Cost guide · Greater Boston
How much does a home inspection cost in Boston?
Most inspections in Boston run $530 – $760, with a typical inspection around $650. Adjust the estimate for your job below. Figures reviewed 2026-07.
Firms price in size tiers, not per foot — pick the bracket.
Estimated range
$530 – $760
Typical inspection around $650
A ballpark from regional averages — not a quote. Your price depends on the specifics of the job, so get written quotes from two or three licensed pros before deciding.
How this estimate works
A ballpark from regional averages — not a quote. Your price depends on the specifics of the job, so get written quotes from two or three licensed pros before deciding.
- Figures come from local inspection firms' published price lists — this is a trade that posts real prices, so the bands are tighter than most.
- Firms price in flat tiers, not per foot: a property-type base plus roughly $100 per 1,000 sq ft over 2,000 — which is why this calculator uses tier selects rather than a square-footage slider.
- Some firms add $50–$200 for city-proper properties to cover parking, access, and scheduling.
- The base covers the standard visual home inspection; every add-on is a separate test, and lead-paint inspection is its own state-licensed trade — often a second provider on site.
- Within their bands, radon typically lands at $150–$235 and a sewer scope around $384.
Ranges reflect published Greater Boston contractor pricing and regional cost data, last reviewed 2026-07.
What drives the price
Property type and size
The base price steps with what there is to inspect: a condo's $575–$715 covers one unit's systems, while a four-family at $825–$1,400 means four kitchens, four baths, and often four heating plants. Within single-families, size tiers add roughly $100 per extra 1,000 sq ft.
The add-on stack
Radon, sewer scope, mold, lead, oil tank — the tests can exceed the base inspection itself. Choose them by the house's age and site rather than by package reflex: a 1990s colonial on town sewer needs a different stack than a 1920s two-family with a chimney and mature street trees.
The age of the house
Pre-1978 means possible lead paint (its own licensed inspection in Massachusetts); mid-century oil heat means a possible buried tank; pre-war construction means old chimneys and clay sewer laterals. In Boston's housing stock these aren't edge cases — they're the default, which is why the add-ons exist.
Timing and access
Inspections happen inside the offer's contingency window, so inspectors sell scheduling as much as expertise — and some firms add $50–$200 for city-proper properties where parking and access eat time. Booking the inspector the day your offer is accepted keeps the compressed timeline from limiting your choice.
Get real quotes from top-rated home inspectors in Boston
An estimate is a starting point — written quotes are the real number. These are the strongest home inspectors on the evidence: reviews weighed across sources and licenses verified against the state registry.
See all 82 home inspectors in BostonHome Inspection cost questions, answered
- How much does a home inspection cost in Boston?
- A single-family under 2,000 sq ft runs $530–$755 in the Boston area, with most quotes at $599–$700; a 2,000–3,000 sq ft home runs $650–$900, and condos $575–$715. Add-on tests stack on top, so a base inspection plus a radon test — the most common pairing — commonly lands at $700–$1,000 all-in.
- How much does a multi-family inspection cost in Boston?
- Two-family homes run $725–$999, three-families $775–$1,200, and four-families $825–$1,400. Each unit multiplies what the inspector has to evaluate — kitchens, bathrooms, heating systems, electrical panels — which is why the price steps up with unit count rather than square footage alone.
- Which inspection add-ons are worth it on an older home?
- On a pre-1978 house, the age-specific add-ons earn their keep: a lead-paint inspection runs $395–$650 (a separately licensed trade in Massachusetts — book it early), a buried oil-tank sweep $125–$300 (a forgotten tank is a very expensive surprise), and a Level 2 chimney inspection $185–$1,000. On older streets with mature trees, a sewer scope at $200–$680 — typically around $384 — regularly finds root-invaded clay laterals that no walkthrough would catch.
- Is radon testing worth adding in Massachusetts?
- At $150–$335 — typically $150–$235 — it's the most cost-effective add-on there is. The 48-hour test rides along with the inspection visit, radon is common enough in Massachusetts that you can't guess from the neighborhood, and elevated levels are a solvable problem — but one you want priced into the deal before closing, not discovered after.
- How do home inspectors price — hourly or by square foot?
- Neither, in practice: Massachusetts firms publish flat tiers — a base by property type, plus roughly $100 per 1,000 sq ft over 2,000. That makes quotes easy to compare, so when two bids differ by hundreds of dollars, the difference is almost always the add-on stack, not the base inspection. Compare line by line.