Cheap 8x6 Sheds

Is an 8x6 shed big enough?

For most families, yes. The wooden 8ft x 6ft sheds here measure 2.36m x 1.83m at the base, about 4.3 square metres of floor, close to double a 6x4 (2.15 square metres). The metal ones are 2.26m x 1.86m, about 4.2 square metres. That's enough for:

• a petrol or electric lawnmower, a strimmer and a hedge trimmer
• two adult bikes standing side by side along the long wall
• folded garden furniture and its cushions over winter
• a small workshop corner with a narrow bench, or a run of shelves for pots, paint and compost

It's not a workshop you can stand at all day, and it won't take a ride-on mower plus everything else. If that's the plan, look at our cheap large sheds. If you only need tools and a mower, a cheap 6x4 shed saves around £100 to £150.

Cheap 8x6 sheds compared

Here's how the 8x6 garden sheds on this page line up, using Shedstore's own specs. Base size is the footprint without the roof overhang. Prices move daily, so check the cards above for today's figure.

The cheapest 8x6 shed outright is the Yardmaster silver one, but it's the lowest here at 1.89m and has no floor. The Glencoe adds a wider door, more height and 15 years of rust cover. Among the wooden ones, the single door 4Life apex is the best value, and a second door adds only £10 to £40.

Wooden or metal 8x6 garden sheds?

Wooden 8x6 sheds

Every wooden 8x6 here is Forest Garden 4Life, made in the UK from FSC certified timber. It's pressure treated: the preservative is forced deep into the wood at the factory, which is why Forest gives a 25 year anti-rot guarantee and you never need to re-treat it. Dip treated budget sheds are only coated on the surface and need fresh preservative every year or two. Wood is also easy to fit with hooks, shelves and a light, and the 12mm solid boards take a mower's weight. The walls are 7mm overlap boards rather than thicker shiplap: overlap keeps the price down, and a pent or apex 4Life still gets the full guarantee. For tongue and groove shiplap walls, see our shiplap range below. Every size is on our cheap wooden sheds page.

Metal 8x6 sheds

The Yardmaster garden buildings are hot-dipped galvanised steel with a baked-on finish, so there's nothing to paint or treat. Sliding doors don't swing open in the wind and need no clearance in front. The catch: they come without a base or deck (a support kit is sold separately), so they need a solid slab base, and they're shorter at the eaves than the timber ones. More choice on our cheap metal sheds page.

There's no plastic 8x6 on the site right now. If you want one, browse our cheap plastic sheds for the nearest sizes.

Apex, reverse apex or pent roof?

On an 8x6 shed the roof decides where the door goes, and so how the shed sits in your garden.

• Apex: two slopes, the door in the 6ft gable end, 2.25m at the ridge. Most headroom down the middle; the shed runs back into the garden, end-on.
• Reverse apex: same height, but the ridge runs along the 8ft side and the door is in the long wall. It can sit flat against a fence and you reach everything from the doorway.
• Pent: a pent shed has one slope, the door on the 8ft front, 2.02m at the front falling to 1.89m at the back. The low back tucks under a window or a neighbour's fence line.

More shapes on our apex sheds and pent sheds pages.

Single or double doors: what will fit through?

This matters more than the floor. A Forest single door opens to 590mm. That's fine for tools and a compact mower around 40cm wide, but most adult bike handlebars are 60cm to 80cm across, so you'd have to turn them. The Forest double doors open to 1,090mm, the Glencoe's sliding doors to 1,010mm and the silver Yardmaster's to 800mm. All the wooden doors are 1.64m high, so taller people duck going in. If the mower comes out every week, pay the extra for double doors; our double door sheds page has more sizes.

Windows or windowless?

A window lets you find things without a light and makes a potting bench usable. Windowless hides what's inside from passers-by and leaves every wall free for hooks and shelves. Forest builds most 8x6 shapes both ways for about the same price; the Yardmaster ones have translucent roof panels instead of windows.

Keeping an 8x6 shed secure

Forest doors hang on hidden hinges that can't be unscrewed from outside and lock with a hasp and staple. The Yardmaster sliding doors are pad-lockable with anti-tamper bolts. Check each listing for whether a padlock is included; most aren't, so budget for a closed-shackle lock. If you keep a bike in there, add a ground anchor and choose a windowless model.

Base for an 8x6 shed

No 8x6 shed here comes with a base, so add it to the budget. Build it to the footprint, about 2.36m x 1.83m for the wooden ones, not the roof overhang, so rain runs off rather than onto it.

• Paving slabs: about fifteen 600mm slabs on a sand and cement bed; cheap and quick for wooden sheds.
• Plastic grid base: clip-together panels filled with gravel; no concrete, drains well.
• Concrete: best for the steel sheds, which must be bolted down against the wind.

Then the build, a two-person job most people finish in a day once the base is ready:

1. Lay the bearers and deck on the base and check it's square and level.
2. Fix the wall panels to the floor and to each other.
3. Fit the roof boards and nail down the felt (or the steel roof panels).
4. Hang the doors, fit the lock and the trims.
5. Fix the shed down and seal any gaps.

Forest Garden's 8x6 range has the assembly guide for each model, and Yardmaster's site covers its sheds and support kits.

Do you need planning permission for an 8x6 shed?

Usually not. In England a garden shed is permitted development if it's single storey, isn't in front of the house and, with other outbuildings, covers no more than half the garden. Within 2m of a boundary it can be no more than 2.5m tall (Planning Portal outbuildings rules). The tallest shed here is 2.25m, so any of them can go right up to your fence. Listed buildings, conservation areas and National Parks have tighter rules; the government's permitted development guidance has the detail.

Low maintenance: looking after a budget 8x6 shed

Pressure treated timber needs no preservative, so maintenance is light: sweep leaves off the roof, keep soil and plants off the walls, leave a small gap at the back for air and check the felt each spring. Stain or paint it if you'd like a colour; the timber silvers naturally over time. Galvanised steel just needs a wash once a year and a check that the screws are tight.

Cheap 8x6 sheds FAQs

What is the cheapest 8x6 shed?

The Yardmaster 8ft x 6ft silver metal apex shed, at under £300. The cheapest wooden 8x6 shed is the Forest Garden 4Life overlap apex at around £465.

What fits in an 8x6 shed?

A lawnmower, two bikes, garden tools on the walls and folded furniture, with room for shelves. With a two-door model you can wheel things in and out easily.

Are cheap 8x6 sheds any good?

The ones we list are. Every wooden model is pressure treated with 25 years of rot cover and a 12mm solid floor, and the Yardmaster ones are galvanised with 10 or 15 years against rust. Cheap sheds get a bad name from thin dip treated timber and chipboard bases.

Do I need a base for an 8x6 shed?

Yes. Without a firm, level base the shed twists, the doors stick and the timber rots. Slabs or a gravel grid suit the wooden sheds; steel ones should be bolted to concrete or slabs.

Is 8x6 the same as 6x8?

Yes, an 8 x 6 shed and a 6x8 shed have the same footprint. Shops quote it either way round; what changes is where the door sits, which is down to the roof style.

Not sure on size? Compare our cheap small sheds or the thicker-walled shiplap sheds.