with American products
w/ American products
All of the pergolas featured on this page have a 12' x 7' pergola roof covered by shade purlins, not including the end caps on traditional-style pergolas (which extend 9 inches beyond the ends of the 12' beams and the 7' rafters, unless you opt for flat end caps). So for all of the 12-foot by 7-foot pergolas on this page, the beams and shade purlins are all 12 feet long (as they run the 12-foot width of the pergola), and the rafters are 7' long (as they run the 7-foot depth of the pergola), not including end caps.
The posts (i.e. columns) of a traditional 12' x 7' pergola can be placed anywhere from 0" to 36" in from the outside edges of the beams and rafters (not including the 9" end caps), as shown in this diagram. Most customers choose to place the posts 12 inches in from the ends of the beams/rafters, which puts the outside edges of the posts 10 feet apart width-wise and 5 feet apart depth-wise. But again, you can position the posts anywhere from 0 to 36 inches in from the ends of the beams/rafters to create your desired overhangs. It's also worth noting that the overhang can be different on one side than it is on the other sides, if needed or desired.
For modern-style 12x7 pergolas (which never have overhangs), the posts are always in the corners. So for modern pergolas, the outside edges of the posts will be 12 feet apart width-wise and 7 feet apart depth-wise.
To make our pergolas as affordable as possible, we only manufacture the beams, rafters, purlin holders and shade purlins in 2-foot increments. All of the kits on this page actually have 8-foot rafters and accompanying purlin holders, which you will need to trim down to 7 feet (using a basic circular saw or miter saw) in order to create a 12x7 pergola. If one or both of the width/depth dimensions of your outdoor space is slightly shorter than 12 feet by 7 feet, you can cut any of the pieces down to the exact length required. So the 12x7 pergolas on this page can easily be turned into 11.625-foot by 6.75-foot pergolas (or whatever specific dimensions you need).
Please be careful when ordering your pergola. A 12x7 pergola is not the same as a 7x12 pergola.
The attached 12x7 pergolas on this page will attach to your home on the 12' side and come 7' out from the wall. For free-standing 12 x 7 pergolas, the shade purlins (which create shade underneath the pergola) must run the 12-foot width of the pergola. So to maximize the pergola's shade, you will want to orient the pergola such that the evening sunlight comes from the 12-foot width side. If your evening sunlight will come from the 7-foot side, you'll want one of these 7x12 pergolas instead.