If you're adding refrigerated air, an EV charger or a hot tub, sooner or later someone says the words "panel upgrade". Here's what that involves and what moves the price up or down.
What a 100 to 200 amp upgrade includes
A true service upgrade is more than a new box. To be rated for 200 amps, every part of the service has to be:
- The panel and main breaker
- The meter base
- The service entrance wires between meter and panel
- The mast or underground conduit, where the utility requires it
- Grounding and bonding to current standards
The utility disconnects power in the morning and reconnects once the work is complete and inspected. Most homes are without power for four to eight hours.
What affects the cost
Across the United States, a straightforward 100 to 200 amp upgrade commonly lands somewhere between about $1,500 and $4,000, and jobs that need a new meter location, a new mast or underground service work run higher. Those are national ballpark figures, not a quote. Your price depends on:
- Panel swap or full service upgrade. Replacing a worn 200 amp panel with a new one costs less than upgrading the whole service from 100 amps.
- Overhead or underground service. Underground runs can involve trenching and utility fees.
- Panel location. Panels in closets or bathrooms may have to move to meet current rules.
- Wall construction. Adobe and block take more labor than frame and stucco.
- Utility requirements. PNM, El Paso Electric, Xcel Energy and the rural cooperatives each have their own meter and service specifications.
Do you actually need 200 amps?
An all-gas home with a swamp cooler can live happily on 100 amps. The picture changes with central air, an electric range, a heat pump, a hot tub or an EV charger. A load calculation, which we do on every panel job, adds up the real demand and tells you whether you need the upgrade, a sub panel or just a few circuits moved around.
Signs the panel itself is the problem
- It's a fuse box, or a brand with a poor record such as Federal Pacific Stab-Lok or Zinsco
- Rust, scorch marks or a warm cover
- No spaces left and tandem breakers everywhere
- Lights dim hard when the air conditioner starts
Any of those is worth an electrical inspection before you spend money elsewhere.
Getting a firm price
We look at the existing service and give one price for the complete panel upgrade. We do this work statewide, from Santa Fe and Rio Rancho to Roswell and Farmington.