If you are looking to build a new home or repair an existing one, and you need some new roofing, there are many brands of shingles to consider. Two of the biggest shingles manufacturers in North America include GAF and Atlas. Both are highly trusted brand names, but there are some big differences between them that you need to know.
Today, we’re going to compare these two manufacturers side-by-side, focusing mainly on their flagship products. Let’s get to it and find out whether you want GAF or Atlas shingles.
GAF Overview
As a brand name, GAF is one of the more popular and reputable shingle businesses out there. What is interesting to note is that GAF is actually a part of one of the largest roofing and waterproofing businesses on this planet.
In fact, it has been around since 1886, and right now, is the leading shingle and roofing manufacturer in all of North America.
As far as regular homeowners are concerned, this is a very popular brand name to consider. One of the main reasons for this is that there is a large selection of products, with most of them being affordably priced, yet still fairly high in quality.
Atlas Overview
Atlas as a company is not nearly as old, having gotten its start in 1982 with a single asphalt shingle manufacturing facility. However, since then, the company has grown to over 36 facilities located in North America, allowing for worldwide distribution.
The company has a fantastic selection of shingles, underlayments, roof and wall insulation products, molded products, and more.
This brand is known for producing fairly high-quality products that come at relatively reasonable prices. Let’s move on and take a closer look at what exactly you can expect from both of these brand names.
GAF vs. Atlas: How Do They Compare?
Let’s now take a look at exactly how these two brands compare in terms of product lineup, quality, durability, wind rating, fire ratings, and more.
Product Lineup
What can be said about GAF is that this brand has an absolutely fantastic and massive product lineup. There are shingles designed for the average homeowner, which are very affordable, as well as very high-end shingles too.
There are no fewer than 15 different types of shingles available from this brand, including three-tab shingles, designer shingles, and Timberline shingles. These also come in many colors and styles. By far the most popular option from this brand is the Timberline selection, so this is our main focus for today.
Atlas also has a great selection of products including three-tab shingles, architectural shingles, and specialty shingles. The most popular shingles from this brand are known as Pinnacle Pristine, so this is what we will be focusing on today. That said, the lineup isn’t quite as big as with GAF.
Overall Quality
In terms of overall quality, GAF is no slouch. This brand is known for producing fairly high-quality shingles, particularly those Timberline shingles that last for many years to come. However, one of the main selling points of this brand is affordability.
Unfortunately, this affordability does come with some drawbacks, such as extreme durability. For instance, even the Timberline shingles are known for suffering from some granule loss. They just aren’t the number one most durable shingles out there.
We then have Atlas shingles, particularly the Pinnacle Pristine shingles. These might not be the cheapest shingles in the world, but they are known for having extreme durability. They don’t suffer from much granule loss, they have great impact resistance, good wind resistance, and more.
When it comes down to it, the Pinnacle Pristine is probably a little more durable than the Timberline. Both brands rate highly in terms of impact, resistance, resistance, and algae resistance, but Atlas tends to rate a little higher, especially if we are talking about the Pinnacle Pristine shingles when compared to the Timberlines.
Durability
Obviously, we cannot generalize the durability of both brands based on single products. However, in the grand scheme of things, Atlas shingles, particularly those Pinnacle Pristines, do appear to be a little more durable overall than the GAF Timberlines.
Now, this is not to say that the GAF Timberline shingles are bad or not durable, but the Atlas shingles are just more so. If you are looking for extreme durability, go for the Atlas Pinnacle Impact Shingles.
Wind Rating
The vast majority of GAF shingles, including the Timberline, have wind ratings of 130 mph, or close to 210 kilometers per hour. This can also be said for the Atlas Pinnacle Pristine shingles. However, Atlas does also produce other shingles that have wind ratings up to 150 mph, making them appear slightly better on this front.
Algae Resistance
The GAF Timberline shingles are known for being fairly resistant to algae buildups. They don’t suffer much from this at all. However, the Atlas Pinnacle Pristine shingles are known for being even better. Across the board, Atlas is well known for having shingles that have great algae resistance, thanks to their special scotch guard layer.
Energy Efficiency
The Timberline shingles from GAF are Energy Star certified. Meaning that you have great energy-saving capabilities, and are said to allow for roughly 20% payback of the initial cost within just a few years of the initial installation.
The Atlas Pinnacle Pristine shingles are also Energy Star certified and should produce roughly the same payback in the same period of time. Both sets have the potential to reduce heating and cooling costs by around 15%.
Fire Rating
Both of these shingles, as well as the vast majority of shingles from both brands, feature a Class A fire rating, which is the highest possible rating.
Warranty
The Timberline shingles from GAF have a 50-year warranty. However, the Atlas Pinnacle Pristine shingles have a limited lifetime warranty.
Price
The shingles from GAF should cost you between $2.50 to $3.00 per square foot. Atlas shingles go for between $2.20 and $3.25 per square foot.
GAF vs. Atlas: Which Offers Better Roof Shingles?
When it comes down to it GAF is a perfectly fine option to go with for the average homeowner. They have great products, such as the Timberline shingles, and they come in at reasonable prices.
However, if you really want the best of the best, then the Atlas Pinnacle Pristine shingles are probably better. They’re more durable, longer lasting, and more algae-resistant. They also have a better warranty. However, they’re also far more expensive.
How Do GAF and Atlas Compare with Other Shingles Brands?
See how GAF compares with: BP | CertainTeed | IKO | Malarkey | Owens Corning | TAMKO
See how Atlas compares with: CertainTeed | Malarkey | Owens Corning | TAMKO