Hip roofs
All four sides slope down to the walls, meeting at a ridge shorter than the building. No gable end, and gutters all the way around.
- Typical pitch
- 4:12 to 8:12 typical
- How often we see it
- Very common
Pitch ranges are trade convention, not code. Code sets minimum slope by material, not by roof shape.
Is this your roof?
- Walk the perimeter. If there is a gutter and an eave on all four sides, it is a hip.
- The ridge is visibly shorter than the length of the house.
- Four sloping planes meet at angled edges, and those edges running from ridge to corner are the hips.
In Johnson County
The wind advantage is real but frequently oversold. The often-quoted finding, that a hip cuts worst-case peak suction by up to half compared with a gable, came from wind tunnel testing at 4:12. Later work across a range of pitches found the advantage shrinks as the roof gets steeper and is largely gone by roughly 7:12, which is inside the normal range for Johnson County homes. If your hip roof is steep, do not assume the shape is doing much for you.
What you can put on it
Slope decides this before preference does. Set yours and see what the code allows, then check the notes for this shape.
6:12about 27° from horizontal
ConventionalEvery common material is in play
Shingles, metal, tile or shake, each still subject to its own manufacturer minimum. Walkable for a roofer, standard labor rate, and where most Kansas City homes sit. This range is trade convention rather than a code band.
Trade convention, not code
At this slope
- Asphalt shingles
- Standing seam metal
- TPO / EPDM membrane
- Modified bitumen
- Wood shake
- Tile
Membrane drops out at 4:12 and above because nobody specifies it there, not because the code forbids it. Shake and tile carry manufacturer minimums of their own, so treat these as a starting point rather than an approval.
Asphalt shingles
Works wellStandard, but budget hip and ridge caps as a separate line. Purpose-made caps cost more than cutting field shingles and are worth insisting on.
Standing seam metal
WorkableEvery hip is a cut and a flashing detail, so a hip in metal costs meaningfully more than the same area as a gable.
Tile
WorkableThe self-bracing geometry suits tile, but tile is uncommon here and the framing needs checking for the added load.
What we check first
The failure points specific to this shape, marked on the roof and listed in the order a roofer looks at them.
- Hip lines, where caps take the most weather exposure and lift first.
- The point where hips meet the ridge, a three-way junction and a common leak origin.
- Attic exhaust adequacy, because a short ridge often cannot fit enough ridge vent for the attic volume.
- Valleys wherever a wing meets the main roof.
What moves the price
Square footage is a poor predictor on its own. These are the things that actually change the number on this shape.
- Four planes means more cut shingles and more waste than a gable of the same area.
- Hip and ridge cap runs are long, and purpose-made caps are a real line item.
- Gutter on all four sides instead of two.
- Ventilation is harder: the short ridge limits how much ridge vent fits, so some hips need supplementary exhaust.
Common questions
Is a hip roof really better in wind than a gable?
At shallow pitches, yes, and the research supports it: wind tunnel testing found up to roughly half the worst-case peak suction of a comparable gable at 4:12. But that advantage narrows as pitch increases and is close to gone by about 7:12. Installation quality matters more than shape across the whole range.
Why does a hip roof cost more to replace?
More cutting and more waste. Four planes meeting at angled hips means every course is cut to the hip line and the offcuts are scrap. Add long runs of hip and ridge cap plus gutter on four sides instead of two, and a hip typically runs above a gable of identical square footage.
How do you ventilate a hip roof?
It takes more thought than a gable. The ridge is short, so there may not be enough of it to fit the ridge vent the attic volume needs. The usual answer is continuous soffit intake plus as much ridge vent as the ridge allows, supplemented by low-profile vents high on the hips if the math still does not work. Balancing intake and exhaust matters more than the specific product.
More answers on the roofing questions page, or see every roof shape side by side.
Often confused with
Pyramid hip
A hip roof with no ridge at all: four planes rising to meet at a single peak. Most often seen on square outbuildings, garages, gazebos and porticos.
Gable
Two planes meeting at a ridge, with a triangular wall at each end. The shape we see most across Johnson County, and the cheapest to re-roof.
Cross gable and combination
Two or more gable sections meeting at right angles, creating valleys where the planes intersect. A shape we see constantly on larger Johnson County homes.
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