20x30 vs 24x30 Metal Garage: Which Actually Fits Two Vehicles?

Choosing between a 20x30 and 24x30 metal garage might not seem like a major decision at first. Both buildings are 30' deep, and the difference is only 4' in width. But those extra 4' can make a noticeable difference when you're trying to park two vehicles and have space to move around.

A 20x30 garage provides 600 square feet of floor space, while a 24x30 gives you 720 square feet. That additional 120 square feet can translate into more comfortable vehicle spacing and valuable room along the sides of the garage. But it does increase your overall budget.

So, which one actually fits two vehicles better? In this guide, we'll put the 20x30 and 24x30 metal garages side by side, break down the available space, and look at what you can realistically expect to fit inside each. If you're trying to maximize your budget and property without ending up with a garage that's too cramped, the numbers can help make the decision much easier.

Key highlights

• A 20-foot width gives each vehicle a 10-foot bay. A 24-foot width gives each vehicle a 12-foot bay.
• A full-size pickup measures about 6 feet 8 inches across the body and roughly 8 feet with the mirrors out.
• You need around 30 inches beside the driver's door to step out normally. Under 24 inches, you're squeezing.
• At 30 feet deep, both sizes handle a long-bed truck with room to spare, so depth isn't what separates them.
• Width is priced in 2-foot steps above 18 feet, which means 22x30 sits between these two as a real option most buyers never hear about.
• Widening a garage after it's installed isn't possible, so this is a one-time decision.
• Want us to run both sizes so you can compare? Call (866) 681-7846 and we'll quote them side by side.

The number that actually matters is bay width

Square footage tells you almost nothing about how a garage works. A 20x30 gives you 600 square feet and a 24x30 gives you 720. That 120-square-foot difference sounds small on paper. But split it by vehicle and it stops sounding small.

Divide 20 feet across two bays and each vehicle gets 10 feet. Divide 24 feet and each one gets 12. That extra 2 feet per bay can be the difference between opening your door and easing out of it.

What a 20-foot width gives you

Park a full-size truck in a 10-foot bay and you've got about 3 feet 4 inches of slack total. Center it up and that's roughly 20 inches on each side.

Twenty inches gets your door open to the first catch. Enough to slide out if you're not carrying anything and you don't mind angling your shoulders. Do it twice a day for ten years and you'll notice.

A 20-wide works fine for two sedans, or a sedan and a compact SUV. It also works when one bay holds a vehicle and the other holds a mower, a workbench, or seasonal storage you aren't walking around constantly.

But it gets tight with two full-size vehicles that both get driven daily. Mirrors on a modern half-ton stick out to roughly 8 feet across, so in a 10-foot bay you have about a foot of mirror clearance per side coming through the opening, which is workable but asks you to line up carefully every single time you pull in.

Looking at the 20-foot option? See the 20x30x10 Two Car Garage before you decide how much side clearance you need.

What a 24-foot width gives you

Using the same truck, a 24 foot garage gives you a 12-foot bay, and about 5 feet 4 inches of slack. When centered, that's roughly 32 inches per side. Thirty-two inches is real clearance. You can open the door all the way, step out, and walk without worrying about space.

It also buys you usable wall. Two feet of extra width per side means you can run shelving down one side, or set a workbench along it, and still park both vehicles.

Our 24x30x9 two car garage is a good look at how that width lays out in practice.

Want to see more two-vehicle layouts? Browse our Two Car Garages to compare additional sizes and configurations.

20x30 vs 24x30 side by side

	20x30	24x30
Total floor space	600 sq ft	720 sq ft
Width per bay (two vehicles)	10 feet	12 feet
Side clearance, full-size truck	About 20 inches	About 32 inches
Two full-size trucks daily	Tight	Comfortable
Sedan plus compact SUV	Comfortable	Roomy
Room for a workbench with both bays full	No	Yes
Walk-around access	Squeeze past	Full walking lane
Long-bed truck at 30 ft depth	Fits with room left	Fits with room left
Pricing bracket	Its own	Two brackets up from 20

Measure your vehicles before you decide anything

Guessing at this is how people end up disappointed. Take five minutes with a tape measure, or look up your exact model. Below is the range you're working with on current vehicles.

Vehicle type	Body width	Width with mirrors out
Compact sedan	About 5 ft 9 in	About 6 ft 8 in
Midsize SUV	About 6 ft 2 in	About 7 ft
Half-ton pickup	About 6 ft 8 in	About 8 ft
Three-quarter and one-ton pickup	About 6 ft 10 in	About 8 ft 9 in
Full-size van	About 6 ft 8 in and up	About 8 ft and up

Now measure your own two vehicles. Add both body widths together, subtract that from the garage width, then split what's left three ways: driver side wall, middle gap, passenger side wall.

Two half-tons in a 20-wide leaves roughly 26 inches per gap. The same pair in a 24-wide leaves about 42 inches. Do that math with your actual vehicles and the answer usually shows up on its own.

Metal garage width is taken outside to outside of the frame, so your usable interior runs a few inches narrower once panels and framing are in. Not enough to change the decision, but enough that you shouldn't plan around the last inch.

Why 30 feet of depth is the easy part

Depth rarely causes trouble at this length, and that's worth saying plainly because a lot of buyers agonize over it.

A crew-cab half-ton with a 6.5-foot bed runs a little under 20 feet nose to tail. Go to an 8-foot bed and you're at about 20 feet 4 inches. Either one parks in a 30-foot-deep building with close to 10 feet left over behind it.

That leftover space is where the value hides. Ten feet at the back of a 30-foot garage holds a workbench, a rolling tool chest, a compressor, and shelving, and plenty of our customers set up a small shop area back there while still parking two vehicles in front of it.

If you're weighing depths rather than widths, 30 feet is what turns a parking building into a working one. Our post on the most economical metal building sizes covers how depth affects your build cost.

The 22-foot width sitting between them

Above 18 feet, width prices in 2-foot steps. Twenty, 22, and 24 each sit in their own bracket, which means 22x30 is a real building at a real price sitting between the two you've been comparing.

A 22-foot width gives each vehicle an 11-foot bay, or about 26 inches of side clearance on a full-size truck. That's a noticeable step up from 20 without the full walking lane a 24 gives you, and it lands between them on cost.

Plenty of customers land right there once they hear it exists. We build 22x30 garages regularly, and for a truck-and-SUV household it's often the sweet spot.

Ask your rep to price 20, 22, and 24 at the same depth.

Comparing the upgrade against your budget? Financing is available for qualifying buyers. Pricing varies by building size, options, and location.

Which width fits your situation

Different buyers need different things out of the same footprint. Here's how we usually steer people.

Homeowners with two daily drivers

If both vehicles get driven every day and at least one is a truck or a large SUV, go with a 24’. The two feet per bay pays for itself the first winter you're loading kids and groceries in the rain. If you're parking two sedans or a sedan and a small crossover, a 20x30 handles it comfortably and leaves budget for insulation or a better door.

Contractors and tradesmen

Go with a 24’, and consider going wider. Your work truck is loaded, you're pulling ladders and material out the sides, and you need wall space for racking. A 20-wide fights you every day. If you're also parking a trailer inside, measure the trailer width with the fenders and plan around that rather than the truck.

Farmers and rural properties

This depends entirely on what's going in there. If it's a truck and a UTV, a 20x30 is plenty and you'll appreciate the savings. If you're pulling a tractor in beside the truck, measure the tractor at its widest point, usually the rear tires or the loader bucket, then add clearance from there.

Anything with a loader on the front tends to need more room to maneuver than its width suggests, because you're not backing it in on a straight line.

Anyone planning to add a lift later

Go wider than you think, and pay attention to sidewall height too. A two-post lift needs clear floor on both sides of the vehicle plus room to walk the posts. Height matters as much as width here, and our guide on how tall metal buildings can go covers what clearance you'll need overhead.

What you can't change later

You can add insulation after the fact. You can run electrical, finish the interior, put in shelving, and swap out a door. You can't make the building wider.

Widening a metal garage means taking the frame apart, and at that point you're buying a new building. Same goes for adding length or raising the sidewall. Everything structural gets decided before our crew shows up.

So compare these two sizes against the vehicle you might be driving in eight years, because trucks have gotten steadily wider over the last two decades and there's no sign of that reversing. A 24x30 that feels roomy today will feel normal later. A 20x30 that feels tight today will feel tighter.

Frequently asked questions

Is a 20x30 garage big enough for two cars?

Yes, a 20x30 is capable of handling two standard cars or a car and a compact SUV, but you might find that it’s a bit cramped.

How wide should a two car garage be?

Twenty-four feet is the width we recommend for two full-size vehicles, since it gives each one a 12-foot bay and roughly 32 inches of side clearance.

What's the difference in cost between a 20x30 and a 24x30?

Width prices in 2-foot brackets above 18 feet, so moving from 20 to 24 crosses two brackets. The exact difference depends on your sidewall height, roof style, doors, and your local wind and snow requirements, which we engineer every building to meet. Call us at (866) 681-7846 and we'll price both at once.

Will a full-size truck fit in a 30-foot-deep garage?

Comfortably. A crew cab with an 8-foot bed runs about 20 feet 4 inches long, leaving close to 10 feet behind it in a 30-foot building. That's enough for a workbench and shelving with the door still closing.

Can I park two vehicles and still have a workbench in a 20x30?

Along the back wall, yes, since 30 feet of depth gives you room behind the vehicles. Along a side wall with both bays occupied, no. A 24-wide is where side-wall storage becomes practical with two vehicles parked.

Can I widen my metal garage after it's installed?

No. Widening requires disassembling the frame, so width is a decision you make at quote time. Insulation, electrical, and interior finishing can all wait until later.

Should I get one big garage door or two?

One wide door is usually simpler and less expensive than two singles, and it gives you flexibility in how you park. Two doors give you separate access and let you close one bay off. We can frame the opening either way, and our post on choosing doors and windows walks through the tradeoffs.

Making the call

Measure both vehicles including the mirrors, add them together, and see what's left over in each width. If the leftover gives you less than about two feet per side, size up. If you're parking two full-size trucks, go 24 and don't look back.

And price the 22 while you're at it. It exists, it's often the right answer, and hardly anyone asks about it.

Ready to compare? Design Your Building online to see both sizes with your own colors and doors, request a quote, or call Coast to Coast Carports at (866) 681-7846 and we'll run 20, 22, and 24 wide so you can see the numbers side by side.

Ready to plan your garage? Design Your Building  •  Request A Quote  •  Call (866) 681-7846