What to charge to replace tripped or failed 15-20a breaker
This is a service and troubleshooting call, where the real product is your diagnosis, not the part. Figure about 45 minutes on a Normal run, with roughly $18 of material at contractor cost before markup. At a $120/hour shop rate - the worked example we use across this site - the flat-rate math for "replace tripped or failed 15-20a breaker" comes out like this:
| Easy | everything cooperates: good access, sound wiring, no surprises | $95 |
| Normal | the typical version of this job in an occupied home | $115 |
| Hard | poor access, aged or altered wiring, extra protection or staging | $145 |
Same math: hours x grade x your rate, plus material at 25% markup, rounded up to $5. Don't know your rate? Find it free in two minutes.
What makes this job Easy or Hard
Troubleshooting is priced on uncertainty, not parts. Easy means the fault announces itself: one dead device, an obvious burned connection, a breaker that trips the moment you flip it. Normal is the typical call where you spend real time isolating the circuit and checking a handful of likely points before you find it. Hard is the haunted-house call: intermittent faults, previous owners' handiwork, backstabbed devices daisy-chained through half the floor, or a fault that only shows up under load. Age of the home moves the grade fast - aluminum branch wiring, cloth insulation and missing grounds all add time. So does access: a panel behind shelving in a finished basement is not the same job as one in an open garage. If the symptom description on the phone sounds vague, assume at least Normal and say the number for Hard out loud before you start.
Don't forget
At these numbers this is a small-ticket task: apply your minimum job charge (most one-van shops use $100-150) or bundle it with other work on the same visit - the drive and setup cost the same either way.
Diagnostic time is billable even when the fix is a five-dollar part. Charge the diagnostic as its own line and quote the repair on top, or the day is gone and the invoice is not.
Questions
Why is there a price range instead of one number?
Because the same task is not the same job in every house. The range reflects an Easy, Normal and Hard grade at the same hourly rate - access, wiring condition and surprises move a job between grades. Pick the grade honestly before you quote, not after.
Should I charge a service call fee on top of this?
For troubleshooting, most small shops fold the first chunk of diagnostic time into a service call fee ($100-200 is typical) and quote the repair separately. That protects you when the fix is quick and the finding took an hour.
Related service & troubleshooting prices
- What to charge to diagnostic service call (first hour of troubleshooting) - $120 Normal
- What to charge to repair loose or open neutral at device - $135 Normal
- What to charge to locate and repair open circuit (single run) - $275 Normal
- All 75 flat-rate task prices
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