Electrical · National cost guide
Electrical panel upgrade cost.
A panel upgrade is priced by the amperage, whether the service entrance and meter have to change, and how many circuits have to be moved. The ranges below are national editorial estimates with a named source and date. They are not a quote for a McKinney or Tacoma home, and no local band is published until this directory has 50 completed requests.
The saved export was checked Nov 2, 2026. It records credential status and city coverage; it does not record prices, availability or the exact jobs a business takes.
The cost table
4 cited ranges
Every row names its scope, the range, the source and the date the source was updated. These are national editorial estimates, not a quote for a home in Tacoma.
| Scope | Range | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
Upgrade from 100 amps to 200 amps The source's range for a 100-to-200 amp upgrade where the existing service can be reused. | $1,300 – $1,600 | HomeGuide, How Much Does It Cost To Upgrade Or Replace An Electrical Panel?Source date Dec 30, 2024 · read Nov 9, 2026 |
New 200-amp service panel Higher end of the same job when a new service panel is required. | $1,800 – $2,500 | HomeGuide, How Much Does It Cost To Upgrade Or Replace An Electrical Panel?Source date Dec 30, 2024 · read Nov 9, 2026 |
Upgrade from 200 amps to 400 amps The source's range for a 400-amp upgrade. | $2,000 – $4,000 | HomeGuide, How Much Does It Cost To Upgrade Or Replace An Electrical Panel?Source date Dec 30, 2024 · read Nov 9, 2026 |
Low-amp subpanel A subpanel is a smaller job than a service upgrade and does not add capacity at the meter. | $500 – $1,000 | HomeGuide, How Much Does It Cost To Upgrade Or Replace An Electrical Panel?Source date Dec 30, 2024 · read Nov 9, 2026 |
We do not estimate a range from another market or from a contractor's rate card. A local band appears here only with 50 completed requests behind it.
Repair or replace
Repair or replace.
Two quotes for the same job can differ for reasons that have nothing to do with the number. Ask each business to name the scope behind its price.
Repair
A repair can be enough when one breaker, one bus connection or one circuit is faulty and the panel still has capacity. Ask for the failed part and the test that identified it.
Replace
A replacement is the safer answer when the panel is full, has known problem brands or damage, or cannot carry an added load such as an EV charger or a heat pump. Ask for the load calculation, not only a price.
Neither is always cheaper. A written quote should state the scope, the parts, the warranty and what is excluded.
What moves the price
Amperage and headroom
The panel size sets the material cost, but the real question is whether the service entrance, meter and utility feed can carry the new load. A 200-amp panel behind a 100-amp service is not a 200-amp house.
Circuits to move
Every existing circuit has to be identified, disconnected and landed on the new panel. A full panel with tandems and a subpanel takes longer than a clean 20-circuit load.
Code corrections
An inspection can require grounding, bonding, AFCI or GFCI protection that was not in the old installation. Ask whether the quote includes correcting what the inspector flags.
Permit and utility disconnect
The permit and the utility disconnect are separate steps with their own timing. The authority having jurisdiction sets the inspection, not the electrician.
What is excluded
Drywall repair, painting and landscape restoration are commonly excluded. A written quote should name what the electrician will not restore.
Choose a city
2 markets
Electrical records are published city by city. Each city shows the three records with the most complete evidence, chosen by credential status, phone, website, expiry and check date. That is not a job match, and no business paid to appear.
Method
What this guide is not.
- Ranges are external editorial estimates from HomeGuide, written 30 December 2024, read 9 November 2026. They are national, not local. Each row copies the source's own published range for the scope in that row; we have not averaged, adjusted or recalculated it. No business supplied a rate card, no completed request sits behind this page, and no local band is published before 50 completed requests.
- It is not a promise of availability. A listed business may be booked or may not take this job.
- It is not a ranking. The city panels show the most complete records, not the best business, and no business paid to appear.