Appliance Repair Cost: Service Calls, Hourly Rates, and the 50% Rule (3 References)

Appliance repair costs $100 to $400 for most jobs, with technicians charging $50 to $150 per hour plus a service call fee of $70 to $130 that covers diagnostics and the first hour.¹² HomeAdvisor’s average repair is $180¹ and Fixr’s is $200.³ Emergency call-outs run $140 to $400.² Prices below are national averages* for 2026.

*National averages, not local quotes. Your price depends on the appliance, the failed part, fuel type (gas costs more), and local labor rates.

$100 – $400

typical repair, HomeGuide

$50 – $150/hr

labor rate, all 3 sources

$70 – $130

service call (diagnosis + 1st hour), HomeGuide

$180 – $200

average repair, HomeAdvisor & Fixr

Quick math: a 2-hour repair = the $70 to $130 service call (covers diagnosis + hour one) + one more hour at $50 to $125 = $120 to $255 in labor, our arithmetic on HomeGuide’s fee structure² — nearly identical to HomeAdvisor’s $108 to $252 typical repair range.¹ The service call is why fixing a $20 part can still cost $150.

Cost by appliance

Appliance	HomeAdvisor	HomeGuide	Fixr
Refrigerator	$200 – $300	$125 – $500	—
Washing machine	$50 – $450	$100 – $400	—
Dryer	$100 – $400	$100 – $300	—
Dishwasher	$160 – $300	$100 – $300	$100 – $300
Oven / stove / range	$100 – $500	$100 – $350	—
Microwave	$50 – $400	$100 – $250	—
Freezer	$90 – $500	$100 – $400	—
Garbage disposal	$75 – $250	$100 – $250	$70 – $200
Ice maker	—	$100 – $225	—

Dishwashers are the tightest agreement: $100 to $300 from both sources that break them out.²³ Garbage disposals sit at the cheap end everywhere — and at $70 to $250, a repair often approaches the $100 to $150 cost of a new unit, so replacement frequently wins.¹²³

Service calls, hourly rates, and emergencies

The service call runs $70 to $130 (HomeGuide) or $25 to $100 in travel and fee charges (Fixr) — the sources disagree on the floor, so ask the fee before booking.²³ It covers diagnostics and usually the first hour of labor.² Beyond that, labor runs $50 to $125 (HomeGuide) to $50 to $150 (HomeAdvisor) per hour.¹² Nights, weekends, and holidays push emergency call-outs to $140 to $400.²

Gas, electric, and solar

Energy source	HomeAdvisor	Fixr
Electric	$100 – $375 (avg $240)	baseline
Gas	$150 – $450 (avg $300)	+10% to 20% vs electric
Solar	$250 – $600 (avg $430)	$250 – $600 (specialists to $200 – $300/hr)

Gas appliances cost 10% to 20% more to repair because the work carries combustion risk and needs specialized certification.¹³ Solar repairs top the table simply because qualified technicians are rare.³

Repair or replace: the 50% rule

HomeGuide’s rule of thumb: skip the repair when the appliance is more than 10 years old or the quote exceeds 50% of replacement cost.² Context matters — Fixr notes modern appliances last 6 to 9 years versus 8 to 12 three decades ago, so the age line arrives sooner than owners expect.³ New-unit reference points: dishwashers $200 to $500 in replacement labor,² garbage disposals $200 to $550 installed,² ovens $700 to $1,600.²

Worked examples

Example 1 — dishwasher that won’t drain, 2-hour job. Service call $70 to $130 (covers diagnosis + hour one) + one hour at $50 to $125 = $120 to $255 in labor, our arithmetic² — inside HomeAdvisor’s $160 to $300 and HomeGuide’s $100 to $300 dishwasher ranges with a low-cost part like a pump or valve.¹²

Example 2 — repair-or-replace on a 9-year-old dishwasher. A $280 repair quote against a $700 replacement: 280 / 700 = 40%, our arithmetic — under the 50% line, so repair makes sense; at 10+ years old the same quote flips to replace.²

Example 3 — gas vs electric dryer. An electric dryer repair at $100 to $400 (HomeGuide)² becomes roughly $110 to $480 for gas after the 10% to 20% premium, our arithmetic³ — matching HomeAdvisor’s gas band of $150 to $450 across appliances.¹

FAQ

Is the service call fee applied to the repair? Usually it covers diagnostics and the first hour, so it is part of the bill rather than extra — but policies vary, so ask when booking.²³

When is repair not worth it? Past 10 years old, or when the quote passes 50% of replacement cost — and cheap countertop microwaves and aging disposals are often cheaper to swap than fix.²

Are extended warranties worth buying? They run $100 to $300 for 3 to 5 years and typically cover parts but not labor — compare that against the $180 to $200 average single repair before buying.¹²

Do maintenance plans save money? Annual kitchen-appliance plans cost $200 to $500 — worth it only if you would otherwise book two or more service calls a year.²

Why is my gas appliance quote higher? Gas work carries combustion risk and certification requirements, adding 10% to 20% over the same electric repair.¹³

Sources

HomeAdvisor, How Much Does Appliance Repair Cost? (2025 data; shares Angi’s dataset).
HomeGuide, How Much Does Appliance Repair Cost? (2026).
Fixr, Appliance Repair Cost.