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Chicken wire vs welded mesh: twist or square hole

Updated: October 2026

You are covering a vegetable bed, patching a hutch, or closing a gap under the shed, and the two rolls are built differently. Chicken wire is hexagonal wire netting you can gather around a curve. Welded mesh is a grid with a joint at every crossing, so the hole stays squarer. Chicken wire vs welded mesh is that choice of joint. The [wire mesh comparison](/hub/fencing-and-wire/wire-mesh) holds the amazon.co.uk prices. The Products Compared editorial team used these listings on 15 October 2026, with no lab test and no British Standard claimed. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are covering a vegetable bed, patching a hutch, or closing a gap under the shed, and the two rolls are built differently. Chicken wire is hexagonal wire netting you can gather around a curve.

Our top picks

C&Xanadu C&Xanadu 200 mm x 3 m rat mesh

Best overall

C&Xanadu C&Xanadu 200 mm x 3 m rat mesh
8.7/10about £11.58
View offer
Anesty Anesty chicken wire 40 cm x 10 m kit

Alternative

Anesty Anesty chicken wire 40 cm x 10 m kit
8.5/10about £12.71
View offer
UNU UNU chicken wire 0.4 m x 16 m

Alternative

UNU UNU chicken wire 0.4 m x 16 m
8.6/10about £9.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.They are not the same product
  2. 2.Choose chicken wire for shape, not for a shove
  3. 3.Choose welded mesh when the opening has to stay square
  4. 4.The recommendation, with the fox left out

They are not the same product

Chicken wire is a twist you can gather around a pot. Welded mesh is straight wires fixed at each cross, and a shove meets a joint rather than a loop that can open. The hexagonal price buys a larger opening in 0.5 mm wire, and a 15 mm hexagon is still much wider than a 6 mm square.

Choose chicken wire for shape, not for a shove

Choose chicken wire when you need a light cover you can shape and you can live with a push. Pots, floristry, a low temporary edge, and a hutch patch all suit this 0.5 mm wire. Anesty includes pliers, gloves and 50 ties. UNU does not list that kit. Reviewers call the wire easy to cut and doubtful against a fox. UNU’s bullets say hexagonal even where the item form says woven mesh. A title that promises to keep rabbits out is a seller line, and the Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 leaves that purpose unproved.
C&Xanadu C&Xanadu 200 mm x 3 m rat mesh

Testsieger

C&Xanadu C&Xanadu 200 mm x 3 m rat mesh
8.7/10about £11.58
View offer

Choose welded mesh when the opening has to stay square

Choose welded mesh when the hole has to stay square, then match the aperture to the animal. For mice or rats, this set has 6 mm rolls from about £11.58 to about £31.99, and a 7 mm roll at about £13.49. The sheet is harder to curve than 0.5 mm chicken wire. If a listing says hardware cloth, use the millimetre figure on amazon.co.uk. VOUNOT at 13 mm is the low-edge roll if a larger hole is acceptable. The green roll at 6 cm is a welded border a mouse can pass. Green PVC is only the coating. Jacksons and similar ranges sell mesh with posts for a boundary.

The recommendation, with the fox left out

Choose chicken wire when you will shape a light cover and you accept a push. Choose welded mesh at 6 mm or 7 mm when a mouse or rat gap must stay square. Keep the 6 cm green roll for a garden border a mouse can walk through. Leave foxes off both purchases. These rolls were not tested against foxes, and a run needs a frame, a skirt, and height.

Common questions

When is chicken wire the right buy?
Chicken wire is the right buy for a light net you can shape around pots, floristry, a low temporary edge, or a hutch patch. In this set that is 0.5 mm hexagonal wire, about 15 mm by 25 mm or 25 mm by 50 mm, at roughly £10 to £13. A firm push will distort the hexagon. It bends more easily than welded mesh, and it is the wrong roll when the opening has to stay at 6 mm.
When is welded mesh worth the stiffer roll?
Welded mesh is worth the stiffer roll when the opening has to stay square under a push. For mice or rats, look at 6 mm from about £11.58 to £31.99, or 7 mm at about £13.49. A 13 mm roll suits a low edge if that larger hole is acceptable. The sheet is harder to curve than 0.5 mm chicken wire, so leave it if you only need to wrap a pot.
Will chicken wire stop a fox?
Chicken wire at 0.5 mm is a poor bet against a fox. Reviewers call these hexagonal rolls thin, easy to cut, and doubtful for a fox, which is shopper comment rather than a trial. A run also needs posts, a frame, a buried skirt, and height that a hobby roll does not include. If you are asking whether this chicken wire is fox-proof, these are the wrong rolls.
Will welded mesh stop mice?
Welded mesh stops mice when the hole is small enough and the surround is closed. Here that means 6 mm or 7 mm. The 13 mm VOUNOT roll is a larger square, and the 6 cm uyoyous roll is a border a mouse can pass. The weld keeps the opening square compared with chicken wire, and a 6 cm hole stays a garden border.
Which one is easier to cut and shape?
Chicken wire is easier to cut and shape. The 0.5 mm wire gathers around a pot or a hutch corner, and Anesty includes pliers, gloves and 50 ties. Welded mesh holds a squarer hole and fights a tight bend, so blunt snips leave sharp ends. The easy cut suits floristry and a temporary cover. It is a weak reason to cover a rodent gap with hexagonal wire.
Do I still need posts?
You still need posts when the mesh has to stand as a fence. The roll is infill, twisted or welded, and it comes without posts or a buried skirt. Jacksons and similar ranges sell mesh beside posts and panels. A hutch patch can use the frame you already have, plus ties or screws. A new run on open ground needs the posts as well as the sheet.
Is green PVC welded mesh the same as chicken wire?
Green PVC welded mesh and chicken wire are different products. Chicken wire here is 0.5 mm hexagonal netting at 15 mm by 25 mm or 25 mm by 50 mm. Green PVC is a coating on welded rolls such as a 13 mm grid or a 6 cm garden roll. The colour leaves the joint and the hole as they are. Check the hole shape in the bullets if you wanted a twist you can gather.

Related pages

Wire mesh buying guide

Best wire mesh

How to fit wire mesh

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Rodent mesh for air bricks, deck gaps and shed holes

Sources

Sources from the research digest. amazon.co.uk listings in this comparison were checked for the 16 October 2026 score. We did not run a laboratory test.

  1. Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 2, Class A (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  2. Planning Portal: Fences, gates and garden walls (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  3. GOV.WALES: Planning permission for fences, gates and garden walls (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  4. Scottish Government: Householder permitted development rights, Class 3E (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  5. GOV.UK: When is permission required? (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  6. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  7. Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, section 1 (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  8. Hedgehog Street: Link your garden (retrieved 15 October 2026)