Design your gable roof shed with shed designer.

What is a gable roof shed?

A gable roof shed is a steel-framed building with the classic A-frame profile: two roof slopes meeting at a central ridge, leaving a triangular gable wall at each end. Water sheds evenly off both sides. The ridge sits higher than the eaves, so the volume under the apex is genuinely usable for storage, mezzanine builds, or tall stored gear. It is the most common shed roof shape in Australia for a reason: even load distribution, predictable wind behaviour, and a ceiling profile most councils and neighbours expect to see on rural and suburban blocks.

ShedDesigner's gable roof templates use 100% Australian-made BlueScope steel framing, clad in Colorbond®, engineered to AS/NZS 1170.2:2021 wind loading for the actual block they sit on (Standards Australia, AS/NZS 1170.2:2021 Structural design actions, Part 2: Wind actions). Pick the closest template across the shed designs range, set your span, eave height, pitch and bay count, then submit your design once for free comparable quotes from ShedSafe accredited dealers in your region.

Gable vs skillion: which roof shape suits your build

Two shapes, two different jobs.

Gable. Two slopes meeting at a ridge. Water sheds equally off both sides. Pitch typically runs 10 to 22.5 degrees on Australian sheds (The Shed Company, Building Design FAQs, 2024 reference). Best for high-rainfall regions, alpine/snow-prone country, longer spans, mezzanine builds, and any site where streetscape or planning conditions expect a traditional roof line. Snow load is split between two faces under AS/NZS 1170.3:2003, which lets framing scale lighter than a single-slope roof carrying the same drift.

Skillion. A single slope from a high wall down to a low wall. Cleaner modern look, easier to fit solar arrays in one orientation, and water runs off one face into a single gutter line. Skillion sheds carry the entire snow or rainwater load on one side, which means heavier framing in alpine zones and more careful gutter sizing. See our sibling skillion roof sheds page for the full skillion comparison.

For most rural, large or multi-purpose builds, the gable wins on span, internal volume, and standardised engineering. The skillion wins on solar, modern aesthetic, and tight site setbacks where one tall wall is acceptable.

Pitch and span options

A ShedDesigner gable template runs:

• Pitch: standard options at 10°, 15°, 20° and 22.5°. A 10° pitch hits the minimum recommended for most LYSAGHT® steel roofing profiles per the BlueScope installation manual. A 20° to 22.5° pitch matches the classic American barn look, sheds heavy rainfall faster, and gives roughly 30% more usable mezzanine headroom at the same eave height.
• Span: standard widths from 6 to 30 metres clear span for non-cyclonic Region A and B sites (BlueScope Distribution, Lysaght engineering reference, 2024). Cyclonic Region C and D blocks typically cap a single clear span around 24 metres before custom engineering is needed.
• Eave height: 2.4 to 7.5 metres. Ridge height runs roughly eave height + (span ÷ 2) × tan(pitch).
• Bay length: 3 to 8 metres, set by purlin span tables and wind region.

For larger workshops or commercial spans, see large sheds. For storage with an upper level under the ridge, see sheds with mezzanine.

Where the gable shape fits best

The gable roof is the default pick for these builds:

• Workshops and garages. Triple garages and bigger workshop sheds almost always run gable for the span and the symmetrical truss economy. See double garages, triple garages and workshop sheds.
• Barn-style buildings. The raised-centre American profile is a gable shed with two lean-tos clipped on. See American barns for the raised-centre option, where a 20° centre pitch sits over 10° lean-tos to deliver a tall central bay for hay, machinery or stables.
• Open-end farm sheds. Drive-through hay and machinery sheds are gable by definition, see open gable farm sheds.
• Commercial and industrial spans. Large clear-span buildings rely on the gable's even load path. See large sheds.
• Mezzanine builds. The volume under the apex is real floor area. A 20° pitch on a 12 metre span adds about 2.2 metres of ridge height above eave, enough for a workable mezzanine.

Before you get quotes

Get the roof shape right once. The shed stands for decades.

100% Australian-made BlueScope Steel across structural framing and Colorbond® cladding. BlueScope's COLORBOND® steel cladding for sheds and garages carries a warranty of up to 15 years against corrosion to perforation, with the exact period set by location and application (BlueScope, Garages & Sheds Warranty). Check your build on BlueScope's online warranty estimator.

Engineered to your wind region, not a national average. AS/NZS 1170.2:2021 splits Australia into Regions A, B (with B1 and B2), C and D. Your dealer's structural engineer signs off the design to the actual region for your block.

ShedSafe accredited dealers, no exceptions. Every dealer on ShedDesigner is third-party assessed under the Australian Steel Institute programme, which checks dealer design and engineering against the National Construction Code and AS/NZS standards.

One design, multiple quotes. Your gable shed design goes out to dealers in your region. Every quote prices the same shed, the same steel, the same engineering. Browse the broader shed designs range or compare the sibling skillion option.