How much does a building permit cost? (2026)
A building permit usually costs $115 to $779, with the median around $181 to $270. Two things set the number: the value of the work and the city you build in. There is no national permit fee, because every city writes its own schedule. And this is the permit fee by itself, what the building department charges to issue it, not the labor and materials that run most of the bill.
New to permits? The plain-English walkthrough lives at how much does a building permit cost; this page is the data behind it.
Building permit cost by project value
Most building departments scale the permit fee to the declared value of the work, either as a percentage or in flat tiers. Typical fee across the 37 cities we track:
| Project value | Typical range | Median | Across cities |
|---|---|---|---|
| $8K project | $115–$390 | $181 | $69 Nashville to $800 San Francisco |
| $12K project | $129–$518 | $186 | $80 Oklahoma City to $948 San Francisco |
| $25K project | $181–$779 | $270 | $124 Tampa to $1,429 San Francisco |
Permit cost by trade
A building permit often pairs with separate trade permits. Typical fee for each, with the full breakdown on its own page:
| Permit type | Typical range | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical permit | $70–$169 | $102 |
| Plumbing permit | $63–$138 | $77 |
| HVAC permit | $66–$149 | $98 |
| Roof replacement permit | $141–$335 | $172 |
| Demolition permit | $114–$322 | $200 |
| Fence permit | $53–$98 | $76 |
Building permit fee by city
Verified 2026 fee for a typical residential building permit, highest to lowest. Every fee links to its source city page.
| City | Building Permit Fee |
|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | $800 |
| Seattle, WA | $649 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $610 |
| Chicago, IL | $602 |
| Portland, OR | $597 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $558 |
| Sacramento, CA | $480 |
| Detroit, MI | $476 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $392 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $390 |
| Columbus, OH | $389 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $380 |
| Cincinnati, OH | $363 |
| Tulsa, OK | $348 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $227 |
| St. Louis County, MO | $188 |
| Miami, FL | $186 |
| New York, NY | $183 |
| Dallas, TX | $181 |
| Fort Worth, TX | $169 |
| Des Moines, IA | $155 |
| Boise, ID | $147 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $142 |
| Boston, MA | $130 |
| Raleigh, NC | $129 |
| Tampa, FL | $124 |
| Charlotte, NC | $124 |
| Charleston, SC | $115 |
| Orlando, FL | $109 |
| City of St. Louis, MO | $105 |
| Virginia Beach, VA | $102 |
| Richmond, VA | $101 |
| Kansas City, MO | $84 |
| Denver, CO | $83 |
| Memphis, TN | $80 |
| Oklahoma City, OK | $80 |
| Nashville, TN | $69 |
Method: each city fee verified from its published permit fee schedule for a typical residential building permit. See our methodology and press & data page. Permit fees are set by local government and change periodically.
Dataset compiled by David Olson, Creator of the Cost Index & Permit Dataset. Download the full dataset (CSV).