For more updated reviews, check out our 2023 Best Cable Railing Guide here!
Best Cable Railing Systems For Your Deck
Cable railing was developed in coastal areas to create showstopping views. But how do you pick out the right cable railing system for your deck?
We talked with our in-house deck project planners and deck product experts to create this guide to the best cable railing systems on the market. Read on to learn the benefits of each, and pinpoint the perfect cable railing for your deck.
Table of Contents
- Do You Already Have Posts And Rails?
- Best Cable Rail System If You Already Have Posts
- Best Full Cable Railing Systems, Including Posts And Rails
- Best Cable Railing System To Open Up Your View
- Best Cable Railing System With A Drink Rail
- Most Customizable Cable Railing
- Best DIY Cable Railing System
- Best Cable Railing For Traditional Styling
- Best Cable Railing System To Save Deck Space
- Safest Cable Railing For Homes With Small Children
- DecksDirect: Your Cable Railing Guide
How To Find The Best Cable Railing System For Your Deck
As a whole, cable deck railing is great for opening up your view and making your space feel bigger. That's because the stainless steel cable runs are polished and intertwined so that instead of reflecting the light, they actually blend into the view beyond them. On decks we've helped plan, cable railing systems look especially great near views of water, mountains, or stone-based landscaping because the organic gray color of the cable blends seamlessly into the cool blue-grays of water or stone.
But beyond that common benefit, there are plenty of differences in the cable railing systems you can find on the market. Let's run through the specific strengths of our favorite cable deck railings.
Do You Already Have Posts And Rails?
The first question to ask when picking out your cable railing is whether you have existing posts and rails, or whether you'll need an entire cable railing system including posts and rails.
If you need a full cable railing system, you can jump forward a few sections here.
Best Cable Rail System If You Already Have Posts
If you have wood or aluminum posts already mounted on your deck, there's a great cable railing option to tie into your existing posts. It comes from Feeney, the brand that effectively launched cable railing as a style.
Feeney CableRail
-landscape.jpg "Feeney CableRail With Wood Posts")
Above, you can see a classic deck railing setup with Feeney CableRail installed into pre-existing wood posts. It's a beautiful blend of very traditional railing with incredibly modern cable runs.
Feeney CableRail can work with wood posts, metal posts, or even composite post sleeves, giving you the visibility benefits of cable railing without compromising your deck's unique style. (It's also a good way to keep cable railing costs down).
You can see the beautiful texture of a Feeney CableRail below. Feeney CableRail includes the cables themselves, along with the stainless steel fittings you'll need to install into your posts.
Best Full Cable Railing Systems, Including Posts And Rails
If you don't have existing posts or rails to work around, don't worry: there are tons of amazing cable rail systems that include vertical posts, horizontal rails, and all the components you need to mount cables between them.
Here are our favorite cable railings in a variety of categories:
Best Cable Railing System To Open Up Your View
All cable railing is designed to open up your deck view, but some do an especially good job at it. One major key is finding a system without a bottom rail. As you can see above, the railing shown (Key-Link Horizontal Cable) only features a metal rail on the top, leaving the bottom of the railing open for maximum view.
Key-Link Horizontal Cable Railing
Key-Link is known for high-quality craftsmanship, and their horizontal railing system is truly a work of art. Key-Link Horizontal Cable Railing manages to remove the bottom rail without compromising strength and safety - and the result is a wide-open view from your deck.
Key-Link offers a wide range of railings using their distinctive American Series top rail, which you can see below. The rails (and posts) are intricately detailed and look amazing in any setting. But they're completely in their element in the modern look that cable railing delivers.
Best Cable Railing System With A Drink Rail
Having a flat surface on top of your deck railing is an amazing choice for both style and functionality. Often called a drink rail or a cocktail rail, this flat surface acts as a built-in table to rest coffee mugs, wine-glasses, or even plants or decor.
AFCO Flat Top Cable Railing
If you're looking for a cable railing system with a drink rail, AFCO's Flat Top Cable Railing is the way to go. Our deck designers love the way the AFCO Flat Top system is beautifully designed to mount the deck board of your choice on top - that allows you to tie your decking and railing together for a cohesive style.
AFCO's aluminum rails are high-quality and well-designed. You can choose to mount the flat top railing alone, if you don't want to mount a board on top. You can see the Flat Top railing profile below.
Most Customizable Cable Railing
Every deck is different - and based on the unique features of your deck and home, you may want a cable railing that's easy to customize.
For a completely customizable cable railing, we'll again turn to Feeney, the proven giant among cable railing manufacturers.
Feeney Custom DesignRail
Feeney's Custom DesignRail program comes with an incredible range of options to make your space your own. With Feeney Custom DesignRail, you can adjust all of these aspects of your railing to perfectly suit your vision:
- 6 top rail options
- 15 different color options
- 3 wood grain top rail options
- 3 railing heights
- Multiple mounting options including fascia-mounting
In the picture above, the distinctive steel blue of the custom railing draws out the cool hues of the house itself, while the wood-grain top rail calls back to the wood siding.
With Feeney Custom DesignRail, you can also mix and match infill, or what fits between your posts and rails. That means a choice between horizontal and vertical cable, with the chance to add unique intermediate rails for extra flair.
Shop Feeney Custom DesignRailBest DIY Cable Railing System
If you're looking to save money on labor by installing cable railing yourself, you'll want a simpler system designed for DIY installation.
In general, our experienced deck builders say the best cable railings for DIY installation will be vertical cable systems - they often come with cables already installed and save you the time of running cables through posts.
FortressCable V-Series Railing
In our experience, the easiest cable railing to install is Fortress's V-Series vertical cable rail.
FortressCable V-Series comes with vertical cables already attached to both rails - all you have to do is cut each panel down to size and attach it to the post brackets.
Fortress is known throughout the railing industry for superior strength, and this system comes in sturdy steel. The strength of steel allows for longer railing sections between posts - that means fewer panels to install, and fewer posts breaking up your deck view.
Shop Fortress V-SeriesBest Cable Railing For Traditional Styling
Cable railing is a decidedly modern look - but pairing that style with a traditional top rail can give your deck space an unforgettably timeless look.
AFCO Pro Horizontal Cable Railing
In addition to its flat top rail option, AFCO also makes cable railing with its gorgeous traditional top rail, known as AFCO Pro.
AFCO Pro is rounded off at the top in what's known as a "breadloaf" style. That makes it easy to grasp as you're walking along your deck's railing. It also delivers a beautifully traditional style that looks natural and welcoming.
You can see the AFCO Pro top rail below:
Best Cable Railing System To Save Deck Space
If you're looking to maximize the space on your deck, fascia-mounting your railing can be a great option. With a fascia mount, your deck posts attach to the outside of your deck, rather than directly on the surface.
Fascia-Mounted Feeney Custom DesignRail
Feeney's Custom DesignRail includes a fascia-mount option, as shown above. Mounting the posts to your deck fascia (the boards around the edges of your deck frame) means you get to enjoy every single inch of your deck's surface.
Because Feeney is such a trusted leader in the cable railing industry, their fascia-mount options are safe, sturdy, and totally reliable - plus, they look amazing.
Shop Feeney Custom DesignRailFascia-Mounted FortressCable H-Series Railing
Fortress's H-Series cable railing also features a fascia-mount option. The strength of Fortress steel once again means you can mount longer railing panels to keep your view unobstructed by thicker railing posts. That's one of our favorite suggestions when we help plan a deck for a customer that wants to minimize the number of posts breaking up their cable railing.
Shop Fortress H-SeriesSafest Cable Railing For Homes With Small Children
For parents (or grandparents) of small children, safety is always a consideration. While horizontal cable railings are still completely safe and building-code compliant, some parents want to avoid the possibility of a child standing on or climbing horizontal cable runs.
If your deck will be a play space for young kids, vertical cable railing might be a great option - it'll keep you from having to re-tension the lower cable runs if children stand on them.
Key-Link Vertical Cable Railing
Key-Link's Vertical Cable Railing is a great vertical option. As you can see above, it features that same intricately-detailed American Series top rail that delivers an amazing modern look.
Shop Key-Link VerticalOther Settings Where Vertical Cable Railing Is A Great Choice
Stylistically, there are a few other reasons we'll recommend vertical railing to our customers. If you have lots of trees in your yard, the vertical railing can look great, tying the vertical lines of your deck to the vertical trunks of trees.
Vertical cable railing will also look great on homes with distinctive vertical lines or vertical siding.
Shop Vertical Cable RailingDecksDirect: Your Cable Railing Guide
When it comes to cable railing, it's always good to have a knowledgeable guide. At DecksDirect, we help thousands of people just like you plan their deck railing projects each year. We work with a huge range of cable railing systems, and we understand the parts and installation processes for all of them.
If you want help making sure you get every piece you need to complete your cable railing system, give our team a call at 1-888-824-5316. We can help you build a package with every part you need - we might even be able to save you from over-buying on cable by helping plan your railing in the most efficient way possible.
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