How much does an electrician cost?
Updated 19 Oct 2026
Typical cost per hour
£40 – £70
An electrician in the UK typically charges £40–£70 an hour, with a call-out fee or minimum charge on top for short jobs. Larger work is normally quoted as a fixed price. Certain electrical work in the home is notifiable under Part P of the Building Regulations, so who you use — and what certificate you get afterwards — matters more here than in most trades.
| Job | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Hourly rate | £40 – £70 |
| Call-out / minimum charge | £60 – £120 |
| Emergency, first hour | £120 – £250 |
| Day rate | £250 – £400 |
| Fit an extra socket | £80 – £150 |
| Replace a consumer unit | £450 – £800 |
| EICR (electrical safety report) | £150 – £300 |
| Full rewire, average house | £3,000 – £6,000 |
Typical UK guide prices — see the note at the foot of this page.
Part P and why the certificate matters
Some electrical work in homes in England and Wales is notifiable under Part P of the Building Regulations — meaning it has to be either carried out by someone registered with a competent person scheme who can self-certify it, or notified to your local authority building control in advance.
What falls inside that has narrowed over the years, but consumer unit replacements and new circuits are the clear cases, and work in bathrooms has particular requirements.
The practical consequence is a piece of paper. When work is done, you should receive a certificate — a minor works certificate for small jobs, or an installation certificate for larger ones. Keep it. You will be asked for it when you sell the house, and its absence can hold up a sale or reduce what a buyer will pay.
Ask before booking whether the electrician is registered with a competent person scheme, and whether the price includes certification. An electrician who cannot certify their own work means you notifying building control yourself, at a cost.
Call-outs, minimums and emergencies
As with plumbing, the headline hourly rate tells you less than it appears. Most electricians charge a call-out or apply a minimum, so a £45-an-hour electrician with a £100 minimum is dearer than a £65-an-hour one without for a twenty-minute job.
Emergency and out-of-hours work runs considerably higher, commonly £120–£250 for the first hour.
Before paying emergency rates, consider whether it is one. No power at all, burning smells, scorch marks around a socket or exposed live conductors are emergencies. A single dead socket, a light fitting that will not work, or a tripping circuit you can isolate are usually next-day jobs.
If a circuit keeps tripping, that is the protection working. Unplug things on that circuit one at a time — a failed appliance is a very common cause and is much cheaper to identify yourself.
EICRs and when you need one
An Electrical Installation Condition Report is an inspection of the fixed wiring in a property, typically £150–£300 for a house, resulting in a report grading any issues found.
Landlords in England are required to have one for rented properties, renewed at least every five years, and to provide copies to tenants. That is a legal duty rather than best practice.
Homeowners are not required to have one, but it is genuinely worth doing when buying an older property, after inheriting a house, or if the installation has not been checked in decades. It is far cheaper to find out that a rewire is coming than to discover it after decorating.
Read the codes on the report. C1 means danger present and needs immediate action; C2 means potentially dangerous and needs remedial work; C3 is an improvement recommendation you can reasonably decline. Some contractors quote to fix everything including C3s, which is not always necessary.
How to keep the cost down
Batch small jobs. Sockets, light fittings and switches done in one visit share the call-out.
Do the fault-finding you safely can. Knowing which circuit trips, and whether unplugging a particular appliance stops it, saves paid diagnostic time.
Be precise when asking for quotes. "Add a double socket on an existing ring in the same room, plasterboard wall" gets a real price; "need some sockets doing" gets a padded one.
Combine a rewire with other disruption. If a room is coming back to bare walls for plastering, that is the moment to move cables.
And always confirm certification is included in the price rather than an extra at the end.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an electrician charge per hour?+
£40–£70 an hour typically, higher in London and the South East. Most add a call-out fee or minimum charge, so short jobs cost more than the hourly rate suggests.
How much to fit an extra socket?+
Around £80–£150 for a straightforward addition to an existing circuit. Running a new circuit, or chasing cables into solid walls, costs considerably more.
How much does a consumer unit replacement cost?+
Typically £450–£800. It is notifiable work, so make sure the price includes certification and that the electrician can self-certify.
What is an EICR and do I need one?+
An inspection of a property's fixed wiring, £150–£300 for a house. Landlords in England must have one at least every five years; homeowners are not required to but it is worth doing on older properties.
Does my electrician need to be registered?+
For notifiable work under Part P, either they are registered with a competent person scheme and self-certify, or the work must be notified to building control. Always ask before booking.
How much does a full rewire cost?+
£3,000–£6,000 for an average house, varying with size, access and whether floors and walls have to be opened up. It is highly disruptive, so combine it with other work if you can.
Why does my circuit keep tripping?+
Usually a faulty appliance on that circuit rather than the wiring. Unplug items on it one at a time before booking an electrician — it is a common and cheap thing to identify yourself.
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