They are pretty pricey, about double the cost of your more typical deck rails.

Our trim carpenter did ours using treated wooden posts/top rail & galvanized cable.

Our DIY stainless steel cable railing assembly kits cost between $1.50 - $2.50 per foot based on length of 50 feet. Our budget kits with 1/8" cable cost on average about $1.30 per foot.

You may want to look into CableRail systems by Feeney. Elegant, very installation friendly. They just launched a new website: www.feeneyinc.com

You should look at our systems at Deck-rail.com, we have a cable-less option where we use stainless rods instead of cables and also glass.

Make no doubt, grade 316 stainless steel cable and fittings are not cheap. But they do offer the least obtrusive solution and probably the least maintenance of other options.

I had someone quote me on 9 feet of cable railing with posts for interior stairs at about $4000. Based on the costs of the materials I see at sites like Ultra-tec and Atlantic railing, also at Stair service, I could not understand why the cost was so high. Maybe it takes a lot of time.

Since we don't know specifics, how much are the materials, what type of posts, mounting style, how much is the labor, it is difficult to address. There are systems that are installer-friendly that can reduce installation times.

Just got a quote from Hansen. Fascia mount, 42" high, bronze color and included aluminum top rail and posts. $3000 for 43 linear feet plus shipping. That works out to over $70 a linear foot. That seems expensive to me considering there is no labor involved. However, I'm planning on getting additional quotes for an overall comparison.

Good idea to price shop. You are obviously looking at railing frames and infill. Cable assemblies may be priced by the linear foot, but in actuality the end fittings are the most expensive component and if you can configure to do longer runs of cable you will save yourself $. Your railing frames may come from an aluminum (or stainless) railing manufacturer, metal fabricator (custom built), or contractor-provided (usually wood). A railing manufacturer may provide frames with pre-drilled holes for the cable assemblies (big time saver!) and may be married with a specific cable system. These would be significant time savers and aid installation time and frustrations. And remember, high quality materials are in for the long-term, with very little maintenance.

We sell a cable railing kit with 11 cables and cable cutter at a very reasonable price.

10' for $333.50

20' for $388.50

30' for $443.50

50' for $553.50

Check them out here: https://shop.jakob-usa.com/?product_cat=cable-railing

Use the coupon code "HOUZZ" and I will give you a 10% discount.

Can anyone recommend a reputable distributor and/or installer in Waterloo Region, Ontario?

I can get this model of 14 ga 2x2 stainless steel post for only $60 or less depending how many you need if you need something different we can fabricate the post on the picture it's no finish we still need to drill holes every 3" good cleaning and polished

Where can I buy these or get more information?

Feeney CableRail is available in many hardware and building supply stores! Here is our dealer locator: http://www.feeneyinc.com/#dealer-locator

My deck railing system runs between 60 to 80 dollars a running foot. Anodized aluminum post and cables. Made in USA WWW.modern.mi.com

Since this question continues to generation discussion, let me advise anyone interested in using cable railing to establish what their deck design is, how the end fittings will need to be attached, the frame specifications, number of cable runs needed and then, price shop. Cable infill pricing is one thing, the railing frame is another. The amount of work installing and maintaining a frame and cable infill system varies considerably in the marketplace. I'm sure all providers would be glad to work-up details for your specific installation and not just "ballpark" an estimate, that may not accurately reflect your final railing costs (and installation).

When comparing railing system costs, one should consider the total installed cost as opposed to just the material cost. Many of the systems on the market require a fair amount of work on site to complete. Accommodating stairs, ramps, multi-level decks etc. is not trivial and requires on-site head scratching, cutting and drilling. This additional labor adds to the overall cost of the system. The final result is only as good as your builders design and fabrication skills so if you care about good design, make sure you review your installers portfolio. Alternately, you can purchase a customized system where all the tricky design situations are thoughtfully worked out by professional designers. Although this type of railing initially costs more for materials, on more complicated projects it can take less than 1/2 the time to install and usually looks much better executed.

Cable rail systems are not difficult to price but you have to know your design. First figure out what type of posts you will use. Stainless, wood powder coated steel etc. Figure the posts at 48" o.c. max. Then figure the top rail material. Same thing wood, stainless, steel. A bottom rail is optional. Next figure the height needed for your rail. Either 36" for residential or 42" for commercial. Note that a 36" high rail will require 11 lines of cable with no bottom rail and a 42" high rail will require 13 lines of cable with no bottom rail.

Just a note: plan on using 1/8" stainless cable. It is plenty strong, less visible and opens up alot of options to do it yourselfers.

Rough pricing. It will vary some due to conditions such as the number of stops and starts/slopes etc.

Take a level platform or deck where we want to install cable rails on 3 sides. Say two 8' sides and one 20' run. Rail height 36"

Figure 10 posts at $300 each predrilled and installed.=$3,000

Figure 1 top rail at $50/l.f. installed by 36' = $1800

Figure 11 lines of cable at 36' at $1/ft installed.=$396 say $400

Figure 66 pieces of cable hardware at $25.00 each so that we can stop and start for both the two short runs and the 20' run. =$1650.00

Total installed price: $6,850.00

It works out to just under $200/l.f. for a fairly simple and straight forward design.

If you are in the Northeast and are interested in looking into cable rail pricing and various options please contact me at larrynordbeck@gmail.com. or 508-954-5420

Cable railings are really the trend nowadays. I'd love to see what I can do about getting one installed around my deck. They must be pretty strong sense they are made of cable wire. However, I bet the fittings have to be pretty strong too. Do you happen to know what the fittings are made of? http://www.cableraildirect.com/category-s/1843.htm 

Jessie, the URL you posted above is for one of our dealer sites. Our fittings are made from high-quality 316-grade stainless steel with a tumbled satin finish. More information on fittings here: http://www.feeneyinc.com/Architectural/CableRail-Custom-Assemblies - you can still go to Cable Rail Direct to purchase.

If you are in the Eastern,Ma. area please call, text or email me for advice, info. and pricing on any type of cable rail system you may need. I have been in the railing business for over 30 years and have designed, fabricated and installed hundreds of varying types of railings.
Contact: Larry Nordbeck
Cell: 508-954-5420
Gmail: larrynordbeck@gmail.cim

Any installers in the Auburn, Alabama area?

If you contact our estimators at 800-888-2418 we may be able to refer you to someone!

Can someone advise if going with vertical infill vs horizontal is more costly?

Yes vertical cable railing will cost more than horizontal cable railinf. It requires additional frame work and allot more cable fittings.