Building Permit Fees by City — 2026 Comparison

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Building permit fees in the US range from $0 (small repairs) to several percent of project value for major construction. Most residential permits cost $50-$500. Most commercial permits cost $500-$5,000. Fees vary wildly by city — a $50,000 kitchen remodel costs about $200 in permit fees in Houston and $1,500 in San Francisco. This guide compares actual fees in the 25 largest US metros and explains the four pricing models cities use.

The four ways cities calculate permit fees

Almost every US municipality uses one of these four formulas:

  1. Percent of project valuation. Most common. Examples: Austin TX charges 1.5% of construction value (minimum $80). San Francisco charges ~3.5% on commercial. Boston is roughly 1.1%. Your roofer "declares" the project value on the permit application; the fee scales from there.
  2. Flat fee per permit type. Simpler systems. Phoenix charges $100-$300 for residential re-roofs regardless of value. Many smaller cities use flat fees in the $50-$200 range for routine residential work.
  3. Per-square-foot fee. Florida cities and many coastal jurisdictions use this for hurricane-zone reviews. Miami-Dade charges $0.25-$0.50 per square foot of roof area plus a $50 base.
  4. Tiered table. Larger cities publish a fee schedule with brackets — "construction value $25,001-$50,000: $458 + $13 per $1,000 above $25,000". NYC, LA, Chicago all use schedules.

Sample 2026 fees for a $50,000 residential project

Using a hypothetical kitchen remodel with $50,000 declared construction value across the 12 metros PermitGrab tracks most heavily. (Fees current as of 2026; always check your local building department for current rates.)

City Approximate permit fee Pricing model
Austin, TX$7501.5% of value
Chicago, IL$580Tiered schedule
Phoenix, AZ$420Tiered + flat
San Antonio, TX$3101.0% of value
Miami-Dade, FL$1,100Per-sq-ft + base (hurricane review)
New York City, NY$1,200Tiered + multiple sub-fees
Los Angeles, CA$1,400Tiered + plan-check
San Jose, CA$1,800Tiered + plan-check + Title 24
Nashville, TN$330Tiered schedule
Atlanta, GA$540Tiered + state surcharge
Cleveland, OH$240Tiered (low-fee state)
San Francisco, CA$2,1003.5% commercial / 2.8% res tiers

Three patterns to notice. (1) Texas cities are cheap (low-cost-of-permitting state). (2) Coastal California is expensive — plan-check plus Title 24 energy compliance adds 30-60% on top of base fees. (3) Hurricane-zone cities (Miami-Dade, Tampa, Houston) tack on wind-code review fees that scale by roof area.

What's included in the permit fee?

Permit fees cover the city's review and inspection cost. Typical inclusions:

What's not included: state surcharges (most states add 1-3% on top — Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arizona all do this), impact fees for new construction (separate, often thousands of dollars), water/sewer connection fees, and any private third-party plan review your project requires.

Why two cities with similar permits charge very different fees

The single biggest factor is cost-of-living and city operating cost. San Francisco's building department spends ~$200K per permit-counter employee; Cleveland's spends ~$70K. Those costs flow through to fee schedules. Second factor: complexity of code review. Florida hurricane-zone cities have to do wind-uplift calculations on every roof permit; Cleveland doesn't. Third factor: subsidy choices. Some cities deliberately set permit fees below cost to encourage building (small Texas suburbs); others price near-cost-recovery (CA cities); a few price above cost as a revenue source (Chicago).

Can I see the actual permit fee before I file?

Most major cities publish their fee schedule online — usually under "Building Department → Fees" on the city website. Many also offer a fee estimator (Austin, San Jose, NYC all have decent ones). Search "[your city] building permit fee estimator" or pull the PDF schedule directly. If you're using a contractor, the fee should be itemized on your contract.

How can I save on permit fees?

Three real moves. (1) Bundle permits — if you're doing electrical + plumbing + mechanical at the same time, file them together to share plan-review fees. (2) Phase the project — a $100K renovation broken into two $50K permits doesn't save in cities with linear tiers but can save in cities with progressive percent rates. (3) Don't over-declare project value — fees scale with value, and your contractor may pad the declaration to "be safe." Have them itemize and only declare actual hard cost.

How much do contractor leads from permit data cost?

This is the related question for the B2B side. Building permit fees fund the city's review; permit data access is the contractor's tool for finding work. PermitGrab is $149/month for covered public-record markets, with contractor, violation, and property fields shown where the underlying source makes them available. See How Much Do Contractor Leads Cost? for the full breakdown.

Where to look up actual fees

City-by-city:

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Frequently asked questions

How much do building permits cost in the US?

Most residential permits cost $50-$500. Commercial permits $500-$5,000. Major new construction can be tens of thousands. A $50,000 kitchen remodel runs ~$200 in fees in Houston and ~$1,800 in San Jose — fees vary wildly by city.

How do cities calculate permit fees?

Four common models: (1) percent of project valuation (Austin = 1.5%, San Francisco ~3.5%); (2) flat fee per permit type ($100-$300 typical); (3) per-square-foot (Florida hurricane zones); (4) tiered fee schedule (NYC, LA, Chicago). Most large cities use option 1 or 4.

Which US cities have the cheapest building permit fees?

Texas (Houston, San Antonio, Dallas suburbs) tend to be cheapest — low-cost-of-permitting states. Ohio cities (Cleveland, Columbus) are also relatively cheap. Florida and California are most expensive once you stack plan-check, Title 24 energy review, and hurricane-zone surcharges.

What is included in a building permit fee?

Plan review, permit issuance, required inspections during construction, and certificate of occupancy issuance (for new construction). Not included: state surcharges (often 1-3% added on top), impact fees, water/sewer connection fees, private third-party plan review.

How can I get an accurate fee quote before filing?

Most major cities publish their fee schedule online and many offer a fee estimator (Austin, San Jose, NYC have decent ones). Search "[your city] building permit fee estimator." Your contractor should itemize the fee on the contract.

How can I save on permit fees?

Bundle permits (electrical + plumbing + mechanical filed together share plan-review fees). Don't over-declare project value — fees scale with the declared number. For solar specifically, use SolarAPP+ in cities that support it (instant approval, reduced fee).

How much does contractor lead data cost?

Different question — that's the B2B side. PermitGrab indexes permits + contractor data from 1,000+ cities for $149/month flat. See our pricing comparison.

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