Electrical Panel Cost Calculator

About $4,000 nationally for the service upgrade itself — inside the $3,000–$5,000 range Caudill's 2026 guide publishes for 1960–2000 homes, and near Fixr's $4,000 high-end figure for 200-amp work. Adding a new meter socket, two ground rods and full utility coordination — typical on a real 100→200 A job — lands the whole project near $5,800 before regional adjustment.

A 200 A swap keeps the service entrance, meter and grounding exactly as they are, so the crew is in and out in 4–8 hours — about $2,250 installed. Increasing the amperage legally requires new entrance conductors sized for the load, a grounding system rework, a permit, and the utility to pull and reconnect the meter, which roughly doubles the labor. Caudill's notes same-location swaps avoid the permit complications and run 30–40% less labor than service upgrades.

The physical swap is 4–8 hours with power off for most of that; plan for the fridge, medical devices and remote work accordingly. The longer pole is scheduling: the permit must be pulled before work and inspected after (1–3 business days in most jurisdictions), and any utility-coordination step adds days to weeks. Caudill's flags that projects needing transformer-level utility work can stretch 3–6 months.

Yes, essentially everywhere in the US — a panel is service equipment, and the permit ($50–$300 depending on jurisdiction; $150 modeled here) pays for an inspector to verify the work. Skipping it can void the electrician's license protection, your homeowner's insurance coverage for electrical fires, and your ability to sell without disclosures. If a contractor suggests working without one, that is your cue to walk.

The utility owns the service drop and the meter, and only its technician may pull and reinstall the meter around the work — your electrician schedules the disconnect/reconnect appointment, and the $900 coordination line here models those fees plus the scheduling overhead. Book that window before the panel is even ordered: utility lead times run days to weeks in some territories, and nothing can be energized until the meter goes back in. True utility-side construction — moving the drop, upgrading the transformer — is billed separately and can add $2,000–$25,000 in extreme cases (Caudill's), which is why this calculator excludes it.

Usually a sub-panel. Full panels are a space problem, not a capacity problem: tandem breakers (~$250) or a 100 A sub-panel (~$3,200 installed) frees slots for a fraction of a service upgrade. You only genuinely need more amperage when the *load calculation* exceeds the main breaker — whole-house heat pumps, a 48 A EV charger, a large solar array. Caudill's notes smart panels and load-management devices let roughly a third of 100 A homes skip the service upgrade entirely.

Yes — and at $2,680 installed (HomeGuide publishes $200–$800) it's the cheapest line on this page. The 2020 NEC now requires surge protection on new or replaced dwelling services anyway, so if you're upgrading, an electrician will likely quote it. It clamps lightning and grid surges before they reach HVAC boards, EV chargers and electronics that cost far more than the device.

Not as a line item — appraisers don't credit panels — but it removes three deal-killers. Home inspectors flag 60–100 A fused panels and legacy hazard brands as safety items buyers price into offers; insurers increasingly surcharge, require an upgrade, or decline renewals on them; and 200 A service is the de-facto prerequisite for a 48 A EV charger, heat pumps, induction cooking and solar — upgrades that do carry appraisal value. Caudill's points out that 200→400 A upgrades are almost exclusively for large solar arrays and multiple EVs — so for most homes a $6,000-class 200 A service is the sweet spot, not 400 A.