The best expanded metal sheets, compared.
Top pick: PH PandaHall two-piece sheet Best value: National Hardware 12 inch sheet – About £26.87 with 4.3 from 670 reviews for a 12 inch plain-steel sheet. Coat it, and do not assume three pieces. Updated 22.10.2026.
Expanded metal is one sheet that has been slit and stretched into diamonds, so the strands and the joints are the same piece of metal. On amazon.co.uk the same search returns narrow galvanised coil for brick bed joints and small steel sheets for vents, screens and frames. The first check is the making method. Round-hole perforated sheet and woven wire cloth are different products, even when a title says mesh. Next choose a raised or flattened profile, then the metal and any coating, then the opening and which way the diamond runs. Raised mesh has angled strands and grip or a plaster key. Flattened mesh lies in one plane for a frame or a guard. Measure raised mesh by pitch and flattened mesh by the clear aperture. Plain steel needs a coating. A rust-resistant bullet is not a test. Read the unit count beside a multi-pack title, and treat cut edges as sharp. Profile, coating, opening and pack count are set out in the [expanded metal buying guide](/hub/diy-supplies/expanded-metal/sub/expanded-metal-buying-guide).
Expanded metal is one sheet that has been slit and stretched into diamonds, so the strands and the joints are the same piece of metal.
18 products checked · 61 hrs invested · +21,400 readers
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
What are you buying?
PH PandaHall sells two sheets at £16.39. The dimensions line says 30 × 40 × 0.17 cm and the bullets say 15.75 × 11.81 inches in 304 stainless steel. The title also says perforated sheets, and no opening or pitch is printed, so the making method is not settled. The only review is from Italy on 31 August 2026 and calls it a good, safe choice. There is no UK-tagged review. Outdoor corrosion resistance is a bullet, not a test. Treat it as a small stainless offcut only if you can accept that it may be perforated rather than expanded. A 5.0 from one review does not make it the top pick.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A small two-piece stainless sheet if you can check the hole pattern on arrival.
Less suitable: Anyone who needs confirmed expanded metal, a printed pitch, or a UK review sample.
Specifications
Common questions
Is this expanded metal or perforated sheet?
The title says both expanded metal sheet mesh and perforated sheets. No hole size or pitch is printed, so the making method is not settled from this listing.
Is the steel really 304?
The bullets say 304 stainless steel. The listing does not include a mill certificate or a standard. The only review does not mention the grade.
Can these sheets be cut to size?
The bullets say basic tools and minimal cutting. They do not name snips, shears or a grinder, and they do not warn about edges.
Gisafai lists four flat black steel sheets at £68.11. Each sheet is about 24 × 12 inches, or 60 × 30 cm, with openings about 50 × 23 mm, and the pack weighs 3.86 kg. The amazon.co.uk line is 4.4 from 45 reviews. All 14 reviews in the stored sample are from the United States. Buyers call the sheets heavy and weldable, and several warn that the lattice edges cut. Bullets claim rust resistance without a coating standard. Grill and stove uses in those reviews are not a heat rating. This is the only listing in this set that prints both a flat profile and an opening, which is why it is the top pick here. It is not a certified guard.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A flat black sheet with a printed opening, if you will deburr the edges and you want four pieces.
Less suitable: A certified guard, a food-safe grate, or a buyer who needs a UK-tagged review sample.
Specifications
Common questions
Are these sheets flat expanded metal?
The title says flat and the bullets say expanded metal mesh flattened. The stated opening is about 1.97 × 0.91 inches, or 5 × 2.3 cm. Strand thickness is not printed.
Will the edges cut you?
Several US reviews say the lattice is sharp and that cut-resistant gloves are needed. One buyer reported crooked cuts and dents at the ends. The bullets do not mention edges.
Is the black finish a proven outdoor coating?
The bullets say the steel resists rust and corrosion. They do not name a coating standard. Grill and wood-stove comments in the reviews are not a heat rating or a food-safety claim.
National Hardware N301-598 is plain expanded steel listed at £26.87, 12 × 12 inch, about 30.5 × 30.5 × 0.1 cm, and 444 g. The amazon.co.uk line is 4.3 from 670 reviews. The title and the pack count say three pieces, while the unit count is 1.0 and the item count is 1. In a sample of 50 reviews, none tagged United Kingdom, buyers often say one piece arrived, and others praise a flat grate for burn barrels and laser beds. Bullets say it must be protected against corrosion. The sample also includes sagging over heat and a bent edge. It is best value in this set for a small plain-steel sheet when you will coat it and you have checked the pack count. Do not read the stars as proof that a UK parcel contains three sheets.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A small plain-steel sheet for a guard or screen when you will coat it and you have checked the pack count.
Less suitable: A buyer counting on three pieces, or a job that needs stainless steel or a printed pitch.
Specifications
Common questions
Does the 3 pack title mean three sheets?
The title and the number of packs say 3. The unit count is 1.0 and the number of items is 1. Reviews that report one piece are not tagged United Kingdom, so this page does not state what a UK parcel contains.
Is this plain steel weatherproof?
The bullets say interior and exterior use and that the steel must be protected to prevent corrosion. They do not call it stainless. Reviewers describe paint and discoloration after rain and heat.
What do reviewers use it for?
Bullets name machinery guards, screen-door protectors and ventilated motor housings. In the 50-review sample, burn-barrel screens and a flat laser bed are the repeated uses. Those reviews are not a heat rating.
The AB Tools FN118 listing is a galvanised expanded-metal brickwork coil at £15.98, stated as 63 mm wide and 20 m long, with an item weight of 775 g. The amazon.co.uk listing has no star line and no review text. Bullets say the coil adds tensile strength and reduces cracking. They do not print a diamond pitch, a zinc mass, a British Standard, or how to bed the strip. Questions on the page about mortar, cavity walls and window cracks are unanswered. It is a narrow coil for someone who already has a bedding method, not a declared structural product.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A narrow galvanised coil when you already know the cover and lap for a non-structural bed joint.
Less suitable: A structural wall, a damp external leaf, or any job that needs a printed pitch.
Specifications
Common questions
What is this coil made of?
The title and bullets say galvanised expanded metal for brickwork, 63 mm wide and 20 m long. They do not name a steel grade or a zinc coating mass.
Does the listing show how to bed it in mortar?
No. The page asks about mortar, cavity walls and window cracks. The bullets only say it adds tensile strength and reduces cracking. They do not give cover, lap or course spacing.
Is there an amazon.co.uk star rating?
This listing has no customer-review line, so the rating is not known from the listing.
The AB Tools FN119 listing is a galvanised expanded-metal brickwork coil at £19.20, stated as 100 mm wide and 20 m long. Item weight is 1.28 kg, while the dimensions line also says 1.27 kg. The amazon.co.uk listing has no star line and no review text. Bullets say the coil adds tensile strength and reduces cracking. They do not print a pitch, a zinc mass, a British Standard, or a weatherproof claim, even though the page asks about weather and structural integrity. It is the wider of the two coils in this set, still without a bedding method.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A wider galvanised bed-joint coil when 63 mm is too narrow and you already have a bedding spec.
Less suitable: A damp external leaf, a cavity tie, or a buyer who needs stars or a printed pitch.
Specifications
Common questions
What metal is the 100 mm coil?
The title says galvanised expanded metal, 100 mm wide and 20 m long. The listing does not name a steel grade or a zinc mass, and it does not say the coil is weatherproof.
Will this coil make a wall structural?
The bullets say it adds tensile strength and reduces cracking. They do not cite a standard or a declaration of performance, so the listing does not show structural use.
How does it differ from the 63 mm AB Tools coil?
The stated width is 100 mm rather than 63 mm, the price is £19.20 rather than £15.98, and the item weight is about 1.28 kg rather than 775 g. Pitch and stars are missing on both.
Shelf prices and stars are the amazon.co.uk figures already stored for these five listings. This is not a laboratory test. A printed profile and opening, a stated metal and pack count, the size of the review sample, and the price for that job make the score. A 5.0 from one review cannot lead. The highest score is the top pick. Best value is a different listing: a lower price where the reviews still support the job. No listing here is a lab winner or a certified guard.
Profile and opening
30%Raised mesh is measured by pitch and flattened mesh by the clear aperture. A listing that prints both a flat profile and an opening scores highest. A missing pitch is a gap, not a small diamond.
Metal and form
20%Coil for a bed joint and sheet for a screen are different jobs. Plain steel needs a coating. A rust-resistant bullet is not a test. Stainless counts only when the grade is printed and the piece is really expanded metal.
Size and pack count
20%Width, length and unit count have to be on the listing. A multi-pack title that disagrees with the unit count is marked down. A 20 m coil and a 300 mm square are not the same unit.
Amazon evidence
20%Stars and review counts are the stored amazon.co.uk lines. No star line scores lower. One review cannot lead. A sample that is not tagged United Kingdom is not treated as UK opinion.
Price for that job
10%Value is the price for a job the listing and the reviews support. The cheapest coil is not automatically best value, and the highest sheet price is not automatically the top pick.
Buy the making method before the word mesh. Expanded metal is slit and stretched. Perforated sheet and woven wire are different products. Then choose raised or flattened, the metal and coating, the opening, and the pack count. A 20 m coil and a 300 mm square are not the same unit.
Expanded metal is one sheet, slit and stretched so the strands and the joints are the same metal. It is not round-hole perforated sheet, and it is not woven wire cloth, even when a title says mesh. On amazon.co.uk the same search returns 20 metre galvanised coil for brick bed joints and small steel sheets for vents, screens and frames. A 20 metre coil and a 300 mm square are not the same unit, so do not compare those prices as if they were. Choose in this order. First, the making method.
A round hole diameter, or a woven cloth, is not expanded metal. A title can use the word mesh for all three. Check the making method before the price.
A 20 m bed-joint coil and a 300 mm sheet are different units. The cheaper roll is not a better screen, and the dearer sheet is not a better brick coil.
On the plain-steel square the title says 3 and the unit count is 1. Reviews that report one piece are not tagged United Kingdom. Check the parcel against the description.
Raised mesh has angled strands, extra height, and grip or a plaster key. Flattened mesh lies in one plane for a frame, a guard or a filter. Measure raised mesh by pitch and flattened mesh by the clear aperture. Flattening can reduce thickness by about 10–20 percent. Expanding itself does not thin the strand. Plain steel needs a coating before damp or outdoor use. A rust-resistant bullet is not a test. Stainless counts only when the grade is printed and the sheet is really expanded metal.
Read the unit count next to a multi-pack title. Edges cut, so clamp the sheet, cut with snips, power shears or a grinder with a metal blade, and file the edge. Gloves belong with the job, except where they can catch in a bench drill. A brick coil is for a non-structural bed joint when you already know the cover and the lap. It is not a cavity tie. A loose square is not a machine guard. Call a professional for structural masonry, floors people walk on, and fire-rated render.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
You want a screen or a panel and you need the opening printed before you buy. The Gisafai four black sheets are the top pick at about £68.11. Each sheet is about 600 × 300 mm, the profile is flat, and the opening is about 50 × 23 mm. The line is 4.4 from 45 reviews, all from the United States. Deburr the edges. The rust line is not a coating standard.
You will coat the steel and you want a large review sample rather than the lowest price. The National Hardware 12 inch sheet is best value at about £26.87, with 4.3 from 670 reviews. The title says a 3 pack and the unit count is 1. Reviews that report one piece are not tagged United Kingdom. There is no printed opening.
You already know the cover and the lap, and the wall is not structural. The AB Tools 63 mm coil is about £15.98, galvanised, 20 m long, with no star line and no pitch. Choose the 100 mm coil at about £19.20 if 63 mm is too narrow. Neither listing is a cavity tie or a damp external leaf.
The top pick is the Gisafai four black sheets at about £68.11. It scores 70, the highest stored figure in this set: four flat sheets, an opening of about 50 × 23 mm, and 4.4 from 45 reviews. Those reviews are from the United States, and sharp edges are a repeated complaint. Best value is the National Hardware 12 inch sheet at about £26.87. It scores 62, with 4.3 from 670 reviews, if you coat the plain steel and you do not assume the title's 3 pack. The two galvanised coils have no star line and no pitch. The two-piece sheet mixes expanded metal with perforated sheet in the title, so a 5.0 from one review does not lead.
National Hardware 12 inch sheet
About £26.87 with 4.3 from 670 reviews for a 12 inch plain-steel sheet. Coat it, and do not assume three pieces.
Editorial
Peter F. is the editor for DIY & tools at productscompared.co.uk. Comparisons in this category are checked against amazon.co.uk listings, review evidence and public UK sources.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Updated 22 October 2026.
This page contains affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures already stored for this set. This is not a laboratory test.
