MSRPGuide

Electrical Panel Replacement Costs (2026)

Updated September 2026

Panel replacement prices by amperage, panel + installation per project: $800–$1,500 for 100A · $1,300–$3,000 for 200A · $1,800–$3,500 for 300A · $2,000–$4,000 for 400A. A simple same-amperage breaker-box swap runs $500–$1,800 (typ $1,300); a 100A→200A service upgrade records $1,300–$3,000 — the same band as the 200A replacement row, but a different job (labeled side-by-side below, never averaged). What makes this category unusual: the three live publishers agree to the dollar on most tiers — the tightest convergence in our pricing engine — and there is no 150-amp tier: 100/200/300/400 is the whole ladder. Full guide: how much does it cost to replace an electrical panel, plus the electrical panel cost calculator.

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Panel replacement cost by amperage

Each row is panel + installation, per project, from the dataset (no standalone 150A tier exists in any publisher's table — a 150A panel typically prices near the 200A row's low end, as a note, not a cited figure).

AmperageCost installedNotes
100 amps$800–$1,500The common small-home tier — panel + installation; panel alone runs $100–$200
200 amps$1,300–$3,000The standard modern service — panel alone $250–$350
300 amps$1,800–$3,500Larger homes / heavy loads; panel alone $350–$500
400 amps$2,000–$4,000Big residential or light-commercial service; panel alone $500+

The amperage convergence table

The reason these bands are credible: This Old House (live, updated 03/31/2026), PanelUpgradeGuide, and Vetcon Electricians publish the same installed tiers — 100A $800–$1,500 · 200A $1,300–$3,000 · 300A $1,800–$3,500 · 400A $2,000–$4,000 — agreeing to the dollar on most tiers. Vetcon's recorded deviations: its 200A floor runs 100 lower and its 400A top runs 500 higher; both deviations are recorded, not smoothed. Vetcon is an electrical contractor's own guide and is labeled contractor-sourced — it corroborates the neutral tiers rather than anchoring them.

Breaker box replacement (simple swap)

Replacing a panel like-for-like — same amperage, no service upgrade — records $500–$1,800 (typ $1,300) (about $1,300 typical). Fresh installs where no panel exists price higher: $1,200–$1,600 for 100A and $1,800–$2,500 for 200A (This Old House's new-install rows). The swap is the budget path precisely because it changes nothing upstream — the service, meter, and mast stay as they are.

100A → 200A service upgrade

The upgrade records $1,300–$3,000 — the same band as the 200A replacement row, and that is the trap: a service upgrade adds the meter, mast, and utility coordination a like-for-like swap skips, and full-scope cases run $2,000–$4,000 (Rewiring America's reference) with contractor cases for complex upgrades from 4,500 up. The two rows are kept side-by-side and labeled, never averaged — when you get quotes, make them name which job they priced.

What drives the cost

  • Amperage tier — the #1 driver. The four-row ladder above.
  • Scope: swap vs upgrade. $500–$1,800 (typ $1,300) for a like-for-like swap vs the service-upgrade scope (meter/mast/utility) — the flag-labeled difference.
  • Sub-panel adds. $400–$2,000 for a garage/ADU/shop sub-panel.
  • Fuse conversion. $1,500–$4,000 to move a legacy fuse box to breakers.
  • Permits and inspection. $50–$300 per project (two sources agree exactly); jurisdiction-specific.
  • Electrician labor. $50–$150/hr licensed rates — complexity, not just hours, moves the bill.
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Get local quotes

A national band is the starting line. Written quotes on the same scope — amperage, swap-vs-upgrade named explicitly, permit included — compare like for like; hold each against the ladder and the convergence table above, and make any upgrade quote say what it includes.

Other home projects

  • Kitchen remodel — planning an appliance-heavy kitchen? New loads and moved circuits make the panel a real mid-range/high-end line item.
  • Whole-house standby generators — unit and installed cost — the transfer switch connects at the panel, making this the strongest adjacency we price.
  • HVAC — heat-pump and electric HVAC loads are the common reason a panel needs the capacity upgrade in the first place.
  • Pools & hot tubs — pool pumps and spa heaters are panel-load decisions of their own.
  • Driveways & concrete flatwork — trenching for a service run often shares the excavation with driveway work.
  • Dishwashers & garbage disposals — a disposal or dishwasher hookup is a small dedicated-circuit job — the panel-load adjacency.

FAQ

How much does it cost to replace an electrical panel?

By amperage, panel + installation per project: 100A $800–$1,500, 200A $1,300–$3,000, 300A $1,800–$3,500, 400A $2,000–$4,000. Three independent publishers agree to the dollar on most tiers (TOH, PanelUpgradeGuide, Vetcon).

How much is a 200-amp panel?

$1,300–$3,000 installed (panel + installation) — This Old House and PanelUpgradeGuide match exactly. Careful: a 100→200A service upgrade shares this band but is a different job.

What does a 100A to 200A upgrade cost?

$1,300–$3,000 — and it is not the same as a 200A replacement: the upgrade adds meter, mast, trenching, and utility coordination. The shared band is a scope-ambiguity the dataset flags; ask a quote to name which job it is.

How much does a breaker-box swap cost?

$500–$1,800, about $1,300 typical, for a like-for-like swap at the same amperage (Vetcon, contractor-sourced).

How much does a sub-panel cost?

$400–$2,000 installed (TOH $400–$1,750 · Vetcon $400–$2,000; per-source bands carried, not blended). Typical cases: a garage, ADU, or shop needing its own circuits.

Should I replace a fuse box?

A fuse-box conversion runs $1,500–$4,000 (search-served band, re-verified at page-build; Vetcon's live worked example totals $2,400). It's a conversion, not a swap — the hardware class changes. Whether/when to replace (symptom/lifespan facts) is not in the dataset, so this page doesn't claim it.

How much do electricians charge per hour?

$50–$150/hour for a licensed electrician (Vetcon live; search-served industry guides $75–$150+). Most panel jobs quote per project, not hourly.

Do I need a permit to replace an electrical panel?

Panel permits run $50–$300 per project (TOH and Vetcon agree exactly). Which permits and inspections your jurisdiction requires is [GATED] on local specifics — check your building department.

Sources

Every figure comes from the electrical-panel cost dataset (10 products / 66 price points / 4 sources / 6 flags). A provenance note unique to this category: no Fixr guide exists — the first Fixr-less category this engine prices — so the bands rest on This Old House (live, updated 03/31/2026), PanelUpgradeGuide, and the contractor-sourced Vetcon guide (labeled), with NerdWallet and HomeAdvisor figures search-served and re-verified before quoting.

Estimate only — get local written quotes. Bands are per-source and never averaged across publishers; the swap-vs-upgrade scope difference is labeled, not smoothed; no standalone 150A tier exists to quote. Whether-to-replace decisions (age, symptoms, safety) are outside this dataset — the page prices the job, it does not diagnose your panel. Figures were last checked September 2026. Full guide: panel replacement cost guide and the panel cost calculator.