Asphalt shingles
Compare full product lines and installation specifications rather than relying on color, a brand name, or a headline warranty number.
Standing-seam metal
Standing seam conceals primary fasteners and can provide a durable, snow-shedding surface when the panel, clips, seams, substrate, flashings, movement, and snow-retention strategy are designed together.
It requires specialized detailing at valleys, dormers, chimneys, transitions, eaves, and penetrations. Exposed-fastener panels should not be treated as the same system.
Slate, cedar, and specialty roofs
These materials can be appropriate for historic character, existing assemblies, or specific design goals, but repairability, weight, fastening, flashing, preservation, material matching, and specialist availability matter.
Low-slope roofs need membrane or other systems designed for their drainage and substrate; ordinary steep-slope shingles are not a universal answer for every roof section.
A useful comparison checklist
- Roof slope and geometry
- Snow shedding and areas below
- Deck and structural considerations
- Underlayment, eaves, valleys, flashings, and ventilation
- Initial scope and future maintenance
- Installer experience with the exact system
- Manufacturer and workmanship warranty terms
- Repair access and material availability
Material selection should follow roof sections
A building may have steep main slopes, a low-slope addition, a porch, a metal entry roof, and specialty historic sections. One material is not automatically appropriate for all of them.
Ask the proposal to identify each roof area, the system installed there, and how transitions will be flashed. Mixed roofs succeed or fail at their connections as much as at their field material.
Compare ownership priorities
- Upfront project budget
- Expected time in the property
- Tolerance for maintenance and future repair
- Snow shedding and areas below
- Historic appearance or neighborhood constraints
- Solar, skylight, chimney, and gutter plans
- Availability of qualified local installers and repair material
There is no best — there is a fit
| If this describes your situation | Consider |
|---|---|
| Straightforward pitched roof, holding the property medium-term | Architectural asphalt with good ice protection and ventilation |
| Long-term hold, complex roof, solar planned | Standing-seam metal with designed snow retention |
| Snow releasing onto entrances or a lower roof | Asphalt, or metal with engineered retention — decide deliberately |
| Historic property with existing slate | Assess the slate before replacing it; specialists exist |
| Low-slope sections or a commercial building | Single-ply membrane, chosen on attachment and chemistry |
| Unheated barn or garage | Exposed-fastener metal, accepting the fastener maintenance |
The question that decides it more often than material
How long you intend to own the building. A material with a higher up-front cost and a longer life is a good trade for someone staying twenty-five years and a poor one for someone selling in three. That is an ownership question rather than a roofing question, and it deserves answering before the material conversation starts.
The second question is what sits below each roof plane. In this climate, where snow goes when it releases is a design decision on any metal roof, and it is the factor most often left until after installation — when it is expensive rather than free to address.
Primary sources
Published August 12, 2026 and last reviewed August 16, 2026 by Greater Burlington Roofing. General roofing information; an on-site inspection is required for property-specific recommendations.