Plumbing repipe costs, materials and planning guides
Priced by what it takes to reach the pipe, not by the pipe. Access is the whole invoice.
What a whole-house repipe costs
Repiping a house runs $2,500 – $15,000, and the figure is driven by two things that have nothing to do with the pipe itself: how many fixtures the supply lines have to reach, and how much wall has to come out to reach them.
Repipes are quoted per fixture connection, counting every sink, toilet, tub, shower, washer, dishwasher, ice maker, hose bib and the water heater. Most three-bedroom houses land between ten and fourteen. Material sets the rate: PEX at the bottom because it pulls through existing routes, copper at the top because every joint is soldered by hand.
Labor is roughly seventy percent of the total, which is why the crew matters more than the material price, and why the lines that follow the plumber, drywall repair above all, decide what the job really costs. No estimate here asks for your phone number.
What moves the price of a repipe
$2,500 $15,000
Whole-house repipeEvery repipe quote moves on:
- Pipe material; PEX to copper is roughly a twofold spread
- Fixture count, which sets how many terminations there are
- Access: slab, crawl space, or open walls
- Drywall repair, which is a second trade following the first
Figures on this page are indicative national brackets, not quotes. Your number depends on the size, complexity and condition of the job itself, and on what local crews are charging when you buy. Use them to judge a bid, not to replace one.
What each repipe material costs
| Material | Installed cost per fixture, installed | Lifespan | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| PEX, trunk and branch | $250 – $700 | 40 – 50 years | Flexible tubing pulled through the existing routes, which is why it is the cheapest repipe: fewer holes, fewer hours, less drywall. |
| PEX, home-run manifold | $350 – $900 | 40 – 50 years | One dedicated line per fixture from a central manifold. More tubing, fewer joints in the walls, and every fixture shuts off on its own. |
| CPVC | $300 – $850 | 30 – 50 years | Rigid plastic, solvent-welded. Cheap and common in the South, brittle with age, and unforgiving of a hard knock in a cold crawl space. |
| Copper | $450 – $1,300 | 50 – 70 years | Soldered joint by joint, and priced accordingly. It outlasts everything here, tolerates heat, and fails early where the water is aggressive. |
Installed cost covers supply lines, fittings and labor to each fixture on a house with reachable routes. Drywall repair, slab rerouting, the water main and the water heater are priced on top; the cost guide sets out what each adds.
How Home Palais reads a repipe quote
Seventy percent of a repipe is labor, and most of that labor is opening and closing the house rather than joining pipe
Plumbing questions, answered
How do plumbers price a repipe?
Per fixture connection, then adjusted for access. The count covers every point the supply lines terminate at, and the adjustment covers whether those lines run through open attic space or under a concrete slab.
PEX or copper?
PEX for most houses: it costs roughly half, pulls through existing routes with far less demolition, and tolerates a freeze that would split copper. Copper for exposed runs, high heat, and anyone who wants a system that outlives them.
When does a house actually need repiping?
When failures stop being isolated. Repeated pinhole leaks, discolored water, or a known material with a bad record such as polybutylene or old galvanized steel mean the system is at the end, not the section that failed.
Does a repipe include drywall repair?
Frequently not, and it is the largest hidden line. Ask whether the quote ends at pressure test or at a painted wall, because the difference between those two is a second trade and a second invoice.
How long does a repipe take?
Two to five days of plumbing on a typical house, plus drywall, texture and paint after it. You lose water for part of each day, not usually for the whole job.
The calculator prices repipes per fixture on the same national data as every guide on this page; no phone number, no lead form.
Count the fixtures Before the first quote