LeafFilter and LeafGuard sound like rival versions of the same thing. They are not. LeafFilter is a guard: a stainless steel mesh cover fitted onto the gutters you already have. LeafGuard is a gutter: your old system comes down and a one-piece aluminum gutter with a hood built over it goes up. The first question is not which brand is better, but whether your gutters need replacing at all.
Side by side
| LeafFilter | LeafGuard | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A guard: stainless steel micro-mesh in a uPVC frame | A new gutter: one-piece seamless aluminum with a hood over the top |
| Your existing gutters | Kept, cleaned and realigned, then covered | Removed and replaced |
| How it keeps debris out | Fine mesh, about 275 microns, that water passes through | A curved hood that leads water in while leaves slide off |
| 2026 national price | About $18 to $45 a foot | About $20 to $70 a foot, gutters included |
| Who sells and installs it here | LeafFilter’s own Sioux Falls office | An authorized LeafGuard dealer |
| Warranty headline | Lifetime, transferable; repair or refund of material cost if it clogs and overflows | Lifetime transferable finish warranty; clog claims handled by the installing dealer |
Prices are 2026 national ranges and vary a lot by house. Local installers fit micro-mesh for about $7 to $11 a foot, and the full price comparison works the numbers out on a typical 150-foot house.
LeafFilter
LeafFilter runs its own office in Sioux Falls, on North Cliff Avenue, and says it has put its system on more than 3,700 homes around the city. The crew cleans your gutters, resets any that have lost their slope, and fits a three-piece system over them: a frame, hangers, and a 275-micron stainless steel mesh that lets water through and keeps nearly everything else out.
Because it sits on your existing gutters, it only makes sense if those gutters are sound. Mesh on a sagging, leaking or undersized gutter hides the problem rather than fixing it. It also carries the usual micro-mesh chore: fine debris sits on top, and in June, cottonwood fluff mats over it like felt.
LeafGuard
LeafGuard is made by Englert and sold through authorized dealers. It replaces the whole gutter with a seamless aluminum trough whose top is covered by a curved hood. Rain follows the curve over the edge and into a slot, while leaves are meant to slide off the front.
That makes it worth a look when your gutters are due for replacement anyway, since you are buying the gutter and the guard in one. If your gutters are sound, you are paying to replace metal that did not need it. Hood designs also have a known weakness: they are the guard type that struggles most in a downpour, when fast water overshoots the curve.
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What do the LeafFilter and LeafGuard warranties cover?
Both are sold as lifetime and clog-free. Past the headline they cover different things, different people stand behind them, and they treat the next owner of the house differently.
| LeafFilter | LeafGuard | |
|---|---|---|
| Clog promise | If the system lets the gutters clog with debris, fill with water and overflow | Guaranteed not to clog for as long as you own the home |
| What you get | A repair, or a refund of the material purchase price | A free gutter cleaning |
| Who backs the clog promise | LeafFilter | The dealer who installed it, alone |
| Water damage inside the house | Covered when the overflow causes it | Not part of the promise |
| When you sell | Transfers to the next owner | Transfers, but shrinks each year, and the new owner must notify Englert within 30 days of the sale |
| Registration | Required | Within 30 days of installation |
| Not covered | Structural changes to the house, trees, acts of nature | Ice, wind and hail, structural failure and settling, objects blown by the wind |
The LeafFilter remedy is worth reading twice. If the system fails and LeafFilter refunds rather than repairs, the refund is the price of the material, and the installation is not part of it.
LeafGuard’s clog promise belongs to the dealer, so the dealer is the warranty. If the dealer closes, the promise goes with it. Before signing, ask who the dealer is, how long they have worked here, and who would honor a clog claim in ten years. Englert, the maker, separately covers the finish and manufacturing defects for the life of the property, and its obligation is capped at the original product price plus installation labor.
Neither warranty pays for hail or ice. LeafGuard’s names them, and LeafFilter’s excludes acts of nature. A guard or gutter dented by a storm is a homeowners insurance claim.
Once a LeafGuard house changes hands, the finish warranty is prorated: full value in the first year, less every year after, down to 10 percent of the installation cost by year fifteen. If you are buying a house with either system, ask the seller for the warranty paperwork at closing, and for LeafGuard, send Englert the transfer notice within 30 days. The gutter checklist for Sioux Falls homebuyers covers the rest of what to look at.
What is Leaf Solution?
Leaf Solution is a gutter guard maker, founded in 2002, that sells through local contractors rather than to homeowners. It makes two stainless steel micro-mesh guards and a perforated aluminum one called the New Wave. Its warranty runs 20 years on manufacturing defects and workmanship and excludes severe weather. It publishes no prices, so a local installer quotes it. The mesh works the way LeafFilter’s does; the differences are the warranty length and who stands behind it.
The in-home sale
Both brands sell through a free visit to your house that ends with a price and usually a financing offer. Homeowners describe high opening quotes that come down after negotiation, and about a quarter of LeafFilter buyers finance the job. None of that is unusual for the category, but it shapes how to buy.
Take the price home. South Dakota lets you cancel a sale of $25 or more made in your home until midnight of the third business day, and the seller has to give you a written cancellation notice at the sale. Get a measured quote from a local installer for the same footage, and compare them line by line. A price that expires tonight is a sales tactic, not a discount.
What a Sioux Falls year does to either
No guard prevents ice dams. They start with heat escaping the attic, and This Old House specifically flags LeafFilter’s susceptibility to ice dams in snowy climates. A covered gutter can also hold ice along its edge. The fix for ice dams is in the attic, whichever guard you buy.
Summer storms are the other test. Gutters here are sized for 7.4 inches of rain an hour at peak, and both systems shed water over the front once their tops are covered or the water is moving fast. On a steep roof or under a valley, ask the salesperson to explain how their system handles a storm, not a garden hose.
Which makes sense
- Gutters are sound and you want the finest filtration: micro-mesh, from LeafFilter or a local installer. Compare the two prices.
- Gutters are due for replacement anyway: LeafGuard is a real option, priced against new seamless gutters plus a guard from a local installer.
- Gutters are sound and the trees are mostly big-leaf: neither. A metal screen or regular cleaning costs far less.
- Money is tight: two cleanings a year cost about $240 to $470. Work out how many years a guard takes to pay that back before signing a five-figure contract.
Questions about LeafFilter and LeafGuard
What is the difference between LeafFilter and LeafGuard?
LeafFilter is a stainless steel micro-mesh cover fitted onto the gutters you already have. LeafGuard replaces your gutters with a one-piece seamless aluminum gutter that has a hood built over the top. One is a guard, the other is a new gutter system.
Which is cheaper, LeafFilter or LeafGuard?
Both are at the top of the market. In 2026, LeafFilter runs about $18 to $45 a foot and LeafGuard about $20 to $70, though LeafGuard includes new gutters. A local micro-mesh install runs about $7 to $11 a foot.
Does LeafFilter have an office in Sioux Falls?
Yes. LeafFilter lists a Sioux Falls office on North Cliff Avenue and says it has installed on more than 3,700 homes in the area.
What does the LeafFilter warranty include and not cover?
It covers the gutters clogging and overflowing while LeafFilter is on them, and interior water damage from that overflow, with a repair or a refund of the material price. It does not cover structural changes to the house, trees or acts of nature such as hail, and it has to be registered.
Who honors the LeafGuard guarantee?
The installing dealer. LeafGuard’s warranty says clog claims are the sole responsibility of the dealer who installed it, and the remedy is a free cleaning. Englert, the maker, covers the finish and manufacturing defects. Ask who the dealer is and how long they have been here.
Is the LeafGuard warranty transferable?
Yes, but the new owner must notify Englert within 30 days of the sale, and the finish warranty is prorated after the transfer, falling to 10 percent of the installation cost by year fifteen.
Do LeafFilter and LeafGuard work in a South Dakota winter?
No guard stops ice dams, which start with attic heat. This Old House flags LeafFilter’s susceptibility to ice dams in snowy climates, and hood-style systems like LeafGuard are the type that struggles most in a heavy downpour.
What is Leaf Solution?
A gutter guard maker founded in 2002 that sells through local contractors. It makes two stainless steel micro-mesh guards and a perforated aluminum guard, with a 20-year warranty on defects and workmanship.
Can I cancel after signing at the kitchen table?
Yes, for a sale of $25 or more made in your home. South Dakota gives you until midnight of the third business day. The seller has to hand you a written cancellation notice at the sale.
Get a quote
Want a local price to set beside a LeafFilter or LeafGuard quote? Tell us about the job and the length of your gutters, and a local gutter contractor will call, text or email to set up a visit. The quote is free.