Roof repair cost
Most roof repairs cost $150 to $600. The minimum service call is $150 to $350 whether the fix takes twenty minutes or four hours, which is what makes small repairs feel expensive.
National average
$650
per project
Most roof repairs are small. A pipe boot that has cracked, a dozen shingles lifted by wind, a length of flashing that has pulled away from a chimney. Those jobs are $150 to $600 and take a two-person crew part of a morning.
What makes roof repair feel expensive is the minimum. A roofer has to load a truck, drive out, set ladders and set up fall protection whether the fix takes twenty minutes or four hours. That fixed cost is $150 to $350 in most markets, and it is charged even if the repair itself is trivial.
Typical repair prices
| Repair | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Minimum service call | $150 to $350 |
| Replace a few wind-lifted shingles | $150 to $450 |
| Replace a cracked pipe boot | $150 to $400 |
| Reseal or replace step flashing at a wall | $300 to $900 |
| Rebuild chimney flashing and counterflashing | $400 to $1,200 |
| Repair a leaking valley | $500 to $1,500 |
| Replace one sheet of rotten decking with shingles above | $400 to $900 |
| Skylight reflash | $400 to $1,100 |
| Ridge vent replacement | $300 to $800 |
Emergency tarping after storm damage is usually $250 to $800 and is often folded into the eventual repair if the same contractor does both.
Finding the leak costs money too
Water rarely enters where it appears. It runs along a rafter and drips somewhere else entirely, which is why a stain in the middle of a ceiling often traces back to a chimney twenty feet away. Some contractors include diagnosis in the repair price; others charge $150 to $400 for a leak investigation and credit it against the work if you hire them.
Ask which it is before the visit. It is a fair charge either way, but it should not be a surprise on the invoice.
Repair or replace
The arithmetic is usually simpler than it feels. Compare the repair quote against the replacement cost divided by the years you would buy.
A $900 repair on a roof with ten years left is worth doing. The same $900 repair on a roof with two years left buys you $450 a year, against a full replacement at around $13,800 over 25 years, or $550 a year. At that point you are spending real money to postpone a decision by two years.
Three things push the answer towards replacement:
Age. An asphalt roof past 20 years is near the end regardless of how it looks. Granules in the gutters and shingles that curl at the corners are the tell.
Repeat leaks. A roof that has leaked in three separate places has a systemic problem, not three coincidences. Usually the underlayment has failed or the original installation was wrong.
Scope. Once a repair covers more than about a third of the roof, the per-square price of the repair approaches the per-square price of a replacement, and the replacement comes with a fresh warranty.
Insurance is worth checking first
If the damage came from a single sudden event, a storm, hail, or a fallen branch, it may be a claim rather than a repair bill. If the damage came from age, it is not. Filing a claim that gets denied still goes on your claims record, so it is worth understanding the distinction before you call.
Frequently asked questions
Can I repair a roof myself?
Replacing a handful of shingles on a low-pitch, single-storey roof is within reach for a careful homeowner. Anything involving flashing, valleys or a steep or two-storey roof is not. Roofing has the highest fall-injury rate of any residential trade, and a botched flashing repair causes a leak that is worse than the one you started with.
Will a repair match my existing shingles?
Rarely exactly. Shingles fade with sun exposure, and manufacturers discontinue colours. A good roofer pulls replacement shingles from a less visible slope and puts the new ones there, which hides the mismatch.
Does a repair void my roof warranty?
A manufacturer's material warranty is not voided by a competent repair, but a workmanship warranty from the original installer usually is if someone else does the work. Check who holds each one before you call a different contractor.
How long should a repair last?
A properly executed flashing or boot repair should last as long as the roof around it. If a repair fails within two or three years, the problem was misdiagnosed rather than badly executed.
Read next
Roof leak repair cost$300 to $1,500per eachRepairing a roof leak costs $300 to $1,500, typically $700. Most of that spread is finding the leak: water enters in one place and appears somewhere else entirely.
Does insurance cover a roof replacement$1,000 to $10,000per projectInsurance covers a roof that was damaged, not one that wore out. What you pay is your deductible, plus the depreciation gap if your policy settles at actual cash value.
Roof inspection cost$150 to $400per eachA roof inspection costs $150 to $400. It is the cheapest thing in roofing and the one that most often saves money, because it separates a $700 repair from a $14,000 replacement.
How long does a roof last$386 to $749per squareArchitectural asphalt lasts 25 to 30 years, metal 40 to 70, slate 75 to 150. Most roofs fall short of their rating, and the gap is almost always ventilation.
Emergency roof repair cost$300 to $700per projectEmergency tarping costs $300 to $700, and after-hours rates run 25% to 40% above scheduled work. An emergency is water entering the house; everything else costs less on Tuesday.