How Much Appliance Repair Business Owners Can Expect to Charge Per Hour
When a person is getting ready to start up their own appliance repair company, there are many aspects to take into consideration. One essential element to consider is the rate they will charge for their services.
The hourly rate that a company charges customers doesn’t just speak to the employee’s experience level. That charge also has to cover the cost of overhead, tools to do the job, salaries, insurance, company vehicles, and much more.
With this in mind, how does a company know the rate of pay for an appliance repair business? What is the average hourly rate for appliance repair? Continue reading to find out.
What Does An Appliance Repair Technician Do?
When a person works in the appliance repair field, their occupation can involve many different elements. Primarily a company will be called when a homeowner or landlord is having trouble with a dishwasher, washing machine, dryer, or any other standard home appliance.
However, the responsibilities don’t end there for a repair technician. In addition to the above, the repair tech can adjust and install all equipment. Therefore, if a dryer repair is needed because the appliance is off balance, they can make the necessary changes to align it. If a homeowner buys a new refrigerator, an appliance repair tech can install it for them upon delivery.
Those who work in this field have a vast amount of knowledge when it comes to mechanics. Understanding the inner workings of all the standard home appliances takes a great deal of learning and experience.
What Items Do Repair Techs Fix?
Appliance repair technicians typically can diagnose and fix all standard household appliances. Those items commonly include:
- Garbage disposal
- Dryer
- Washing machine
- Refrigerator
- Ice maker
- Microwave
- Oven
- Stove
- Freezer
- Dishwasher
In addition to fixing these items, techs must stay up to date on all the new technology associated with updated appliances. With all the smart home devices coming onto the market, this involves a level of detail and insight that wasn’t previously necessary.
Appliance Repair Call and Service Costs
When coming up with an accurate rate for appliance service repair, it’s necessary to consider the following components:
Service Fees
For most appliance repair companies, there is an initial fee that they charge on top of the other rates. Called a service fee, (or alternatively a trip fee) it is the price a customer pays in order to secure the service and start the repair process.
Primarily this fee covers any travel charges that the technician will incur as well as an assessment for the work that will need to be performed to repair the troublesome appliance.
What if the appliance can’t be fixed?
During this service call, the appliance repair tech may determine that the appliance can’t actually be repaired and that the better choice would be to replace the appliance. Even though in this case the appliance repair tech wouldn’t be paid to do the repair, they’re still providing their time and expertise and deserve to be compensated for doing so.
While the trip to the customer’s home or office is the main form of travel, an Appliance Repair Pro will also find themselves traveling to get the necessary parts to complete the job during an actual repair.
Emergency Fees
Another common charge when it comes to the average appliance repair cost comes in the form of emergency fees. These rates are assigned to a client’s account when they require assistance during off hours.
As an example of this particular charge, if a refrigerator repair is needed because it stops working in the evening and help is needed right away, an emergency fee is tacked on to the regular hourly rate and service fee.
Experience Fees
Appliance repair comes with significant variation between levels of experience. A company will frequently charge a higher hourly rate for those at the Master Technician status.
When a customer pays the higher rate, they are not only paying for the higher compensation that a tech of that level needs. The customer is also gaining the possibility of paying for fewer hours on the job as the tech may be able to complete the repair in less time than a staff member with fewer years of experience.
Appliance Repair Cost Fee Structure
When starting, the owner determines how much to charge as an appliance repair business. Typically companies will use one of two methods – hourly or fixed rate. However, there are also instances where they will use a hybrid of the two.
Hourly
When a business owner chooses to charge by an hourly rate, they are deciding upon a specific amount that they will set with each new hour of service. Therefore, if the cost is $50 per hour and they work to repair the appliance for three hours, the bill (minus any service or emergency fees) will be $150.
One thing to consider with this type of fee structure is how to charge for increments. Most technicians will bill for a full hour regardless of how many minutes the employee was actually working within the hour. Therefore, if they were there for an hour and a half, they would bill for two hours.
However, just as many business owners will charge in increments. When this happens, they will bill in 15 or 30-minute sections. With this, if a tech worked for an hour and a half at $50 per hour, the bill would be $75.
Flat Rate
It can sometimes be challenging to explain the various charges to a prospective customer. Between the service fee, hourly fee, and emergency costs, it can quickly become overwhelming.
Because of that, some businesses have transitioned to a flat rate charge. With this, the company assigns a blanket amount to all repair problems. No matter the extent of the issue, the fee will cover it.
Not only does this allow for less confusion for customers, but it also creates a more straightforward process for invoicing. For jobs that require additional materials or parts, the company will add the cost to the flat rate at the time of billing.
Hybrid
In order to bring together the best of both fee structures, some companies have opted to participate in a hybrid model. When using this approach, the business owner will typically assign a flat rate fee for the first hour of repair or the diagnostic portion of the process.
A separate fee will kick in if the appliance requires more than one hour of service or the customer decides to proceed with the repair after the technician completes the diagnostic process. For most companies, the initial flat rate will be considerably higher than subsequent hours of service.
What Elements Impact the Average Rate?
When an invoice goes out to the customer, they may wonder what elements were happening behind the scenes to get the total. Below we address the various factors that influence the cost.
Location
One of the biggest influencers of the overall average cost for repair comes down to the company’s location. While those who operate in smaller towns can charge a lower amount for services rendered, those that reside in bigger cities have a higher cost of living. This jump corresponds to a higher average rate.
Type of Household Appliance
When looking at the different styles of household appliances, it’s clear that some require more extensive work to repair than others. As an example, moving and fixing a microwave is less intensive than what it takes to repair a garbage disposal.
With the extra time required to complete the job, the technician will need to invoice for additional work hours, which increases the average pay rate for a household appliance repair business.
Appliance Energy Source
Another element that isn’t typically taken into consideration when people think about the average repair rate is the type of energy that the appliance requires. Most equipment comes in gas or electric. A washing machine repair is routine with gas, but it can also happen with electric.
However, gas appliances require more labor to repair. Therefore, customers will see that their appliance repair service comes in slightly higher with a gas energy source.
Style of Appliance
As technology expands across all industries, we start to see a more significant amount of smart home appliances on the market. While many appliance repair technicians also work on these types of devices, the job comes with a higher level of detail.
Having a smart home appliance repair will often come with a considerably higher price tag due to all the different moving pieces.
What Is the Average Hourly Rate for Appliance Repair?
According to Angie’s list, the average hourly rate for appliance repair comes in at $175. This amount is inclusive of a service fee and emergency costs. The $175 represents the average cost to get any type of appliance repair done within the United States.
When looking at different cities throughout the country, the average price fluctuates. To compare, we list some other areas of the United States and their averages below.
- Chicago, Illinois – $175 per hour
- New York, New York – $186 per hour
- Detroit, Michigan – $157 per hour
- New Orleans, Louisiana – $168 per hour
- Seattle, Washington – $222 per hour
- Honolulu, Hawaii – $229 per hour
Another element to consider is that many residences come with a home warranty with the purchase of their house. A popular servicing company for a home warranty is American Home Shield. These policies often cover all or part of the cost of a household appliance service repair.
What Is the Average Salary for an Appliance Repair Technician?
For those with a career in appliance repair, the average annual salary can vary in many of the same ways as a business’ hourly rate does.
To calculate a salary for a repair tech, one should consider the following elements:
Location
Much like the city of operation affects the overall cost of services, it also influences the salary band a service technician receives for their work. More significantly, populated towns come with a higher cost of living, which equates to a higher salary.
Experience
As technicians work in the field, they gain valuable experience repairing various appliances. When they obtain this information, they rise to a higher level of expertise in their career. As with any job, the more a person puts in, the more they earn. This fact also pertains to appliance repair.
Education
While a crucial component of the job is work experience and hands-on learning and training, education is also at the core of the position. For those who hold certifications or are considered Master Technicians, the pay level will come in at a higher rate.
It’s critical to remember that the final bill does not get paid directly to the service technician unless they are self-employed. Instead, that amount splits between the tech, the company, and the resulting expenses associated with the job and company.
Overall, the average annual salary of an appliance repair technician within the United States comes in at $48,000 per year. However, like the hourly rate, this amount varies throughout the country.
The average salary for an appliance repair tech in various cities includes the following:
- Chicago, Illinois – $51,000 per year
- New York, New York – $56,600 per year
- Detroit, Michigan – $49,000 per year
- New Orleans, Louisiana – $47,000 per year
- Seattle, Washington – $53,000 per year
- Honolulu, Hawaii – $50,300 per year
