs less than a full-frame replacement; see full-frame vs. insert replacement. Whole-house totals and every other cost driver are in the window replacement cost guide.

When you are ready to see prices for your own openings, compare quotes from window installers and ask each company to quote a composite window and one alternative material, with the NFRC label numbers for both.

We are not affiliated with the manufacturers named.

About these figures

• ¹ Reported: Fixr per-window ranges for composite, vinyl and fiberglass, its grouping of fiberglass and composite as most energy-efficient, and its labor figures, updated January 21, 2026, checked October 26, 2026.
• ² Reported: This Old House average per-window costs for composite, vinyl and wood, its composite benefit and trade-off, and its survey method, updated August 11, 2026, checked October 26, 2026.
• ³ Reported: Modernize calculator per-window ranges for composite and fiberglass, its double-hung assumption and project count, updated September 22, 2026, checked October 26, 2026.
• ⁴ Reported: Modernize frames page typical installed cost for composite, labeled clad wood, updated August 28, 2026, checked October 26, 2026.
• ⁵ Reported: Andersen definition of composite and of Fibrex material, checked October 26, 2026.
• ⁶ Reported: Andersen 100 Series description as made of Fibrex composite material, checked October 26, 2026.
• ⁷ Reported: Pella Impervia double-hung product description of the Duracast fiberglass composite frame, checked October 26, 2026.
• ⁸ Reported: Pella Impervia spec sheet comparing its fiberglass with wood/plastic composites, checked October 26, 2026.
• ⁹ Reported: JELD-WEN release of April 26, 2022 describing the Auraline composite material, checked October 26, 2026.
• ¹⁰ Reported: JELD-WEN release of April 11, 2024 on discontinuing the composite line and closing the Vista plant, checked October 26, 2026.
• ¹¹ Official record: Efficient Windows Collaborative statement that the sash and frame are 10 to 30 percent of window area and affect thermal performance, checked October 26, 2026.
• ¹² Official record: NFRC label definition of U-factor and its 0.20 to 1.20 range for windows, checked October 26, 2026.