Cost guide · Greater Boston
How much does electrical work cost in MetroWest?
Most electrical projects in MetroWest run $530 – $1,100, with a typical electrical project around $820. Adjust the estimate for your job below. Figures reviewed 2026-07.
Standard receptacle swaps — a new dedicated circuit is a bigger job ($350–$750).
Flush mounts, pendants, chandeliers — hung on existing boxes.
Batches get cheaper per can — six cans usually price near 4.5× one.
Estimated range
$530 – $1,100
Typical electrical project around $820
- Outlets
- $300 – $600
- Light fixtures
- $230 – $500
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.
- Per-device rates are installed prices — labor plus standard parts — for work on accessible, existing wiring; running a new dedicated circuit is a different job at $350–$750.
- Recessed lighting gets cheaper per can in batches — a six-can job typically prices near 4.5× the single-can rate — so multi-can estimates here lean toward the safe side.
- Homes built before 1950 often hide knob-and-tube or cloth-insulated wiring, which adds roughly 20% to device work. A whole-house knob-and-tube rewire is its own project at $8,000–$18,000, and Mass Save offers a remediation benefit of up to $7,000.
- The EV-charger figure is a hardwired Level 2 install before utility rebates — Eversource and National Grid programs return $700–$2,000, so the net cost often lands well below the quote.
- The service-call minimum reflects the local floor: electricians bill $82–$137 per hour, and the first hour — which pays for the truck roll — runs about $173.
Ranges reflect published Greater Boston contractor pricing and regional cost data, last reviewed 2026-07.
What drives the price
What's behind the walls
Device prices assume the wiring behind the box is sound and modern. In pre-1950 homes — a big share of MetroWest's stock — knob-and-tube and cloth-insulated runs slow every job by roughly 20%, and an electrician who opens a wall may be obligated to flag what's there. An honest quote names the wiring era up front.
A panel swap is not a service upgrade
The data on big electrical jobs is bimodal: a panel swap ($2,300–$5,500) replaces the box; a full service upgrade ($5,000–$9,500) also replaces the cable, meter, and mast feeding it, with the utility involved. Bids that look far apart are often pricing different scopes — check which one before comparing dollars.
Batch the small stuff
With a first hour around $173 and service-call minimums of $150–$250, a single outlet swap is the most expensive electrical work you can buy per device. Keep a running list and book one visit — the second and third items on it are effectively discounted.
Labor rates in MetroWest
Electrician labor in the MetroWest area runs $82–$137 per hour — roughly 1.4× the national average — which is why national cost articles undershoot local quotes. The ranges here are drawn from area electricians' pricing.
Get real quotes from top-rated electricians in MetroWest
An estimate is a starting point — written quotes are the real number. These are the strongest electricians on the evidence: reviews weighed across sources and licenses verified against the state registry.
Papalia Home Services
BBB A+, accredited4.2
Electrical Work cost questions, answered
- How much does an electrician cost per hour in MetroWest?
- Electricians in the MetroWest area bill $82–$137 per hour, and the first hour typically runs about $173 because it carries the trip. Most shops also hold a service-call minimum of $150–$250, so it pays to batch small jobs — three or four device swaps in one visit spread that fixed cost across all of them.
- How much does it cost to upgrade an electrical panel in MetroWest?
- A like-for-like panel swap from 100 to 200 amps runs $2,300–$5,500 in MetroWest. A full service upgrade — new service-entrance cable, meter socket, and mast on top of the panel, coordinated with the utility — is a genuinely different job at $5,000–$9,500. Quotes cluster at one number or the other, not in between, so the first thing to pin down is which scope your house actually needs.
- How much does EV charger installation cost in MetroWest?
- A hardwired Level 2 charger runs $1,400–$2,800 installed, driven mostly by the distance from your panel and whether the panel has room for a 40–60 amp circuit. Eversource and National Grid rebates return $700–$2,000 of that, which is worth claiming before you book. If the panel is already maxed out, budget the panel swap first — it's the real gate on the project.
- How much does it cost to replace knob-and-tube wiring in Massachusetts?
- Knob-and-tube removal runs $8–$20 per square foot, and a whole house in the MetroWest area typically lands at $8,000–$18,000. What usually forces the decision isn't the wiring itself but insurance — many carriers surcharge or decline homes with active knob-and-tube. Mass Save's knob-and-tube remediation benefit can cover up to $7,000 when the work is done alongside qualifying insulation upgrades.
- How much does recessed lighting cost to install?
- Figure $225–$500 per can installed, with real quantity discounts — a six-can layout typically prices around 4.5× the single-can rate rather than 6×, because the electrician is already set up in the ceiling. New switch legs and dimmers to control them add $70–$245 apiece.