Windows & doors markup teardowns
Windows are the category that breaks our usual rule. The premium is mostly real, importing fails on tariffs and certification, and the honest savings is a cheaper domestic brand with the same spec, not a factory-direct dupe.
Unlike furniture or lighting, premium windows mostly earn their price: certified energy performance, durable cladding, and a real install and warranty network. Factory-direct import fails here on a 63 to 80% tariff stack plus mandatory NFRC certification. The honest move is not to import, it is to buy a cheaper domestic brand carrying the same certification. Each teardown below shows the spread between flagship and value brands at identical performance.
Why are luxury windows so expensive?+
Premium clad-wood windows carry a real cost: certified energy performance, durable aluminum cladding, and a dealer-and-install network that is genuinely part of the value. The markup over a builder-grade window is mostly real, not badge. This is the one category where the premium is often justified.
Can you import windows to save money?+
Usually not. A roughly 63 to 80% tariff stack, mandatory NFRC certification you cannot skip on a permit, and the lack of a local install and warranty network make factory-direct import fail. The honest cheaper route is a less expensive domestic brand with the same certification.
What is the best value premium window brand?+
Andersen 400 and Sierra Pacific tend to deliver the same certified energy spec as the flagship brands for meaningfully less per window. You give up a little prestige, not performance.
New teardowns weekly. We send the markup map and the honest cheaper route for each new piece.