Barndominiums and similar barn-style homes are gaining in popularity. While the official definition of barndominium doesn’t specify the type of structure, most barndos are built using post-frame construction. There are many blog posts that brag about the advantages of post-frame design, but they are all written by pole barn builders.
We’re here to offer you a more unbiased opinion. At Michigan Building Design, we don’t need to convince you that a pole barn home is the right answer. We can just as easily design you a barn-style home that is stick-framed.
If you’re interested in cost and energy efficiency, you may be surprised to find that when it comes to stick frame vs. post frame, the answer isn’t as clear-cut as the internet wants you to believe.
Stick Frame vs Post Frame for Your Home: The Basic Differences
Barndominiums are typically built with post frame, but it’s not hard to find stick framed barn-style homes. We’re going to assume you are more or less familiar with these types of construction, but here are the basics.
Post Frame Construction
Post frame construction uses large posts embedded deep in the ground to transfer the exterior forces through the posts into the ground. This reduces the need for an extensive concrete foundation or interior walls to bear the load. It is faster and often more cost-efficient to build, particularly for unfinished pole barns or storage buildings.
Because it is a simpler design, many homeowners can build it themselves, therefore saving on labor costs.
Stick Frame Construction
Stick framing (or stud framing) is a traditional construction method relies on a continuous concrete foundation, stud walls using 2x4s or 2x6s typically at 16” on center, and interior walls to support the roof, walls and floors. This allows stick frame designs to be aesthetically flexible, taking almost any shape or design, but that comes with more extensive use of concrete and lumber.
Advanced Framing (Optimum Value Engineering)
Advanced framing is going to come up a few times, so let’s do a quick intro. It isn’t exactly new, but advanced framing is rising in popularity with green builders due to the potential for energy efficiency.
Advanced frame construction is a more efficient form of stick framing. It uses 2x6s at 24” on center, with structural panels providing the strength. Rafters, studs and joists all lined up for added structural stability. This design uses less lumber, with larger cavities for insulation, while reducing the need for top plates, jack studs, and headers. It a nutshell, it’s stick framing but cheaper and more efficient.
RELATED: How Much Does It Cost to Build a Barndominium in 2025?
Which is Better for a Barndominium? The Showdown Between Stick Frame and Post Frame
If you’re planning a barndominium and you’re looking at different building techniques, things may not be as straight-forward as you expect. While many articles tout the speed, affordability, and efficiency of post frame buildings, they often overlook the extra material and labor required adding the finishing elements to a barndominium.
So let’s dive in to the nitty gritty and find out what makes the most sense for your home design preferences.
Speed
There’s no denying that post frame comes out on top here. The continuous concrete foundation required for traditional homes is usually a multi-day process, but you can get barndo posts up in a single day.
From there, it’s fast and relatively simple to construct the shell and pour a concrete floor. After that you can finish the interior at your own pace without worrying about the weather. You can even buy a barndominium as a kit, so you don’t have to worry about material availability or unexpected material costs.
Stick frame, on the other hand, is just a slower build. There’s more lumber and more labor, and that adds up.
Site Prep / Foundation
With a post frame design, you need less site prep, and minimal foundation work. This is where the majority of the cost savings come from. A simple concrete slab is a fast and easy way to add a clean base to your pole building.
A stick frame building requires a more extensive site prep for the continuous concrete foundation with multiple pours, which will include footings and reinforcement. This makes it a more complicated, time-consuming and expensive option.
If you want a basement, you can certainly do that with a post frame design but it will most likely make more sense to go with stick-built. Of course, it depends on what your goals are. You should absolutely consult a structural engineer before you put a basement under your barndominium.
RELATED: Reliable Pole Barn Foundation Options
Cost Efficiency
Post frame typically uses fewer materials, and there’s no shortage of articles telling you it’s the more affordable option. The simpler building technique reduces the need for outside labor, and if you’re building it yourself, that really adds to the affordability.
However, there can be some unexpected costs:
- If you’re going finish the interior of a post frame building with drywall, you’ll need to add non-structural stud framing to hang it. This is additional lumber and labor.
- If you want a ceiling or attic space, you’ll need to either add trusses or blocking to support those elements. You’ll need to add studs to put the ceiling or attic floor in between the trusses, which adds to the expense.
- If you want vinyl siding so that your home looks more traditional, you’re going to need to bulk up the structure. Building code allows an exemption for steel siding, but vinyl is not exempt. This means reinforcing your girts with additional lumber (bookshelf girts) to maintain code compliance.
This is where advanced framing starts to have a cost advantage – fewer materials means lower costs and faster builds than traditional stud framing, without the unexpected cost of supports for the finish work.
Wide Open Spaces
Other articles would you believe that post frame is the only way you can get a wide open floorplan. Since post frame construction easily carries all the exterior forces to the posts, the space between posts can give you tons of room for open floorplans, huge windows and oversized doors. But did you know that modern engineered stick framed homes can enjoy similar advantages? Clear-span trusses easily allow for open floorplans with virtually no need of interior walls to hold up a second story or roof, provided there is appropriate structural engineering.
A post frame and stick frame barndominium are really about equal here, although stick built homes require extra engineering to create big open spaces whereas the post frame construction naturally carries the structural load. The exception for post frame is very large open rooms (maybe upwards of 50’ across), which may require structural engineering.
Aesthetics and Versatility
As far as overall shape or footprint of your floorplan design, stud-frame homes have the versatility advantage. You can add all the wings, turrets, ells and angles that your heart desires.
With post frame, you really want to keep the whole building a rectangle. You can do maybe two or three rectangles put together, but the cost-benefit ratio starts to favor stick built if you get too elaborate. However, second stories, dormers, and other typical home features are all available for either structure.
For the aesthetics, things are about equal. You can finish the exterior of a post frame home the same way you would a traditional stick-built home, using traditional roofing and siding. Typically, however, steel roofing and siding will increase the build speed and affordability of a post frame barndominium.
Energy Efficiency
Post frame construction designs offer a greater advantage for thicker and more continuous insulation, whereas stick frame designs introduce a thermal bridge every 16-24 inches at the studs. With that said, if you’re adding vinyl siding to a post frame design, the walls need extra reinforcement to meet code. That reinforcement breaks up the insulation space. If you’re considering post frame versus advanced framing, it may end up about the same if you prefer vinyl siding.
A new residential code with increased insulation requirements will be released in August 2025, and we think that may really add to the appeal of barndominiums, especially when you factor in post frame advancements like SIPs.
Structurally Insulated Panels (SIPs) are the latest in post frame building science. These are engineered panels that can give post frame a huge advantage in energy efficiency. Structurally insulated panels are designed to be your whole wall structure – instead of girts, these pre-fab superinsulated panels add incredible strength and structure to a post-frame building. They can be used as walls, floors and even the roof (therefore eliminating the need for trusses). Since SIPs are finished with OSB, you even have the structural support needed to hang drywall or a ceiling.
Permitting and Financing
You’ll most likely find that there are some bureaucratic hurdles to a new type of home design, like a post frame barndominium. Financing and permitting stick-framed homes are well-known processes for a product with a long history, and stick-built may even have a resale advantage due to easy appraisal and easy financing.
The realities of permitting a post-frame barndo may not always be straight-forward. You may be required to get engineer-sealed prints before building your barndominium, because building inspectors are not familiar with the design requirements of this type of construction. This can put you behind schedule in a hurry.
Finding a local engineer familiar with post-frame construction can be challenging. However, Michigan Building Design is licensed to provide engineer-sealed barndominium plans anywhere in the state. We’re happy to help out if you’d like to ensure your home is structurally sound.
RELATED: Why Hire a Professional Engineer to Stamp My Pole Building Plans in Michigan?
MBD Can Help You Build Your Dream Barndo
At Michigan Building Design, we understand that every barndo design is based on personal preferences, budget, and goals. Give us a call and we can help you decide what is the most cost-effective solution for building your dream home. Whether it’s stick-frame or post-frame barndominium, we can help you design a home that looks and feels just the way you want.
We prioritize practical, code-compliant, affordable solutions for barndominiums, including the latest innovations in building science. With engineer-sealed plans, you never have to worry about the structural stability of your home.
Ready to explore the possibilities of building a barndominium? To get started, just give us a call or contact us here. Let us help you create your dream home, tailored to your own designs!
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