Cleveland, OH
Cleveland plumbing permit cost
A Cleveland plumbing permit is three groups summed, under a $50 floor:
each plumbing fixture or device at $8.00 (the schedule's own list — water closets, urinals, tubs, sinks, dishwashers, water heating devices, interceptors, sump pumps and the rest), piping at $13.00 for each 100 lineal feet or fraction for each of five pipe types, and repairs to existing plumbing at $50.00. A connection to a potable water line for non-potable uses is $50.00 by ordinance. When the groups fall short of $50.00, the permit pays the difference — and a residential permit adds the itemised 1% state surcharge.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Each plumbing fixture, appliance or device — $8.00 eachPermit fee | $8.00 per fixture | Fixtures is provided | — |
| Drains and waste piping from fixtures — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fractionPermit fee | $0.13 per linear foot, charged in blocks of 100 linear feet | pipe drain is true | — |
| Gas piping — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fractionPermit fee | $0.13 per linear foot, charged in blocks of 100 linear feet | pipe gas is true | — |
| Sanitary drains/sewers — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fractionPermit fee | $0.13 per linear foot, charged in blocks of 100 linear feet | pipe sanitary is true | — |
| Storm and/or foundation drains/sewers — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fractionPermit fee | $0.13 per linear foot, charged in blocks of 100 linear feet | pipe storm is true | — |
| Water distribution piping — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fractionPermit fee | $0.13 per linear foot, charged in blocks of 100 linear feet | pipe water is true | — |
| Connection to potable water line for non-potable uses — $50.00 (ordinance)Permit fee | $50.00 flat fee | potable connection is true | — |
| Repairs to existing plumbing fixtures and/or systems — $50.00Permit fee | $50.00 flat fee | plumbing repair is true | — |
| State of Ohio surcharge, 1–3 family — 1% of permit and plan examination feesState surcharge | 1% of fees charged | one two family is true | — |
| Minimum fee for any plumbing permit — $50.00Permit fee | the shortfall up to the $50.00 minimum on calculated permit fee | Every permit of this type | — |
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 residential bathroom remodel in a one-, two- or three-family dwelling: six fixtures replaced, no piping rows selected.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Fixtures | 6 |
| Occupancy class | Residential |
| Type of work | Alteration |
| One two family | Yes |
Example total
$50.50
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 3Rules considered 10
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Each plumbing fixture, appliance or device — $8.00 eachPermit fee"(k)(1) For the installation of each plumbing fixture, appliance or device such as water closets, urinals, bathtubs or showers, sinks, drinking fountains, dishwashers, laundry trays, clothes washers, floor drains, roof drains, hot water heating devices, interceptors, sump pumps, air conditioning units, catch basins, area drains, manholes and other similar equipment, or fixtures — $8.00 each". The fixtures counted are the ones the schedule lists.Show the working
| $8.00 per fixture | $48.00 |
State of Ohio surcharge, 1–3 family — 1% of permit and plan examination feesState surcharge"For permit and plan examination fees for work performed on one (1), two (2), or three (3) family dwellings or their accessory structures, the permit fees do not include the required one percent (1%) surcharge. For permits issued for that work, the required surcharge shall be calculated on the final cost of each permit issued and shall be separately itemized" (§ 3105.25). The base is every fee charged before this line — permit and plan examination — and OBC-class fees carry no such line at all because the ordinance says they already include it.Show the working
| 1% of fees charged | $0.50 |
Minimum fee for any plumbing permit — $50.00Permit fee"(k) … the minimum fee for any permit shall be: $50.00" — a floor on the whole permit, charged as the shortfall after the fixture and piping rows have been read. Six fixtures compute $48.00 and pay $50.00.Show the working
| $50.00 minimum on calculated permit fee, less the $48.00 calculated | $2.00 |
| Total | $50.50 |
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.
- Drains and waste piping from fixtures — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fraction — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Gas piping — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fraction — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Sanitary drains/sewers — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fraction — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Storm and/or foundation drains/sewers — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fraction — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Water distribution piping — $13.00 per 100 lineal feet or fraction — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Connection to potable water line for non-potable uses — $50.00 (ordinance) — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Repairs to existing plumbing fixtures and/or systems — $50.00 — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
Assumptions
- Calculated from 3 fee rules in effect on 2026-09-28.
- Amounts are rounded to the nearest cent, once, at the end of each component.
The floor is the story here.
Fixtures: six at $8.00 each — $48.00. The schedule's fixture list is what counts: water closets, urinals, bathtubs, showers, sinks and the rest of the (k)(1) enumeration.
Minimum: "the minimum fee for any permit shall be: $50.00" — a floor on the whole permit, not on the row, so the $2.00 shortfall is charged and the permit's fee before surcharge is $50.00.
State surcharge: one-, two- or three-family dwelling, so the 1% is itemised on the final cost — $0.50.
Total: $48.00 → floored to $50.00 → + $0.50 = $50.50. What moves it: seven fixtures compute $56.00 and the floor stops binding; an eighth adds another $8.00; selecting 250 feet of water distribution piping adds three whole 100-foot segments at $13.00 ($39.00); a potable-water connection for irrigation adds the ordinance's $50.00; and an OBC-class version of this permit carries no surcharge line at all.
What is different in Cleveland
The fixture row counts what the schedule lists and nothing else — $8.00 each, no base, no threshold. The piping rows price whole 100-foot segments: gas, drains, storm/foundation, sanitary and water distribution are each $13.00 per 100 lineal feet "or fraction", so 250 feet of water distribution is three rounded-up segments, $39.00. Each pipe type has its own switch, and the groups add the way the schedule's own instruction says they should — "Use (1), (2), and (3) below to calculate fee".
The $50 minimum is charged as a shortfall against the whole permit: six fixtures compute $48.00 and pay $50.00, then the residential 1% takes the permit to $50.50. The potable-connection row is where the two city documents part company — the ordinance says $50.00, the department page says $13.00 — and this page charges the ordinance's figure while quoting the page's, because a rule must charge one number and the enactment is the one that carries the force.
No valuation is read anywhere on this page: plumbing fees are made of fixture counts and pipe lengths, so a plumbing total never changes because the job got more expensive.
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 § 3105.25(k) plumbing fee — fixtures, one pipe type's run, repair work, the $50 floor and the residential state surcharge. It excludes:
- The department page's $13 potable-connection figure. The ordinance's $50.00 for that row is charged; the page's conflicting copy is quoted and recorded, not averaged into something neither document says.
- HVAC and mechanical work. § 3105.25(j) prices it and no HVAC page is published in this set.
- Contractor registration and the state licence. Plumbing contractors register with the State of Ohio's Industry Licensing Board first, then the department's packet — licensing rather than permitting.
- Several pipe runs on one filing. Each pipe type is its own switch and the linear-feet figure is one number, so a permit with gas *and* water runs adds each run's fee as the counter would; the engine prices the run selected here.
- Backflow certifications and inspections as separate services. The fixture list includes backflow protection devices as fixtures; certification programs price elsewhere and are not in this total.
What you need before applying
- Three groups, summed: fixtures, pipe runs, repairsRequired
"Note: Use (1), (2), and (3) below to calculate fee; the minimum fee for any permit shall be: $50.00" — fixtures at $8 each (the schedule lists which fixtures count), piping at $13 per 100 lineal feet or fraction for each of five pipe types, and repair work at $50. The groups add; the $50 floor is charged as the shortfall when they do not reach it.
- State plumbing licence first, then the city's contractor packetRequired
The same sequence as electrical, from the department's overview page: state licence through the Industry Licensing Board, then the contractor packet. A plumbing permit on this site prices the permit, not the licence.
Common questions
How much is a plumbing permit in Cleveland?
Three groups under a $50 minimum: $8.00 for each plumbing fixture, appliance or device the schedule lists; $13.00 for each 100 lineal feet or fraction of gas piping, drains, storm/foundation drains, sanitary sewers or water distribution piping (whichever types the job has); and $50.00 for repairs to existing plumbing. A potable-water connection for non-potable uses is $50.00. If the total is under $50.00, the permit pays $50.00.
Is the fee based on the value of the work?
No. The plumbing schedule reads counts only — fixtures installed and linear feet of pipe — plus its flat rows. Nothing on this page changes because the job got more expensive.
How is pipe charged?
In whole 100-foot segments: "$13.00 for each 100 lineal feet or fraction" for each of five pipe types — gas, drains and waste, storm and foundation, sanitary, and water distribution. 250 feet rounds up to three segments and costs $39.00. Each pipe type is selected separately, so a gas run and a water run each price their own footage.
Why does my six-fixture permit cost $50 and not $48?
Because the schedule sets a floor under the whole permit: "the minimum fee for any permit shall be: $50.00". Six fixtures compute $48.00, so the $2.00 difference is added as the shortfall — and on a residential dwelling the itemised 1% state surcharge then brings the total to $50.50.
Is a potable-water connection $13 or $50?
$50.00. The ordinance's (k)(2)F row — connection to a potable water line for non-potable uses such as irrigation or fire suppression — says $50.00, while the department page prints $13.00 for the same row, apparently copied from the piping rows above it. This site charges the ordinance's figure and records the conflict rather than splitting the difference.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- City websiteCity
City of Cleveland — Department of Building & Housing (overview and contact list)
Read 2026-09-25 together with the department's contact-list page. The overview is where the state-licensing-before-city-registration sequence is stated ("To register as an electrical, plumbing, or HVAC contractor, you must first be licensed by the State of Ohio … Then complete and submit the contractor packet"), where the Accela permit portal is linked (coc-prod-publicportal.accela.com), and where the Board of Building Standards appeal path and its 30-day violation window live. The contact list supplies every phone number in this jurisdiction's department row.
- Municipal codeCityPrimary source
Cleveland Code of Ordinances § 3105.25 — Schedule of Permit Fees (Land Use Code, Ch. 3105)
Read 2026-09-25 in full through the codifier (which 403s plain fetchers): the valuation preamble, the NOTE that electrical, plumbing, HVAC, elevators and plan processing are separate, the two RC 3781.10(E) surcharge paragraphs, and divisions (a) through (m) with every rate and minimum — the four-row ladder with its $1,000,000 tier split, the misc and demolition rows, moving, signs, marquees, tents with the funeral/religious exemption, zoning fees, HVAC, plumbing, electrical and elevators. Ord. No. 708-10, passed 8-18-10, eff. 8-20-10. The referenced state statute (RC 3781.10) could not be fetched by any path tried — codes.ohio.gov, legislature.ohio.gov, Justia, FindLaw, public.law and the Wayback Machine all failed from this environment — so the surcharge reading rests on the ordinance's own words, which state it twice.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.