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Wire mesh fence hole size: what to check before you buy

Updated: October 2026

You have a gap at the end of a bed, or a gate a cat already treats as a door, and the search results mix chicken wire, green welded rolls and plastic netting. The number that sorts them is the wire mesh fence hole size, in millimetres, matched to the job. This page is that check, in order: hole, wire, coating, then height. The [wire mesh fence comparison](/hub/fencing-and-wire/wire-mesh-fence) puts the eleven amazon.co.uk rolls side by side once you know which numbers matter. Peter F. updated this in October 2026 from those listings and public UK sources. We did not run a lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You have a gap at the end of a bed, or a gate a cat already treats as a door, and the search results mix chicken wire, green welded rolls and plastic netting.

Our top picks

Green Haven Green Haven PVC welded roll, 1 m × 10 m

Best overall

Green Haven Green Haven PVC welded roll, 1 m × 10 m
9.2/10about £28.99
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UNU UNU hexagonal roll, 0.4 m × 16 m

Rank 2

UNU UNU hexagonal roll, 0.4 m × 16 m
8.8/10about £9.99
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VOUNOT VOUNOT PVC welded roll, 0.5 m × 10 m

Best value

VOUNOT VOUNOT PVC welded roll, 0.5 m × 10 m
8.8/10about £14.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Hole size before the brand
  2. 2.Wire diameter, and why a higher gauge is thinner
  3. 3.Galvanised, PVC, or plastic
  4. 4.Height, the nation, and the missing posts

Hole size before the brand

Name the job before the brand. RHS rabbit guidance is about 2.5 cm mesh. A 100 mm by 50 mm grid is a different product. If the listing does not print the hole in millimetres, you cannot do this check. VOUNOT prints 25 mm. UNU prints 2.5 cm by 5 cm, so one side is twice that RHS figure. Green Haven prints 100 mm by 50 mm. LITLANDSTAR and Dnoifne never print a hole. The shsyue listing says 1.6 mm and a UK review says 25 mm. Treat that as a clash. Once the numbers are settled, a top pick inside the set is on best wire mesh fence.

Wire diameter, and why a higher gauge is thinner

After the hole, read the wire in millimetres. A higher gauge number means a thinner wire. A mesh shop’s gauge table puts about 2 mm at 14 gauge and about 0.6 mm at 23 gauge. That table is not a measurement of these rolls. UNU is 0.5 mm. TOYPOPOR, shsyue and EzKamfort are 0.6 mm. VOUNOT is 1 mm. Green Haven states 2 mm. Thealyn’s highlight states 2 mm, and one review measured about 1.7 mm. Trade rabbit netting is often around 1.0–1.2 mm. Plastic has no steel gauge. A TOYPOPOR review says rabbits can chew 0.6 mm hex. That is a review, not a lab trial.
Green Haven Green Haven PVC welded roll, 1 m × 10 m

Testsieger

Green Haven Green Haven PVC welded roll, 1 m × 10 m
9.2/10about £28.99
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Galvanised, PVC, or plastic

Galvanised means zinc, not a stated number of years. A star rating does not prove the coat. Hot-dip after fabrication covers welds better than a coat applied before welding. PVC is a colour and an edge cover over a metal core. Plastic does not rust, and it does not become steel because the title says fence. The shsyue listing says galvanised, and UK reviews report rust within weeks or months. EzKamfort says hot-dip, and UK reviews report rust within weeks and joints that open when the mesh is cut. A month of no rust on TOYPOPOR is not a service life. Green Haven is green PVC over electro-galvanised steel. None of these listings states BS EN 10223-2 or BS 1722-2. Cut steel leaves a bare end.

Height, the nation, and the missing posts

Several rolls here are about 40 cm, a bed guard. Green Haven is 1 m. RIFNY is 0.8 m. VOUNOT stops at 0.5 m. In England the usual limit is 1 metre next to a highway used by vehicles and 2 metres elsewhere. Wales and Northern Ireland use a similar split. Scotland uses 1 metre towards a road, and flats use a 20 metre road test. Only RIFNY clearly describes posts. If the line beside a road may exceed 1 metre, or the job is a fox or deer fence, use a professional.

Common questions

What should I check first on a wire mesh fence roll?
Check the job, then the hole in millimetres, then the wire in millimetres. Coating, finished height and posts come after those two numbers. A star line does not replace a missing hole size. LITLANDSTAR and Dnoifne never print one. If the title and a review disagree, measure the roll before you plan the run.
Is a higher gauge a thicker wire?
No. On the UK Standard Wire Gauge tables mesh shops publish, a higher gauge is a thinner wire. About 2 mm is 14 gauge and about 0.6 mm is 23 gauge. Read the millimetres on the listing you are buying. A gauge word with no millimetres is not a specification.
Does galvanised mean the coating will last a set number of years?
It means zinc, not a year count. Hot-dip after fabrication is a better description of weld cover than a coat applied before welding. The shsyue roll and the EzKamfort roll still have UK reviews that report rust in weeks. Do not treat a star line as a weathering test.
Which of these rolls states a hole size in millimetres?
VOUNOT states 25 mm. UNU states 2.5 cm by 5 cm. Green Haven states 100 mm by 50 mm. Thealyn states 5 cm by 7.5 cm. EzKamfort states 6.3 mm. RIFNY states 16 mm by 18 mm. Meanon states 8 mm. TOYPOPOR says about 1 inch. The shsyue 1.6 mm line disagrees with a 25 mm review. LITLANDSTAR and Dnoifne do not print a hole.
Do I need planning permission for a 1 m garden fence in England?
Often you do not, if the fence is next to a highway used by vehicles and stays within 1 metre, or is elsewhere and stays within 2 metres, and the site is not listed and no Article 4 direction removes the right. That is England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own orders. A skirt above ground changes the finished height.
Are posts in the box?
Only RIFNY’s bullets describe posts, a connecting tube and a ground stake, plus 52 cable ties. A post count is still not printed. The other ten listings are mesh, or mesh and ties. Green Haven tells you to use U-nail staples and does not include them.
When is a 40 cm roll the wrong product?
When you need a boundary, a rabbit fence at the RHS height of about 120–140 cm, or any line beside a road that might exceed 1 metre. A 40 cm roll can guard a bed or fill a gate. It does not become a tall fence because the title says animals.

Related pages

Chicken wire or welded mesh

Wire mesh fence for gardens and pets

Wire mesh fence

Best wire mesh fence UK: top pick and the best value

How to install a wire mesh fence: posts, ties and skirt

Sources

Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings used for this comparison. Prices stored 19 October 2026.

  1. Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 2, Class A (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Planning Portal: fences, gates and garden walls (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. GOV.WALES: planning permission for fences, gates and garden walls (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Scottish Government, Planning circular 1/2024: Class 3E householder permitted development (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Planning (General Permitted Development) Order (Northern Ireland) 2015, Part 3, Class A (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. Animal Welfare Act 2006, section 9 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. RSPCA: chickens (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. RHS: rabbits (retrieved 19 October 2026)