How Much Does It Cost to Repair or Replace a Water Heater in Maryland?

by Lauren Leazenby
Highway sign for Interstate road in Maryland with map in front of clouds

Sooo ... Your water heater’s called it quits. Sorry to hear that, hon. Unfortunately, having your water serviced isn’t free — even in the Free State. Now, don’t get so siced about it. It actually costs the average Marylander less to have their water heater repaired or replaced than it runs the average American.

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Your water heater powers your dishwasher, clothes washer and the hot shower you crave at the end of the day. When it goes kaput, it's not so much a matter of whether you should have it serviced, but how much that service will cost. And if your hot water is already out, the last thing you want right now is to be blindsided by exorbitant water heater service fees. If you’re calling around for estimates, these figures should give you a ballpark idea of how much you can expect to pay, whether you live downy oshun or in the DMV.

Repair and replacement costs vary depending on where you live. For comparison, the national average for diagnosis is $99, for repair is $493 and for replacement is $1,741.

The following average prices are based on aggregated HomeServe data reported by our network of contractors across the state of Maryland.

Water Heater Diagnosis: $84

The diagnostic fee is what the technician will charge you to tell you what’s wrong with your system and whether it needs to be repaired or replaced. In the Old Line State, this fee is about 15% lower than the national average.

Water Heater Repair: $466

Your technician will tell you what’s wrong with your water heater. It could be the thermostat, heating element or a combination of several malfunctions. This average repair price includes replacement parts and the labor to install them. Repairs cost Marylanders an average of 5% less than the U.S. overall.

Water Heater Replace: $1,424

If you’ve gotten 10 years out of your water heater, consider yourself lucky. That’s about the average lifespan of these machines. If yours is older than that, this breakdown might be a sign it’s on its way out, meaning you'll need to shell out for a new one. Maryland’s average replacement price is more than 18% less than the nation’s.

(Note that HomeServe water heater data should generally be assumed to refer to conventional “tanked” models — the most common type — as opposed to tankless or “on-demand” models, which can cost roughly twice as much.)

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