Gas Leak Repair Cost & Pressure Testing
Before any price matters: if you smell gas now, leave the house, then call 911 and your gas utility from outside. Once the line is safe, repairs run $150 – $800 for an accessible leak and $500 – $1,500 for a buried or in-wall line, plus $75 – $300 for the pressure test that proves the fix. Here is the full breakdown, with the safety steps that come first every time.
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| Situation | Repair range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Accessible leak (fitting, valve, connector) | $150 – $800 | Visible joint, appliance connection, exposed pipe |
| Buried or in-wall line repair | $500 – $1,500 | Excavation or opening finished surfaces |
| Full line replacement | Per-foot pricing | When the line is too far gone to patch |
| Pressure test (standalone) | $75 – $300 | Proves the repaired line holds |
| Pressure test with permit + re-light | $150 – $500 | When the utility shut you off |
| Party | Scope | Cost to you |
|---|---|---|
| Gas utility | No charge | Responds to the meter, shuts off, makes the area safe |
| Utility-side line | Utility owns it | Their pipe up to and including the meter |
| Your side | Yours | Everything downstream of the meter is your repair |
| Licensed plumber / gas fitter | $150 – $1,500 | Diagnoses, repairs and pressure-tests your side |
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First, the only step that matters: leave
If you smell gas, hear hissing, or feel dizzy, do not look for the source and do not look up a price. Leave the house immediately, taking everyone with you, and do not touch a light switch, a phone, an appliance or anything that could spark on the way out. From a safe distance outside, call 911 and your gas utility, whose emergency line responds 24/7 at no charge.
The utility shuts the gas off at the meter and confirms the area is safe. Only after that does the repair conversation begin. Our full evacuation guide, what to do when you smell gas, walks the drill step by step. Every section below assumes the line is already safe and shut down.
What an accessible leak repair costs
Most leaks happen where the line meets something: an appliance connector that has aged, a valve that no longer seals, a threaded joint that loosened, or a flex connector behind a range. When the leak is at an exposed, reachable point, a licensed plumber locates it with electronic detection and soap solution, tightens or replaces the failed part, and re-tests. That work runs $150 – $800.
The wide range reflects how much the fix touches. A single aging connector swapped at a dryer sits near the bottom; a corroded valve plus a section of pipe and a full re-test sits near the top. Aging appliance connections are the most common culprit, which is why a plumber often replaces nearby connectors at the same time rather than chasing the next leak in six months.
Buried and in-wall lines: the expensive branch
When the leak is in a line you cannot reach (buried under the yard to an outdoor appliance, or run inside a finished wall) the repair runs $500 – $1,500 because access is most of the cost. Excavating to a buried line, or opening and patching drywall, adds labor and restoration that an exposed fitting never does. A telltale strip of dead or yellowed vegetation over a buried line is a classic sign of an underground leak, and it is a leave-and-call situation, not a dig-it-up-yourself one.
If the line is corroded along its length rather than failing at one point, patching it is throwing money at a problem that will return. At that point the work becomes a replacement priced by the foot, the same way a new run is on our gas line installation cost page.
The pressure test, and the re-light
No gas repair is finished until the line passes a pressure test: the plumber isolates the repaired section, pressurizes it, and proves it holds with no drop over time. A standalone test runs $75 – $300. When the utility shut you off, restoring service usually requires a permit and a re-light, which bundles the test, the inspection and re-energizing the appliances into a $150 – $500 visit.
This is not an optional upcharge. The pressure test is the proof that the home is safe to occupy again, and the re-light ensures every pilot and burner comes back online correctly. If an appliance pilot will not relight afterward, that is a separate diagnosis covered in our pilot light troubleshooting guide.
Who pays for what: your side vs the meter
The line splits ownership at the meter. The utility owns and maintains everything up to and including the meter, and they respond to leaks on their side at no charge to you. Everything downstream (the pipe running into and through your house, the branches to each appliance) is your responsibility and your repair bill.
So when the utility arrives, makes the area safe and finds the leak is on the house side, they shut you off and hand the repair to you. A licensed plumber takes it from there, and the work cannot legally or safely be done by a homeowner. Keep this in mind on any gas smell: leave first, call from outside, and let the professionals own the pipe before you own the price.
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