House Rewiring Cost: What You'll Actually Pay

House rewiring cost typically runs $4 to $10 per square foot, or roughly $6,000 to $30,000 for a full whole-house job, depending on home size, wall access, and whether the panel also needs upgrading. It's one of the biggest jobs a licensed electrical service handles, on par with a full panel replacement. Smaller homes with open framing land at the low end. Larger, finished homes with knob-and-tube or aluminum wiring buried behind plaster cost more, since the crew has to open walls, fish new cable, and patch as they go.

Call a licensed local electrician now for a fast, itemized quote on your home.

House Rewiring Cost by Home Size

These ranges assume a full rewire: new wire from the panel outward, updated outlets and switches, and code-required grounding throughout.

Home Size	Typical Full Rewire Cost
Under 1,500 sq ft	$6,000-$14,000
1,500-2,500 sq ft	$10,000-$20,000
2,500+ sq ft	$18,000-$30,000+

A partial rewire, targeting one room or a handful of hazardous circuits, costs a fraction of a full job, often $1,500 to $5,000 depending on scope and access.

What's Included in the Price

• Wire and materials. Copper NM cable, boxes, outlets, switches, and cover plates.
• Labor. Usually the biggest line item, driven by hours opening walls and fishing cable, not by the wire itself.
• Panel upgrade. If your panel is fused, undersized, or already full, expect this added. See electrical panel upgrade cost for a size-by-size breakdown.
• Permits and inspection. Nearly every job needs one. Your electrician typically pulls it and schedules the walkthrough.

What Affects the Cost to Rewire a House

• Home age and construction. Balloon-frame or plaster-and-lath homes slow the work compared to stick-frame homes with open stud bays.
• Wall and crawlspace access. An open basement or attic lets an electrician fish wire fast. Finished walls, brick, or multiple stories mean more cuts and more hours.
• Number of circuits. More rooms and more dedicated circuits (kitchen, laundry, HVAC) add material and labor.
• Existing wiring type. Knob-and-tube wiring replacement and aluminum wiring replacement both take longer than swapping out newer copper, since the old material is brittle and often ungrounded.
• Your region. Labor and permit fees vary by state and county.

Full Rewire vs. Partial Rewire: Which Do You Need?

A full rewire replaces every circuit and makes sense when knob-and-tube or aluminum wiring runs through most of the home, breakers trip across multiple rooms, or a major remodel is adding real electrical load.

A partial rewire targets a specific problem: one failing circuit, a kitchen or bathroom update, or a hazardous run flagged by an inspector or insurer. If only one circuit or room is at fault, that's more accurately an electrical repair than a full rewire, and it costs far less. Many electricians also work in stages, spreading the cost over time.

Signs Your House Needs Rewiring (Checklist)

The more of these you check, the stronger the case for a full rewire over a spot repair (a fuller walkthrough is in signs you need to rewire your house).

• Breakers trip repeatedly with no clear overload to explain it
• Outlets or switch plates feel warm, look scorched, or buzz
• Lights flicker or dim in more than one room when an appliance kicks on
• The home still has active knob-and-tube or aluminum branch wiring
• Two-prong (ungrounded) outlets throughout, or a fuse box instead of breakers
• A burning or plastic smell near outlets, switches, or the panel
• You're planning an addition, EV charger, or major appliance the wiring wasn't built for

Waiting on more than a couple of these is a fire risk, not just an inconvenience, and some insurers will decline coverage or issue a non-renewal notice on a home with active knob-and-tube or aluminum wiring until it's replaced.

Adding EV Chargers, Smart Home Wiring, or Extra Panel Capacity

If walls are already open for a rewire, it's the cheapest point to add circuits you don't have yet: a dedicated 240-volt line for an EV charger, extra panel capacity for a future generator or solar setup, or structured wiring for smart switches. Folding these in now costs far less than opening the same wall again in two or three years.

Timeline: How Long It Takes and Whether You Can Stay Home

Most electricians work in stages for occupied homes: one section or floor at a time, so you keep a working kitchen and bathroom throughout. Expect cut drywall, dust, and certain rooms off power for stretches of the workday, but a full move-out usually isn't necessary. If the main panel is being swapped, plan on one day with the whole house off power. A partial rewire often wraps in a few days; a full whole-house rewire typically runs one to three weeks depending on square footage, stories, and wall access, with plaster-and-lath homes landing toward the longer end.

Does Rewiring Increase Home Value or Affect Insurance?

Rewiring rarely adds a dollar-for-dollar bump in resale value the way a kitchen remodel might. What it does is remove a red flag: buyers, lenders, and inspectors on older homes look for knob-and-tube or aluminum wiring, and any of them can stall a sale until it's addressed. Many insurers also charge higher premiums or decline new policies on homes with outdated wiring, and a documented rewire with permit sign-off usually resolves it.

Financing and DIY vs. Hiring a Licensed Electrician

Because rewiring isn't optional once wiring is unsafe, homeowners often cover it with a HELOC, a personal loan, or a contractor payment plan, so ask about in-house financing before assuming a bank loan is your only option. DIY rewiring is risky: it involves live circuits and code requirements most DIYers underestimate, and a poorly made connection can run hot behind a wall for months with no warning. Licensed electricians pull the permit, pass inspection, and stand behind the work.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to rewire a 1,500 square foot house? Roughly $8,000 to $15,000 for a full rewire, more if the panel also needs replacing or walls are hard to access.

How much does it cost to rewire a 2,000-square-foot house? Roughly $12,000 to $22,000, with the final number driven mainly by wall accessibility and whether a panel upgrade is part of the job.

How long does it take to rewire a house? A partial rewire finishes in a few days. A full whole-house rewire runs one to three weeks depending on size and wall access.

Can I live in my house while it's being rewired? Usually yes. Electricians work in stages, room by room or floor by floor, so you keep power and a working kitchen and bathroom throughout the job.

Does rewiring increase home value? It rarely adds dollar-for-dollar resale value, but it removes a red flag that can slow a sale or complicate insurance on an older home.

Can a house be rewired in stages instead of all at once? Yes. Staged rewiring tackles the highest-risk circuits first, such as an old fuse box or a knob-and-tube run, with the rest finished over time as budget allows.

Call a licensed local electrician now for a free rewiring estimate.