SpruikrAnswer · reviewed 2026-09-29
How much does it cost to have a house rewired in Sydney?
Short answer
A full house rewire in Sydney commonly costs about $4,000 to $9,000 for a standard two-to-three bedroom home, with most 2026 guides spanning $4,000 to $23,000 for the same job and large, heritage or double-storey homes reaching $35,000. The spread is wide because guides assume different access, switchboard condition and circuit count, not because any one of them is wrong. The work must be done by a licensed electrician who issues a certificate of compliance.
Why the published figures disagree
The 2026 Sydney guides do not quote the same job under the same assumptions. One source prices a standard 3-bed rewire at $4,000 to $9,000, another puts it at $8,000 to $15,000, and a third ranges it to $23,000 for complex access. The spread is not error, it is scope: the guides assume different wall access, switchboard condition, number of circuits, and whether a separate switchboard or consumer mains upgrade is included. A home with open roof and subfloor access costs far less than a double-brick or heritage home where cable has to be chased through brick and plaster.
What the published guides say
| Full rewire, 2–3 bed house (most common scope) | $4,000 to $9,000 to $15,000 across sources |
|---|---|
| Full rewire, 4+ bed or double-storey home | $9,000 to $25,000 |
| Terrace or heritage / double-brick home | $14,000 to $35,000 |
| Small 1–2 bed unit | $3,500 to $7,500 |
| Partial rewire (a few circuits, e.g. kitchen + wet areas) | $1,500 to $6,000 |
| Switchboard upgrade (often part of a full rewire) | $800 to $3,500 |
| Consumer mains upgrade by a Level 2 ASP (if load demands it) | $2,000 to $5,500 |
| Electrician day / hourly rate, Sydney 2026 | $100 to $173 per hour, or $800 to $1,200 per day |
| Per-room rewiring guide figure | about $1,150 to $3,450 per room |
Ranges are the observed spread across the sources listed, all published or updated in 2026, all for labour and materials including certification. They are estimates from pricing guides, not quotes — and several of those guides are published by the electricians who also sell the work, so the low end of any one guide should be treated as a floor, not a promise.
What is actually included in a full rewire
New cabling to the current wiring standard throughout the home, a switchboard upgrade with modern RCD or RCBO protection, new or re-terminated power points and switches, full circuit labelling and testing, and a certificate of compliance (CCEW) issued and submitted as required. Removal and disposal of the old wiring, and making good the walls and ceilings, are separate line items that some guides fold into the hourly rate and others leave to the homeowner or a plasterer. Whether the consumer mains itself is replaced, whether safety alarms are upgraded to the current specification, and whether any heavy-appliance circuits (aircon, EV, induction) are added all move the number and should be quoted separately rather than hidden inside the base figure.
The three things that move your number most
Access first, and by a distance: open roof and subfloor cavities let cable be run fast, while double-brick, lath-and-plaster or double-storey homes without subfloor access require chasing brick and plaster and add days to the job. Size and circuit count second: the number of rooms, light points and power points sets the amount of cabling and labour, so moving from two to four bedrooms is not linear, it compounds. Construction and condition third: heritage constraints, asbestos in insulation, aluminium or cloth-sheathed original wiring, and an undersized mains all add compliance work that is quoted as its own line and can lift the total well above the base rewire price.
Why the spread is legitimately that wide
The same 3-bedroom house quoted by two electricians for $6,000 and $14,000 may both be quoting accurately, but for different default assumptions: one includes a switchboard upgrade and new points, the other quotes cabling only; one assumes open cavity access, the other assumes brick chasing and subfloor work; one includes a separate consumer mains upgrade by a Level 2 ASP, the other does not. The width of the published range is the width of those unspoken assumptions. That is why the only number that is reliable for your home is the written quote after a site inspection, and why any quote you can obtain on the phone from a business that has not seen the wiring is, by definition, a guess dressed as a price.
A licence and a certificate of compliance are non-negotiable
In NSW all fixed electrical work, including a full rewire and any switchboard or consumer mains upgrade, must be done by a licensed electrical contractor, and a consumer mains change must be carried out by a Level 2 Authorised Service Provider. On completion the electrician must issue a certificate of compliance (CCEW), and its absence from a finished job means the work cannot be confirmed as compliant. Before booking, check the licence on the free NSW public register.
Sources
- House rewiring cost in Sydney (2026 guide), Fox Electricians. Checked 2026-09-29.
- House Rewiring Cost Sydney 2026: Complete Pricing Guide, PowerTech Electrical. Checked 2026-09-29.
- House Rewiring NSW 2026 — indicative estimates, The Quote Yard. Checked 2026-09-29.
- Electrician cost & electrical pricing Sydney 2026, What’s The Damage. Checked 2026-09-29.
- Sydney Home Wiring Costs 2026 | Rewiring Price Guide, Top Electricians Sydney. Checked 2026-09-29.
- The Real Cost of Rewiring a House in Australia, DLG Electrical. Checked 2026-09-29.
Government fees are quoted from the government source. Market prices are the observed spread across the guides listed, not our estimate. Prices change; the checked date is when a human last looked.
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