Grand Rapids, MI
Grand Rapids plumbing permit cost
A Grand Rapids plumbing permit is a $52 application that includes one inspection
plus a short price list. Each of the schedule's twenty-eight listed items — backflow preventer, backwater valve, tub-shower, floor drain, grease trap, lavatory, kitchen sink, stacks, urinal, water closet and the rest — is $5.00. A water heater is $21 on its own row, and the water distribution system is priced by pipe size: $6 at 3/4 inch, $10 at 1 inch, $21 at 1-1/4, $26 at 1-1/2, $31 at 2 inches, $36 above 2. Eight items, a water heater and a 1-inch distribution line is $123.00 in total.
How this fee is calculated
These are the components the schedule defines for this permit, as they applied on 2026-09-28. A component only applies to your project if its conditions match — read that column before assuming a figure. Want a figure for your own project? Estimate this fee with the permit fee calculator.
| Component | Formula | Applies when | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbing permit application fee, $52 (includes one inspection)Permit fee | $52.00 flat fee | Every permit of this type | — |
| Plumbing — each listed fixture or device, $5Permit fee | $5.00 per fixture | Each fixture on the permit | — |
| Plumbing — water heater, $21Permit fee | $21.00 flat fee | water heater is true | — |
| Plumbing — water distribution 3/4, $6.00Permit fee | $6.00 flat fee | water distribution is 3/4 | — |
| Plumbing — water distribution 1, $10.00Permit fee | $10.00 flat fee | water distribution is 1 | — |
| Plumbing — water distribution 1-1/4, $21.00Permit fee | $21.00 flat fee | water distribution is 1-1/4 | — |
| Plumbing — water distribution 1-1/2, $26.00Permit fee | $26.00 flat fee | water distribution is 1-1/2 | — |
| Plumbing — water distribution 2, $31.00Permit fee | $31.00 flat fee | water distribution is 2 | — |
| Plumbing — water distribution over 2 inches, $36.00Permit fee | $36.00 flat fee | water distribution is over-2 | — |
A real permit fee is these components added together. The department’s final calculation is the one that applies — this is the schedule it will be based on.
A worked example
Follow the arithmetic by hand. Every line is produced by the engine from the rules above, so the total cannot drift away from the schedule behind it.
Worked example
A kitchen and bath remodel: eight listed items, a new water heater, and a 1-inch water distribution line.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Fixtures | 8 |
| Water heater | Yes |
| Water distribution | 1 |
Example total
$123.00
An estimate, not an official fee. It is calculated from the published fee schedule as it applied on 2026-09-28. The permit office’s own calculation is the one that applies, and your project may fall under rules this schedule does not describe.
Fee schedule as of 2026-09-28Rules applied 4Rules considered 9
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Plumbing permit application fee, $52 (includes one inspection)Permit feeS1, PLUMBING PERMIT FEES: "Application (Includes 1 inspection) — City Code, Chapter 132 — $52.00". The head row of the plumbing section, identical in amount to the electrical and mechanical application rows because the schedule prices the three trades' applications the same way. Unconditional; each additional inspection is $42 (named, not modelled).Show the working
| $52.00 flat fee | $52.00 |
Plumbing — each listed fixture or device, $5Permit feeS1, Chapter 132: twenty-eight named items at "$5.00" each — backflow preventer, backwater valve, bath tub-shower, catch basin/sump/roof drain, dishwashing machine, drinking fountain, floor drain/floor sink/trench drain, garbage disposal, grease trap/oil separator, laundry tray/stand pipes, lavatory, lawn sprinkler, water connected appliance, three-compartment pot and pan, kitchen sink, sink other than family use, slop or service sink, stacks (soil, waste, vent), urinal, water closet/toilet, foot bath/pedicure bath/shampoo, clinical sink, eye wash/emergency shower and bidet. The list is closed — unlike Detroit's catch-all row this schedule says "plus any other" nowhere — so the row is what it is: each listed item on the `fixtures` count, no default and no catch-all. A water heater is on the same page at $21 and is priced by its own row below.Show the working
| $5.00 per fixture | $40.00 |
Plumbing — water heater, $21Permit feeS1, Chapter 132: "Water Heater — $21.00", sitting among the $5 rows at its own price. Charged when custom.water_heater is true — the schedule gives it a price but no quantity column, so it is modelled as a declared item on the permit rather than multiplied by a count, and it stays off an estimate that does not declare one.Show the working
| $21.00 flat fee | $21.00 |
Plumbing — water distribution 1, $10.00Permit feeS1, Chapter 132: "Water Distribution 1" — $10.00". The six rows are keyed on custom.water_distribution — "3/4", "1", "1-1/4", "1-1/2", "2" or "over-2" — so exactly one can fire and an undeclared size fires none. The schedule's column header says "Fee per Unit" without saying what the unit beyond the size itself is; modelled as one declared distribution size per permit (research §6).Show the working
| $10.00 flat fee | $10.00 |
| Total | $123.00 |
Fees that do not apply here
Listed so you can see what was considered and left out, rather than wondering whether something is missing. A rule can also be left out because it is not published for this permit at all, and that is stated where it matters.
- Plumbing — water distribution 3/4, $6.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Plumbing — water distribution 1-1/4, $21.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Plumbing — water distribution 1-1/2, $26.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Plumbing — water distribution 2, $31.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Plumbing — water distribution over 2 inches, $36.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
Assumptions
- Calculated from 4 fee rules in effect on 2026-09-28.
- Amounts are rounded to the nearest cent, once, at the end of each component.
The schedule read top to bottom: the $52 application (one inspection included), eight listed items at $5.00 = $40.00, the $21 water heater, and the 1-inch distribution row at $10.00 — $123.00 in total. Nothing here is a percentage or a step; every row is a published dollar amount times something the reader declared.
The neighbours show each switch on its own. Drop the water heater and the distribution line and the same eight items are $92.00. Keep everything but take the distribution to over 2 inches and the total is $149.00 ($36 instead of $10). Declare no fixture count at all and the application fee still charges, with the item row saying the input was not provided rather than pricing zero items as though none were needed.
What is different in Grand Rapids
The $5 list is closed: twenty-eight things are named and the schedule says "plus any other" nowhere, so the count is the count — there is no catch-all line that could bill an item the document never priced. That is the difference a reader can verify: every dollar here sits next to a name on the schedule, from the $5 rows to the $21 water heater to the six distribution sizes, exactly one of which fires because a permit declares one service line's size.
What the $52 buys is stated in its own row: one inspection. The excess is $42 an inspection, and the rows this page does not sum are named with their amounts — medical gas zones at $52, gas piping at $5 an opening, the $173 admin fee for "working prior to permit", and the mechanical sheet beside this one. The City keeps residential and commercial plumbing as separate application cards, and new development that involves excavating, grading or paving files through LUDS instead, where "your review and permit fee" are combined "for one simple payment".
What this figure does not include
Impact fees, utility connections and other departments’ permits are the usual omissions, and in some jurisdictions they are larger than the permit fee itself.
Not included in these figures
This is the FY 2027 schedule's plumbing application, the $5 item rows, the water heater and the distribution sizes. It excludes:
- Medical Gas Zones ($52) and Gas Piping ($5 per opening) — priced on the same sheet and named rather than folded into a count this calculator does not take.
- Additional Inspection ($42), Admin Fee (working prior to permit) $173 and Written Report ($63 per hour) — real charges outside an ordinary permit estimate.
- Mechanical permits (Chapter 134) in full: the same $52 application head, then commercial items $7–$99, cfm-banded ventilation and air handlers, the ductwork ladder ($31/$42/$57/$73, then $11 per each additional $3,000 over $15,000) and residential rows $5–$52.
- Building, electrical and planning fees, and the calculator's disclaimer applies here too: the estimate on the fee page "does not include trade, planning, or land use develoment permit fees".
- The LUDS program for new development involving excavating, grading or paving — a "single application with a coordinated review process" that combines "your review and permit fee for one simple payment" — and water/sewer connection permits, which are their own application.
What you need before applying
- Residential and commercial plumbing permits are separate applicationsRequired
The trade permits page carries a card for each — "Residential Plumbing Permit" and "Commercial Plumbing Permit" — and routes new development involving excavating, grading or paving to the LUDS program's single coordinated application. The residential application list includes its own "Plumbing - Residential Application" for work on a single-family or duplex home, filed by the owner or a licensed contractor.
- One inspection is included in the $52 applicationRequired
"Application (Includes 1 inspection) — City Code, Chapter 132 — $52.00", with "Additional Inspection — $42.00" beside it: the plumbing application carries the same inspection allowance and the same additional-inspection price as the electrical one, because the schedule prices the three trades' applications identically.
Common questions
How much is a plumbing permit in Grand Rapids?
$52 for the application, which includes one inspection, then $5.00 for each of the schedule's listed items, $21 for a water heater, and the water distribution line by size ($6 to $36). Eight items with a water heater and a 1-inch line is $123.00; the barest permit is the $52 application alone.
FY 2027 fee schedule, PLUMBING PERMIT FEES, Chapter 132.
What counts as a $5 item?
The schedule's own twenty-eight: backflow preventer, backwater valve, bath tub-shower, catch basin/sump/roof drain, dishwashing machine, drinking fountain, floor drain/floor sink/trench drain, garbage disposal, grease trap/oil separator, laundry tray/stand pipes, lavatory, lawn sprinkler, water connected appliance, three-compartment pot and pan, kitchen sink, sink other than family use, slop or service sink, stacks (soil, waste, vent), urinal, water closet/toilet, foot bath/pedicure bath/shampoo, clinical sink, eye wash/emergency shower and bidet. The list is closed — no catch-all clause — so an item not on it is not charged as one.
FY 2027 fee schedule, the $5.00 rows of Chapter 132.
How much is a water heater and the water distribution line?
The water heater is $21 on its own row, above the $5 items. The water distribution system is priced by pipe size — $6 for 3/4 inch, $10 for 1 inch, $21 for 1-1/4, $26 for 1-1/2, $31 for 2 inches, $36 above 2 — and this site models it as one declared size per permit, because the schedule's "Fee per Unit" column never says what the unit beyond the size itself is.
FY 2027 fee schedule, Water Heater and Water Distribution rows, Chapter 132.
Are inspections included in the plumbing permit?
The first one is: the application row reads "Application (Includes 1 inspection) — $52.00". Each additional inspection is $42, printed directly beneath it. The $173 "Admin Fee (working prior to permit)" and the $63 hourly written report are separate rows and are not in any total on this page.
FY 2027 fee schedule, plumbing section head rows, Chapter 132.
Are residential and commercial plumbing permits different?
They are separate application cards on the City's trade permits page — "Residential Plumbing Permit" and "Commercial Plumbing Permit" — while the fee schedule prices the application, the items and the distribution rows the same way for both. New development involving excavating, grading or paving routes to the LUDS program instead, whose single application combines "your review and permit fee for one simple payment".
Trade Permits page, plumbing cards, read 2026-09-25.
Who can apply for a plumbing permit, and where?
The property owner or a licensed contractor, through the Accela Citizen Access portal at aca-prod.accela.com/GRANDRAPIDS with plans in the ePlan Room. The residential list carries its own "Plumbing - Residential Application" for work on a single-family or duplex home, and the Development Center answers questions at 616-456-4100 (devcenter@grcity.us, Mon–Fri 7:30 AM – 4 PM).
Residential Building Permits page, application list and filing rule.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Fee schedule (PDF)CityPrimary source
Planning, Design and Development Fee Schedule, FY 2027 (effective July 1, 2026)
Read 2026-09-25 in three pdftotext modes: -layout mispairs rows in this document (it drops the $4.00 of "Alternative Power, ea. add'l 1 KW" and shifts every electrical row below it, ending in orphan amounts with no label), while -table and -raw agree on every disputed row — their pairing is the one recorded. Building division fees (permits, administrative, electrical, mechanical, plumbing), the Planning Division's own schedule, the building-use group classifications, and the BUILDING PERMIT FEE CHART: 500 rows keyed by $1,000 value ranges from $1 to $501,000, each printing App Fee, Com Plan Review, Permit Fee, both Zoning columns and both Totals. Every chart row was extracted and checked against four formulas — all matching.
- City websiteCityPrimary source
Trade Permits — City of Grand Rapids
Read 2026-09-25 (HTTP 200). Nine trade-permit cards: commercial and residential electrical, mechanical and plumbing, plus Mechanical CO₂, Mechanical Sprinkler and Electrical Fire Alarm permits. The electrical card frames the permit by code — work "under the Michigan Electrical Code or Michigan Residential Code" — and the plumbing card routes new development involving excavating, grading or paving to LUDS. Several card descriptions are visibly copy-paste mismatches (the LUDS paragraph sits on the residential electrical and plumbing cards); recorded, never quoted for a figure.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.