Plumber Boston: $198 to $537 + $8,000 Lateral Grant (2026)

Published Boston prices from Angi's 2026 city guides. Permit fees are extra; Angi cites the City of Boston at $20 plus $5 per additional fixture.

Do this now: a leak, frozen pipe or backup in a Boston home

1. Smell gas? Leave the house, then call 911 or the gas utility from outside.
2. Close the main water shutoff, usually near where the water line enters the basement.
3. Water near outlets: shut the breaker off only from a dry spot.
4. Frozen pipe: BWSC says to thaw it with a hair dryer and never use an open flame.
5. Leak on your side of the water service pipe? Under BWSC's LUTO rule it is yours to fix, within 15 days.
6. Photograph any water damage before cleanup and call your insurer.

Is it an emergency? Freeze nights and burst pipes in Boston

A burst or frozen pipe is the classic Boston plumbing emergency: Logan Airport averages 91.6 days a year with a low at or below 32 F, NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals show. Angi's Boston emergency guide puts burst pipe repair at $160 to $5,420 and says emergency plumbers there charge $100 to $650 an hour. Call now for water you cannot stop at a valve, sewage coming up a drain or a gas smell; a dripping faucet can wait. Night and weekend rates are on emergency plumber in Boston.

To keep pipes from freezing, BWSC says to let a slow trickle run from faucets on pipes in unheated spaces. Boston's housing is old, which leaves more pipe in cold exterior walls: the Census Bureau puts the median Boston home's year built at 1947, against 1980 nationally.

Who fixes a leak on the water service pipe in Boston

The owner does. Under BWSC's Leak Up To Owner (LUTO) program, a leak on the private part of the water service pipe is the owner's to fix, and the owner has 15 days to repair it or service is terminated, immediately in an emergency. For eligible one to three family homes with a pipe 2 inches or smaller, BWSC can replace the pipe and let you pay in one payment or 24 equal installments on the water bill. Private contractors need BWSC permits for this work. BWSC Operations: 617-989-7900.

BWSC also replaces lead service pipes 2 inches or smaller at no cost to the owner with an active, non-delinquent account, through its Lead Replacement Incentive Program. We found no BWSC leak adjustment on the bill; billing errors must be reported within 30 days of the billing date (617-989-7800).

Drain cleaning in Boston: $95 to $500, and the lateral is yours

Drain clearing in Boston costs $95 to $500, Angi's July 2026 Boston guide says, and a main sewer line clog on an emergency call runs $1,430 to $5,420 in its emergency guide. The sewer lateral is the owner's responsibility from the building to the BWSC sewer main; BWSC maintains only the main in the public way.

If the lateral is blocked, collapsed or leaking, BWSC's Sewer Lateral Financial Assistance Program gives a one-time grant of up to $8,000 for an 8-foot relay or $6,000 for a full lateral line, once BWSC verifies the problem. You need a current account, three estimates from BWSC-licensed and bonded contractors, no grant in the last 10 years, and the work done within 30 days of approval. BWSC also advises backwater valves on fixtures below street grade and a floating floor drain plug at the lowest point of the basement. National prices by method: drain cleaning and sewer line repair.

Boston water is soft: about 1 grain per gallon

Boston's water comes from MWRA reservoirs and is soft, at about 16 milligrams per liter, or 1 grain per gallon, MWRA says, and you do not need a water softener. That means less scale in water heaters than in hard-water cities. Replacing a water heater or boiler in Boston still needs a Plumbing Permit, and only a contractor with a valid Massachusetts trade license may apply and do the work, the City says. Prices are in water heater repair and water heater replacement cost.

Checking a Boston plumber's license

Massachusetts licenses plumbers and gas fitters statewide through the Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters (617-701-8798), with journeyman and master licenses. Look a plumber up by name, license type or business on the state's eLIPSE license search before work starts, and ask for proof of insurance as well.

Help paying for plumbing repairs in Boston

• Minor Home Repairs for Seniors. Free plumbing, electrical and minor repairs up to $2,000 for owners 62 and older in owner-occupied one to four family homes, income at or below 80% of area median.
• Home Repair and Improvement Loan. Deferred, interest-free loans up to $50,000, with basement water management eligible; income at or below 135% of area median, one-third forgiven after 10 years.
• BWSC senior and disability discount. 30% off water, sewer and stormwater charges for owners 65 and older or fully disabled in owner-occupied one to four family homes.

Local rules, programs, contacts and climate for Boston, from the official, utility, Census and NOAA pages listed under Sources.

More home repair help in Boston

Water already in the walls? See water damage restoration in Boston. Heating is on HVAC repair in Boston, and a musty basement on mold removal in Boston. Compare plumbers in Philadelphia and plumbers in Washington, DC. Prices for every trade are in home repair costs, and how calls work explains the line: calls go to an independent company that serves your area and takes this kind of job.

More home repair help in Boston: tree removal, with prices, the local rules and the line to call for each.