Pittsburgh, PA
Pittsburgh electrical permit cost
Pittsburgh charges an electrical permit with the same formula as a building permit
and the City prints the column rule on the permit page itself: "Work on single and two-family homes and structures accessory to them requires a Residential permit, while all other work requires a Commercial permit." Residential work is $6.00 per $1,000 of construction value between $130 and $8,000. Commercial work is the $7.00 row between $605 and $95,000 with the schedule's 15% Third Party Agency discount already applied to it — PLI requires third-party inspection of commercial electrical permits — which lands at $5.95 per $1,000, floored at $514.25 and capped at $80,750. The technology fee, the State's $4.50 training fund and $5.00 of record retention ride on top as they do everywhere else.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical permit — commercial, $5.95 per $1,000 after the required TPA discountPermit fee | $5.95 per $1,000 of project valuation | not (structure type is residential) | min $514.25 · max $80,750.00 |
| Electrical permit — residential, $6.00 per $1,000 of construction valuePermit fee | $6.00 per $1,000 of project valuation | structure type is residential | min $130.00 · max $8,000.00 |
| Technology fee, $2 / $5 / $15 / $25 by base-fee rangeTechnology fee | Calculated permit fee — $2.00 up to $200; $5.00 from $200 to $1,000; $15.00 from $1,000 to $10,000; $25.00 above $10,000 | Every permit of this type | — |
| Digital record retention fee, $5.00 per permitOther fee | $5.00 flat fee | Every permit of this type | — |
| State Education & Training Fund (SETF), $4.50 per permitState surcharge | $4.50 flat 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
The electrical work of a commercial tenant fit-out in an existing building — not a single- or two-family home, so the commercial column — with a declared construction value of $100,000.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Project valuation | $100,000 |
| Occupancy class | Commercial |
| Type of work | Alteration |
Example total
$609.50
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 4Rules considered 5
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
Electrical permit — commercial, $5.95 per $1,000 after the required TPA discountPermit feeS1's commercial row ($7.00 per $1,000, minimum $605, maximum $95,000) with the schedule's own "Third Party Agency Discount — 15% of Base Fee on applicable permit types" applied, because "applicable" is resolvable and this row is one of the cases: PLI's Third Party Agencies page lists "TPA Inspection of commercial electrical permits" among the services PLI *requires*, and says "A TPA discount per PLI's Current Fee Schedule is applicable to permits that require TPA services." The City's calculator applies it unconditionally to commercial electrical permits — `tpa_discount = adj_base_fee_calc * .15`, subtracted from the total. The engine has no negative component, so the discount is folded into the row's own rate instead: $7.00 × 0.85 = $5.95 per $1,000, minimum $605 × 0.85 = $514.25, maximum $95,000 × 0.85 = $80,750 — algebraically the City's clamp-then-discount for every input, since scaling and clamping commute for a positive scale. The calculator's flat reconnect row ($150, no discount, printed nowhere on the schedule) is a different work scope and is not this row.Show the working
| $5.95 per $1,000 of project valuation | $595.00 |
Technology fee, $2 / $5 / $15 / $25 by base-fee rangeTechnology feeS1: "Technology Fee: Fees are assessed based on range of Base Permit Fee — $0 - $200: $2.00; $201 - $1,000: $5.00; $1,001 - $10,000: $15.00; $10,001 +: $25.00." A fee whose bracket is chosen by the size of another fee, which the calculator keys on the adjusted base fee (`adj_base_fee_calc`, the clamped base) — so it is a four-bracket table read on this permit's own base fee, inclusive at each ceiling and open at the top. It exists whether the base fee hit its minimum or its maximum: a $130 minimum permit still pays the $2.00 bracket, because $130 sits in the $0-$200 range. On this page there is one known nuance, recorded rather than smoothed over: the City's calculator brackets on the base fee *before* the TPA discount, while this page's commercial base row already carries the discount, so a pre-discount base fee in ($200, $235.29], ($1,000, $1,176.47] or ($10,000, $11,764.71] is charged one band lower here than the calculator shows — a difference of $3 to $10, and a needs_review record against this rule in the seed.Show the working
| $5.00 for calculated permit fee from $200 to $1,000 | $5.00 |
Digital record retention fee, $5.00 per permitOther feeS1's second additional row: "Digital Record Retention Fee — Per permit $5.00", charged with every permit of this type. The City's calculator carries a second, dormant value — `$document_retention_fee = 3` — that its own total never reads; only the $5.00 reaches a filer's bill, so only the $5.00 is here.Show the working
| $5.00 flat fee | $5.00 |
State Education & Training Fund (SETF), $4.50 per permitState surchargeS1: "State Education & Training Fund (SETF) — Per permit $4.50", one of the two "ADDITIONAL PERMIT FEES AND DISCOUNTS" rows. The City's fees page supplies the statute the schedule does not: "Effective October 25, 2017, the fees collected for the Pennsylvania code official training fund (SEFT [sic] fees) have increased from $4.00 to $4.50. Governor Wolf signed Act 37 of 2017 authorizing the increase of fees collected by municipalities administering and enforcing construction or building permits in accordance with the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act." Charged on every permit of this type. The City's calculator waives it for floodplain permits and for the complex-project path, where every fee is deferred to after the mandatory pre-application meeting anyway.Show the working
| $4.50 flat fee | $4.50 |
| Total | $609.50 |
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.
- Electrical permit — residential, $6.00 per $1,000 of construction value — 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 discounted commercial row: $5.95 per $1,000 of $100,000 is $595.00, above the discounted $514.25 floor and far below the discounted $80,750 ceiling, so neither clamp contributes. The technology fee reads its bracket off that base — $201 to $1,000 is the $5.00 band — and the two flat add-ons complete the stack: $5.00 of record retention and the $4.50 State training fund, for $609.50 in total. The same job at the undiscounted $7.00 row would have been $700 of base, so the required discount is worth $105 here.
The neighbouring cases show the rest of the shape. The same $100,000 flagged as a residential structure takes the undiscounted $6.00 row — $600.00 of base, same $5.00 bracket, $614.50 in total — because PLI's third-party list does not reach current residential work. And a $5,000 commercial job computes $29.75 of rate that the discounted $514.25 minimum lifts, for $528.75 in total: the floor is the City's own $605 scaled by the discount, not a second minimum.
What is different in Pittsburgh
The discount is folded into the row rather than subtracted at the end because this engine has no negative component — and the folding is exact. The City's calculator clamps first and then subtracts 15% of the clamped figure; scaling by 0.85 and clamping commute for a positive scale, so $605 × 0.85 = $514.25 and $95,000 × 0.85 = $80,750 reproduce the City's arithmetic for every input. A $100,000 commercial job is $595.00 of base where the undiscounted schedule row would say $700 — the discount is worth $105 on that job, and it comes from the inspection PLI requires rather than from an election the filer makes.
One nuance is recorded rather than smoothed over. The calculator reads the technology fee's bracket off the base fee *before* the discount, while this page's commercial row already carries it, so a pre-discount base fee just above $200, $1,000 or $10,000 is charged one band lower here than the calculator shows — a difference of $3 to $10, carried as a needs-review note against that rule. The reconnect fees ($75 residential, $150 commercial) exist only in the calculator, and the scopes that need no permit at all are listed on the City's exemptions page.
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 2026 schedule's construction block as the electrical permit takes it — the residential row, the commercial row after the required TPA discount — plus the technology fee, the $4.50 SETF and the $5.00 record retention. It excludes:
- The reconnect flat rows, $75 residential and $150 commercial, which the City's calculator carries and the schedule never prints: a different work scope ("Service Reconnect In-Kind"), named with their amounts rather than modelled.
- Accelerated Plan Review, currently offered only for fire alarm and fire suppression permits, and the pre-application plan review meeting (0.25% of project value, $125–$7,000).
- The complex-project deferral, where a mandatory meeting is charged first and every other fee waits until after it.
- The 40% application split — timing and a forfeiture risk, never an addition to the total.
- Any discount on residential work. PLI's third-party list covers commercial electrical permits, stormwater permits and residential electrical permits filed before 1/1/21; current residential work takes the undiscounted $6.00 row.
- Zoning fees, which stay on City Planning's Zoning Fee Schedule.
- Fire alarm and suppression permits with their $100 maintenance fee — separate permits, not this one.
- The scopes that need no electrical permit at all, listed by the City (replacement of lamps, connection of approved portable equipment to permanently installed receptacles, temporary systems, radio and television transmission equipment) and worth reading before filing.
- Payment processing fees and every other authority's charge, including the Allegheny County asbestos permit that may be needed before a demolition.
What you need before applying
- An electrical permit of its own, filed outside the Building and Development ApplicationRequired
"An electrical permit is required for the following work in the City of Pittsburgh: Renovate and repair existing electrical systems. Extend or modify an existing electrical system. Installation of a new electrical system." It is one of the stand-alone trade permits PLI issues alongside the BDA, and the City tells the reader which column it takes in the same paragraph: "Work on single and two-family homes and structures accessory to them requires a Residential permit, while all other work requires a Commercial permit."
- Stamped drawings for a service over 400 A and for commercial new constructionRequired
Two scopes on the electrical page carry the same parenthetical — "( Requires the submission of stamped drawings. )" — a service rated over 400 amperes (residential new construction and addition/alteration alike) and the whole commercial new-construction block, which "requires the submission of stamped drawings" as a condition of the work type rather than of the fee. Neither changes a figure on this site's pages; both change what has to be submitted with the application.
- Third-party inspection on commercial electrical permits — and the discount that comes with itRequired
PLI's Third Party Agencies page lists "TPA Inspection of commercial electrical permits" among the services PLI requires, and states "A TPA discount per PLI's Current Fee Schedule is applicable to permits that require TPA services." The requirement and the discount are one fact seen from two sides: the inspection is outsourced to an agency, and the schedule pays 15% of the base fee back for the permits that require it. This site models the money as a lower commercial electrical rate ($5.95 per $1,000 rather than $7.00) and names the requirement beside it.
Common questions
How much is an electrical permit in Pittsburgh?
The same as a building permit: $6.00 per $1,000 of construction value for a residential structure (minimum $130, maximum $8,000) and $7.00 per $1,000 for a commercial one (minimum $605, maximum $95,000), prorated rather than rounded to whole thousands — plus the technology fee, $4.50 State training fund and $5.00 record retention. There is no separate electrical schedule anywhere: the block is headed "ALL CONSTRUCTION PERMIT TYPES".
2026 Fee Schedule, "ALL CONSTRUCTION PERMIT TYPES" block, effective 1/1/2026.
Why is a commercial electrical permit cheaper than a commercial building permit?
Because the third-party inspection PLI requires on it carries a published discount: "Third Party Agency Discount — 15% of Base Fee on applicable permit types", and PLI's Third Party Agencies page resolves "applicable" by listing "TPA Inspection of commercial electrical permits" among the services PLI requires. Fifteen percent off $7.00 per $1,000 is $5.95, and the clamps scale with it — $514.25 and $80,750 — because the discount applies to the clamped figure. This site folds it into the row, since the engine has no negative component.
Third Party Agencies and Special Inspections page with the schedule's discount row, both read 2026-09-25.
Which column applies to my project — residential or commercial?
One sentence decides it: "Work on single and two-family homes and structures accessory to them requires a Residential permit, while all other work requires a Commercial permit." So a detached house or townhouse three stories or less is residential, and an apartment building, an addition to a house with another use in it, or anything over three stories is commercial. The Permitting page gives the same split in IRC and IBC terms, and the calculator's dropdown offers exactly those two values.
Electrical Permit page, column rule; the definitions are on the Permitting page.
What is the technology fee, and when is it charged?
A flat amount selected by the size of the permit's own base fee: $2.00 when the base fee is $0 to $200, $5.00 for $201 to $1,000, $15.00 for $1,001 to $10,000 and $25.00 above that. The calculator keys the bracket on the clamped base fee, so it is charged whether or not the base hit its minimum — a $130 permit still pays $2.00. On commercial electrical work this site reads the bracket off the discounted base, which differs from the calculator by $3 to $10 in three narrow bands; that difference is recorded as a needs-review note rather than hidden.
2026 Fee Schedule's technology-fee table; the bracket's basis is the calculator's `adj_base_fee_calc`.
What electrical work needs no permit at all?
PLI publishes three exemption lists, and the electrical one covers "Minor repair and maintenance work that includes the replacement of lamps or the connection of approved portable electrical equipment to approved permanently installed receptacles", "Radio and television transmission equipment" (the Uniform Construction Code still applies to tower and antenna installation) and "The installation of a temporary system". The page carries the City's own caveat: "Because every situation is unique and can be interpreted individually by the Building Code Official, we reserve the right to make exceptions."
Work Not Requiring a Permit page, "Work Not Requiring an Electrical Permit".
When are stamped drawings required?
For a service rated over 400 amperes — the residential new-construction and addition/alteration scopes each carry "( Requires the submission of stamped drawings. )" beside that scope — and for commercial new-construction electrical work as a condition of the work type. Neither rule changes the fee: the price is still construction value times the rate, but the application needs the drawings with it.
Electrical Permit page, residential and commercial work scopes.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Fee schedule (PDF)CityPrimary source
2026 Fee Schedule, Department of Permits, Licenses, and Inspections, effective 1/1/2026
Read 2026-09-25 in both pdftotext -layout and plain modes, then diffed line for line against the 2025 predecessor so the year's change is recorded rather than assumed. Four pages: the "ALL CONSTRUCTION PERMIT TYPES" block ($6.00/$7.00 per $1,000 with printed minimums and maximums), the additional fees and discounts (technology fee brackets, SETF, digital record retention, the 15% Third Party Agency discount and the 40% application split), accelerated review and boards, and licenses and registrations. Every figure this site charges comes from the first two blocks; the calculator is cited only for arithmetic, never for amounts.
- City websiteCityPrimary source
Electrical Permit — City of Pittsburgh PLI
Read 2026-09-25. States when an electrical permit is required (renovate and repair, extend or modify, install new), the residential and commercial work scopes, and the one sentence that tells a reader which fee column applies: "Work on single and two-family homes and structures accessory to them requires a Residential permit, while all other work requires a Commercial permit." It is also where the stamped-drawing requirements live: a service rated over 400 A, and every commercial new-construction scope.
- City websiteCityPrimary source
Third Party Agencies and Special Inspections — City of Pittsburgh PLI
Read 2026-09-25. The page that resolves the schedule's "on applicable permit types": PLI requires "TPA Inspection of commercial electrical permits" (plus stormwater after 5/25/22 and residential electrical before 1/1/21) and says "A TPA discount per PLI's Current Fee Schedule is applicable to permits that require TPA services." Without it, the 15% discount could not be attached to a specific row; with it, the discounted commercial electrical row is sourced rather than guessed.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.