Seattle, WA
Seattle electrical permit cost
Seattle prices electrical work from Table D-15 when plans are not required:
by service size — $146.00 up to 125 amperes, $292.00 at 150 to 200, $365.00 at 225 to 350 — by branch circuit or feeder at $26.28 to $292.00 each, and by control unit at $17.52 plus $2.92 per device. A $55.48 administrative fee is added to every item except a City Light safety inspection, the 5% technology fee follows everything, and a standard self-issued online permit has a $105.12 minimum.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Branch circuit or feeder, up to 25 amperes, eachPermit fee | $26.28 per circuit | electrical item is branch circuit and circuits over 0 and service amps over 0 and service amps up to 25 | — |
| Branch circuit or feeder, 26 to 50 amperes, eachPermit fee | $43.80 per circuit | electrical item is branch circuit and circuits over 0 and service amps over 25 and service amps up to 50 | — |
| Branch circuit or feeder, 51 to 200 amperes, eachPermit fee | $146.00 per circuit | electrical item is branch circuit and circuits over 0 and service amps over 50 and service amps up to 200 | — |
| Branch circuit or feeder, 201 to 350 amperes, eachPermit fee | $292.00 per circuit | electrical item is branch circuit and circuits over 0 and service amps over 200 and service amps up to 350 | — |
| Low-voltage or communications system, per control unitPermit fee | $17.52 flat fee | electrical item is low voltage | — |
| Low-voltage devices or communications outlets, $2.92 eachPermit fee | $2.92 per connection | electrical item is low voltage | — |
| New or altered electrical service, 150 to 200 amperesPermit fee | $292.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps at least 150 and service amps up to 200 | — |
| New or altered electrical service, 225 to 350 amperesPermit fee | $365.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps at least 225 and service amps up to 350 | — |
| New or altered electrical service, up to 125 amperesPermit fee | $146.00 flat fee | electrical item is service and service amps over 0 and service amps up to 125 | — |
| Electrical permit administrative feeOther fee | $55.48 flat fee | electrical item is service or electrical item is branch circuit or electrical item is low voltage | — |
| Technology fee, 5% of all fees chargedTechnology fee | 5% of fees charged | 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 200-ampere service upgrade at a house in Seattle, permitted without plans under Table D-15.
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Service amps | 200 |
| Electrical item | service |
Example total
$364.85
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 11
| Component | How it is calculated | Amount |
|---|---|---|
New or altered electrical service, 150 to 200 amperesPermit feeTable D-15, item 6: "150 to 200 amperes — $292.00". The published band begins at 150 A, so 126 to 149 A is not a published figure and none is invented for it here.Show the working
| $292.00 flat fee | $292.00 |
Electrical permit administrative feeOther feeTable D-15, item 1a: "An administrative fee of $55.48 will be charged in addition to the other fees specified in this table for all items except subsection 3.f of this Table D-15 for 22.900D.150." Subsection 3.f is the City Light safety inspection, which carries no administrative fee; that is why this rule is written for a service or a low-voltage system and not for that item.Show the working
| $55.48 flat fee | $55.48 |
Technology fee, 5% of all fees chargedTechnology feeSMC 22.900A.100 applies to Chapter 22.900D, where the electrical permit fees are set, so the same 5% surcharge follows an electrical permit. Read on the `fee_subtotal` basis.Show the working
| 5% of fees charged | $17.37 |
| Total | $364.85 |
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.
- Branch circuit or feeder, up to 25 amperes, each — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Branch circuit or feeder, 26 to 50 amperes, each — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Branch circuit or feeder, 51 to 200 amperes, each — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Branch circuit or feeder, 201 to 350 amperes, each — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Low-voltage or communications system, per control unit — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- Low-voltage devices or communications outlets, $2.92 each — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- New or altered electrical service, 225 to 350 amperes — This fee does not apply to the inputs provided.
- New or altered electrical service, up to 125 amperes — 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.
Table D-15, item 6 puts a new or altered service of 150 to 200 amperes at $292.00, and item 1a adds the $55.48 administrative fee to every item except the City Light safety inspection. The technology fee is 5% of those two together, $17.37, giving $364.85. The same work under Table D-14, where plans are reviewed, would be a function of valuation rather than this flat figure. And the table's own minimum is worth comparing: a single 20-ampere branch circuit under item 7 is $26.28 plus the $55.48 administrative fee plus $4.09 of technology fee — $85.85 — which is below the $105.12 minimum for a standard self-issued online permit, so that permit costs $105.12.
What is different in Seattle
Table D-15 is a schedule of *items* rather than of valuations, and the items overlap, which is the first thing to understand about it. A 200-ampere electrical service is $292.00 under item 6; a 200-ampere feeder installed as a branch-circuit job is $146.00 under item 7. The same amperage, two rows, two prices — which is why the rules here are keyed on the kind of work as well as on the size of it, and why no figure on this page can be read from an amperage alone.
On top of the item sits a $55.48 administrative fee, charged "in addition to the other fees specified in this table for all items except subsection 3.f". That exception is the Seattle City Light safety inspection at $146.00, the only item in the table that escapes the administrative charge. There is also a $55.48 change fee where work is added to an issued permit.
Then there is the $105.12 minimum on "a standard Online Trade-Construction (OTC) self-issued electrical permit", and it is not a formality. One 20-ampere branch circuit is $26.28, the administrative fee is $55.48, and 5% of the two is $4.09 — $85.85, which is $19.27 short of the minimum, so $105.12 is what a permit bought that way costs. The same arithmetic makes the second and third circuit nearly free at the bottom of the range and expensive above it: six 20-ampere circuits come to $223.82, because six times $26.28 is $157.68 and the administrative fee and technology fee are charged once.
Above the ordinary rows sit ones worth knowing about even when they are not what you are building. Service repair of a mast and meter base only is $146.00. Temporary construction power is $146.00 for services under 400 amperes, with the Ufer included if inspected at the same time. An underground-work-only inspection is $146.00. A Ufer test, where the Ufer was covered before inspection, is $292.00. Heaters are $8.76 to $146.00 by kilowatt, transformers $20.44 to $219.00 by kVA, and car chargers $26.28 to $146.00 by level and amperage.
What is not here is the other electrical table. Table D-14 prices electrical work by valuation where plans are reviewed, and the subtitle's own note says it applies when "the base fee and SDCI hourly rate are used to calculate the fee". A 200-ampere service is a flat $292.00 under D-15 and a percentage of a valuation under D-14, and which one applies to your project is a determination the department makes rather than a choice the fee schedule offers.
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 estimate is Table D-15's item fee, the $55.48 administrative fee and the 5% technology fee. It excludes:
- The $105.12 minimum on a standard self-issued online permit, which is a floor on a permit purchased that way rather than a component, and therefore is not added by the engine. Where the items come to less than that, the minimum is what is charged.
- Table D-14 in its entirety: electrical permits where plans are reviewed are priced by valuation and by base fee and hourly rate rather than by these items, and the choice between the two tables is the department's.
- The rows of Table D-15 not modelled: the $146.00 specialty permits (service repair, temporary construction power, underground work only, City Light safety inspection), the Ufer test at $292.00, heaters at $8.76 to $146.00 by kilowatt, transformers at $20.44 to $219.00 by kVA, car chargers at $26.28 to $146.00 by level and amperage, and the $55.48 change fee for adding work to an issued permit.
- Anything above 350 amperes on the service row or the branch-circuit row, where the table says "Plan Review Only" and no flat fee is published.
- The maximum fee on communications systems, which the table caps at $636.56 and which is stated here rather than modelled, because it applies to one of the two systems that row covers.
- Temporary electrical installations, which the subtitle charges for services only at the same Table D-15 rates, and electrical work under a phased permit, where each initial permit is priced on its own estimated value.
- Permit renewals and reestablishment, charged at one quarter of the SDCI base fee if renewed within the window and one half beyond it.
- Contractor licensing and registration, which the state requires and which is separate from any permit fee.
What you need before applying
- Which electrical table applies is not the applicant's choiceRequired
Table D-15 applies where plans are not required and Table D-14 where they are reviewed, and the subtitle's own notes say D-14 applies when "the base fee and SDCI hourly rate are used to calculate the fee". The same job can therefore be priced two ways: a 200-ampere service is a flat $292.00 under D-15 and a function of valuation under D-14. The figures on this site are D-15's, and which table a project falls under is a departmental determination.
- A $55.48 administrative fee is added to every itemRequired
Table D-15, item 1a: "An administrative fee of $55.48 will be charged in addition to the other fees specified in this table for all items except subsection 3.f". That exception is the Seattle City Light safety inspection, which carries no administrative fee. There is also a $55.48 change fee where work is added to an issued permit.
Common questions
How much is an electrical permit in Seattle?
It depends on the item. A new or altered service is $146.00 up to 125 amperes, $292.00 at 150 to 200 and $365.00 at 225 to 350. A branch circuit or feeder is $26.28 up to 25 amperes, $43.80 at 30 to 50, $146.00 at 60 to 200 and $292.00 at 225 to 350, each. A low-voltage or communications system is $17.52 per control unit plus $2.92 per device. Every item except a City Light safety inspection adds a $55.48 administrative fee, and 5% is added on top.
Is there a minimum electrical permit fee?
Yes, $105.12 on a standard Online Trade-Construction self-issued electrical permit, and it bites more often than people expect. One 20-ampere circuit is $26.28 plus the $55.48 administrative fee plus $4.09 of technology fee — $85.85 — so the minimum is what that permit costs. Six circuits on the same permit come to $223.82, above the floor.
What is the $55.48 administrative fee?
Table D-15 item 1a: "An administrative fee of $55.48 will be charged in addition to the other fees specified in this table for all items except subsection 3.f". Subsection 3.f is a Seattle City Light safety inspection at $146.00, the only item exempt from it. There is also a $55.48 change fee if work is added to an issued permit.
Which table applies to my electrical work?
Table D-15 when plans are not required, Table D-14 when they are reviewed. The same job can be priced differently under each — a 200-ampere service is a flat $292.00 under D-15 and a function of valuation under D-14 — and the subtitle's notes treat the choice as a determination rather than an applicant's option. The figures on this page are D-15's.
How much is a car charger permit?
Table D-15 prices them by level: a Level 1 charger at 120 volts is $26.28 each; a Level 2 charger is $26.28 at 15 to 25 amperes, $52.56 at 30 to 50 and $108.04 at 60 to 225; a Level 3 DC charger is $73.00 at 15 to 50 amperes and $146.00 at 60 to 125. Above 250 amperes on a Level 2 charger the table says "Plan Review Only". The $55.48 administrative fee and 5% technology fee apply on top.
Does Seattle price electrical work by valuation?
Only where plans are reviewed, under Table D-14, which runs from $260 for the first $1,000 of value with rates of $6 to $1.50 per additional $100 and $8 to $4.50 per additional $1,000 as the value rises. Table D-15, which this page models, charges per item instead. Both are in the same subtitle, and which one applies follows from how the project is processed.
Source and verification
The documents behind every figure on this page, with the dates that make them checkable.
- Municipal codeCityPrimary source
2026 Fee Subtitle — Table D-15, electrical permit fees when plans are not required
The same document as the row above — the same URL, because a fee subtitle is one document — recorded under a second key so that every electrical rule cites the table it actually came from. Table D-15 is the schedule for work where plans are not required; Table D-14, which prices electrical work by valuation where plans are reviewed, is named in prose and not modelled, because the two tables charge the same job differently ($292.00 for a 200-ampere service under D-15 against a percentage of valuation under D-14) and choosing between them is the department's judgement rather than a rule.
Verification
Last verified against the official source in Sep 2026.