Estimate your building
Four answers. The range depends only on the building and how much of it is repiped; everything else is shown as its own line, so you can see what each part of the cost is.
Typical Chicago-area range
$5,000 to $15,000+
Whole single-family house. Fully finished two- and three-story homes run higher.
What moves the price
- Pushes toward the high endEach finished floor means more walls and ceilings to open and close. A fully finished two- or three-story house pushes toward the high end and can run past it.
- BasementAn unfinished basement ceiling leaves the main lines exposed, which keeps the first-floor runs simpler.
- Pushes toward the high endPlaster opened in clean rectangles at fittings and turns, tile reached from the back where possible, and who closes the openings. Who patches is a line in the quote.
Permit: City of Chicago Department of Buildings
Replacing existing water piping goes through the Express Permit Program, which charges by the dwelling unit, not by the size of the job.
| Express plumbing permit$150 x 1 dwelling unit | $150 |
|---|---|
| Permit total | $150 |
- If the work changes the layout instead of replacing what is there, it goes to standard plan review, which starts with a $600 non-refundable deposit.
- Work on the water meter or the service line needs a separate water permit.
- The City adjusts its fees each year, so the permit line is confirmed when the application is filed.
Department of Buildings permit fees
Material: Copper
The Chicago Plumbing Code lists brass, copper (Type K, L and M) and galvanized steel for water distribution, and no PEX. Copper costs more than PEX as material, but inside the city it is the material, so it does not move one Chicago quote against another.
Not in the range
- Patching and painting, unless the quote lists it
- The water heater itself and new fixtures
- Sewer and drain lines, which are a separate trade
- The lead service line, which is its own project and permit
These are budgeting figures, not a quote. The permit lines are the City's published fees; the price for your building comes after a walk-through that starts at the meter and main shutoff.
How the estimate works
The ranges are typical Chicago-area ranges for a whole-building repipe, drawn from local project figures. They are budgeting figures, not the contractors' rates and not a quote. No answer you give changes them: there are no multipliers and no square-foot scaling, and the upper end stays open because finished, taller buildings run past it.
The permit lines come from the City of Chicago Department of Buildings Express Permit fee table, multiplied by the dwelling units in the building. For Oak Park the calculator shows the Village's two plumbing fee lines, $100 per unit and $175 per system or unit, without a total, because the Village decides which applies. Lead service line programs come from the City of Chicago Department of Water Management and the Evanston and Skokie program pages.
For context on why Chicago figures sit above national ones: the Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the mean wage for plumbers in the Chicago metro at $46.36 an hour against $34.70 nationally (Chicago metro, United States). A wage is not a billing rate, but it moves every labor-heavy job.
What you get for each building
| Your answers | The calculator shows |
|---|---|
| Whole single-family house | $5,000 to $15,000+, a typical Chicago-area range. Fully finished two- and three-story homes run higher. |
| Whole two-flat | $8,000 to $18,000+, a typical Chicago-area range. Larger or fully finished buildings run higher. |
| 3 or 4 flat, condo unit, mixed-use or commercial | No range. The drivers for that building, and a price after a walk-through. |
| Any partial repipe | No range. Which lines are replaced and where new meets old decide the price. |
Never inside the range
- The permit, shown as its own line ($150 per dwelling unit in Chicago)
- A replacement water heater, and new fixtures
- Patching and painting, unless the quote lists it
- Sewer and drain lines, which are a separate trade
- The lead service line, which the City values at $16,000 to $30,000 for a full replacement
Questions about the calculator
Why does the calculator give a range for a house or a two-flat but not for a 3-flat or a condo?
A range is published only where local project figures support one: $5,000 to $15,000+ for a whole single-family house and $8,000 to $18,000+ for a whole two-flat. A 3 or 4 flat, a condo unit, a mixed-use building or a partial repipe varies too much with risers, unit boundaries and access, so the calculator shows what drives the price and leaves the number to a walk-through.
Does the Chicago permit fee go up with the size of the repipe?
No. The Department of Buildings charges the Express plumbing permit by the dwelling unit, not by the size of the job: $150 per unit, plus $150 per unit when risers are replaced and $75 for a replaced water heater. A job that changes the layout goes to plan review instead, which starts with a $600 non-refundable deposit.
Should the lead service line and the repipe be priced together?
Price them as two lines, even when one contractor does both. The service line is its own permit and project. In Chicago, under the Homeowner-Initiated program the City waives the permit fees and connects the new line to the main for a standalone replacement, so ask how doing both at once affects that, and plan the order so the new line and the new piping meet at a new main shutoff.
Get an Exact Quote
Send the building details and a walk-through turns this range into a price for your building. Your calculator answers are added to the request.
Call (872) 270-5522Chicago Lake Repiping2243 S Throop St, Chicago, IL 60608
office@chicagolakerepiping.com