Cities Most Commonly Serviced:

24hr Emergency Plumbing Rates Explained

How much does an emergency plumber cost?

To answer this, it helps to understand how plumbing services are usually billed so you can understand how emergency plumbing services vary. Regular plumbing services typically include some or all of the following:

  • A trip charge or travel charge
  • An hourly fee for labor
  • Parts

For instance, a plumber may have a set trip fee within a certain radius, that increases when the plumber must travel outside of that routine service area. (Please note: other plumbers may simply refuse work outside of their regular service.) Once the plumber is on-site, they will bill by the hour for they work they’re performing and then add on the cost of any parts that must be purchased to complete the job. Now, some plumbers charge a flat rate for more routine jobs like unclogging a toilet regardless of how long it takes, but that isn’t the type of work we’re talking about here because those are often very quick jobs and certainly aren’t the types of work you would bring an emergency plumber in to do. Now, where it gets complicated is that some plumbers will say that they don’t have a trip charge but that doesn’t mean they’ve actually forgone this fee. That just means that they’re using a different billing structure where the first hour is billed at a higher rate than the subsequent hours. In that case, the trip charge is just rolled into the fee for the first hour.

Keeping this in mind, an emergency plumber will typically have a similar fee structure as a regular plumber, but the rates will be higher. So, while a routine plumber may charge $50-250 for the trip fee and $50-150/hour, an emergency plumbing company could charge double that depending on the specific circumstances. Additionally, some emergency plumbers will charge higher rates on a holiday than they will over the weekend or overnight because staffing is harder to fill. 

Additional Resources:
How do I Know if It's a Plumbing Emergency?
Should You use an Emergency Plumbing Company?
Is a Frozen Broken Pipe an Emergency?
Help! My Hot Water Tank is Leaking!
What to do When a Pipe Breaks in Your Home
How Does a Plumber Unclog a Toilet with a Bad Clog?
Is It a Broken Sewer Line?
My Water Bill is Too High - Do I Have a Problem?
Should You Do Your Own Plumbing?
Is My Frozen Pipe going to Break?
Who can Fix a Plumbing Emergency Near Me?
Is it Really a Plumbing Emergency?
How Do You Find an Emergency Plumber?
Get Help with a Toilet Clog After Hours