Appliance repair
Microwave Repair Cost Calculator
Prices a microwave repair, the one appliance here that should not be opened casually.
Result
A planning estimate, not a quote. Access, the age of the equipment, what is found once it is opened up and local labour rates all move the real figure, sometimes a long way.
Get a Free Business AuditHow the calculation works
Hours times crew times rate, plus the part and the call-out. Microwave repairs divide into the trivial and the uneconomic. Door switches, turntable motors, control panels and light bulbs are cheap and quick. The magnetron, the high voltage transformer, the capacitor and the diode are the components behind a unit that runs but does not heat, and together with labour those frequently exceed the cost of a new countertop microwave, which is why repairs are usually confined to built-in and over-range units where replacement is expensive.
What moves the number
- Whether the fault is a switch or the high voltage section, which differ enormously.
- Countertop against built-in or over-range, which changes the replacement cost.
- Part availability, since magnetrons for older models can be hard to source.
- Access on an over-range unit, which has to be taken down safely.
Where this one goes wrong
A microwave's high voltage capacitor can retain a lethal charge after the unit is unplugged, and that is the reason this appliance is treated differently from everything else on this list. It has to be discharged safely before any work inside the cabinet, by someone who knows how. This is not a cautious framing: the voltages involved are genuinely dangerous and have killed people. For most countertop units the honest answer to a no-heat fault is replacement rather than repair, both because of cost and because it avoids the hazard entirely. Built-in and over-range units justify the work because replacement means cabinetry or a hood arrangement.
Before you quote
- Treat the high voltage capacitor as charged until safely discharged.
- Compare a magnetron repair against the cost of a new countertop unit.
- Support an over-range unit properly when removing it.
Where the rules come from
Questions
About this calculator
Is it safe to repair a microwave myself?
The high voltage capacitor can hold a lethal charge after the unit is unplugged, so no, not inside the cabinet. This is the one appliance where the honest advice is to leave it to someone with the training and equipment to discharge it safely, or to replace the unit.
My microwave runs but does not heat. Is it worth fixing?
That points at the high voltage section, usually the magnetron, and parts plus labour frequently exceed the cost of a new countertop microwave. For a built-in or over-range unit, where replacement means cabinetry or a hood, the repair often does make sense.
What microwave repairs are cheap?
Door switches, turntable motors, control panels and lamps are all inexpensive and quick, and they cover a good share of the faults that do not involve heating. A microwave that will not start is more likely one of those than a magnetron problem.
The formula
total = hours x people x rate + parts + call-out, then sales tax
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How to use this calculator
- Hours on site (h). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 1.4 h.
- People needed. Enter your own figure; the page starts at 1.
- Labour rate charged ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $115.
- Parts and materials ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $85.
- Call-out or diagnostic fee ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $95.
- Sales tax (%). Leave at zero if you are quoting before tax.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to estimated total, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Hours on site | 1.4 h |
| People needed | 1 |
| Labour rate charged | $115 |
| Parts and materials | $85 |
| Call-out or diagnostic fee | $95 |
| Sales tax | 0% |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Estimated total main result | $341 |
| Labour | $161 |
| Before tax | $341 |
| Sales tax | $0 |
About $341: $161 of labour, $85 of parts and a $95 call-out.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only labour rate charged, this is what happens to estimated total. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Labour rate charged ($) | Estimated total |
|---|---|
| $58 | $261.20 |
| $86 | $300.40 |
| $115 example above | $341 |
| $173 | $422.20 |
| $230 | $502 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Hours on site (h)
- Measured in h, between 0 and 400, starting at 1.4 h.
- People needed
- A number, between 0 and 40, starting at 1.
- Labour rate charged ($)
- A money amount, starting at $115.
- Parts and materials ($)
- A money amount, starting at $85.
- Call-out or diagnostic fee ($)
- A money amount, starting at $95.
- Sales tax (%)
- Leave at zero if you are quoting before tax.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Estimated total | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Labour | A money figure. |
| Before tax | A money figure. |
| Sales tax | A money figure. |
Estimating is the easy part
The jobs you never hear about cost more than the ones you mis-measure. BDEVY builds the marketing, systems and automation that bring them in.