Roof replacement cost in Chicago, IL
A new roof in the Chicago area cost a median of $14,000, based on what homeowners told the U.S. Census Bureau (jobs from 2021 to mid-2023). About half paid between $10,000 and $23,900. This page doesn't use Chicago permit records, so the only local number besides the survey comes from homeowners like you.
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Homeowner reports
The survey shows what owners paid a few years ago, across the whole area. Only homeowners can show today's estimates and bills. Add yours, and the next person in Chicago sees it too. Your report is the only local number besides the survey.
We read every report before it shows, but we can't check the amounts. Reports stay apart from the survey numbers.
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What Chicago-area owners paid
Owners of single-family homes told the U.S. Census Bureau what their new roof cost. We count only roofs where someone outside the household did most of the work. The price is for the whole job, including any part insurance paid. In the Chicago area, the median is $14,000 — about half paid less, about half paid more. About half paid between $10,000 and $23,900.
$10,000or less
$10,000to $14,000
$14,000to $23,900
$23,900or more
Each person stands for about 1 in 4 owners · 60 Chicago-area roofs · 2021–2023
Roofs where insurance was the main source of money
In the Chicago area, insurance was the main source of money for about 2 in 5 new roofs (43%). In Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin together, these roofs had a median of $14,000, and other new roofs $10,000. The survey doesn't say why. These two numbers are for the five-state region, not just the Chicago area.
43% of new roofs in the Chicago area (about 2 in 5): insurance was the main source of money
Median · new roofs, 2021–2023 · five-state region
What the survey tells you — and what it doesn't
- What the owner says the whole job cost
- New roofs put on by someone outside the household
- Single-family homes
- The whole area, suburbs included
- Jobs finished from 2021 to mid-2023
- Roof size
- Roof material — shingles, metal or flat
- Chicago on its own
- Today's prices
- Repairs
Most owners gave a round number, like $12,000. We left out amounts under $1,000, which are too low for a new roof, and amounts the Census Bureau filled in itself. Source: American Housing Survey 2023, U.S. Census Bureau and HUD. We counted the numbers ourselves. The Census Bureau did not make or check this page.
Chicago roof permits
Flat roofs almost always need a permit in Chicago, but most sloped roofs on homes don't. So many roof jobs never show up in city records, and this page doesn't use Chicago permit records — only the survey and homeowner reports.
When Chicago needs a roof permit
Any work on a flat or low-slope roof needs a permit. A sloped roof on a home up to 4 stories needs none, unless the structure changes. Small repairs (up to 25% of a roof surface) need none if no part of the roof is cut away or removed. On a Chicago Landmark, these exceptions may not apply. Source: City of Chicago, "Roofing Work" ↗
Roof rules in Chicago
The permit fee
Chicago's permit fee for replacing a home roof (up to 5,000 sq ft) is $450. A recover or a repair is $175.
The roofer's license
In Illinois, a roofer needs a state roofing license. Owners can work on their own home without one. Chicago's quick roof permit is only for jobs done by a licensed roofer.
Flat roofs and insulation
When a flat roof in Chicago is replaced or recovered, it must meet the city's insulation rules for new buildings, unless there is no room for it. A replacement means taking off all old layers down to the deck.
Hail
NOAA's storm records list hail 1 inch or larger in Cook County on 40 days from 2016 to 2025, about 4 a year. The largest was 2.75 inches. Cook County includes Chicago and its suburbs.
What the numbers say about Chicago roof costs
What the survey shows about Chicago roofs. Some answers are for the whole US, and we say so each time.
Is a new roof in Chicago more expensive than average?
Yes. Chicago-area owners paid a median of $14,000 for a new roof. Across the whole US, the median was $11,000.
American Housing Survey 2023 · jobs from 2021 to mid-2023 · the Chicago area includes its suburbs · We counted the US median the same way as this area's. The Census Bureau's own US median is $10,000, because it also counts amounts it filled in itself and amounts under $1,000.
How do Chicago-area owners pay for a new roof?
From savings or insurance. Savings were the main source of money for about half of new roofs (49%), and insurance for about 2 in 5 (43%).
American Housing Survey 2023 · 60 Chicago-area roofs · main source of money, as the owner reported it
How common is a leaking roof in the Chicago area?
Fewer than 4 in 100 owner-occupied single-family homes had a roof leak in the 12 months before the survey (3.5%). About 9 in 100 homes got a new roof in the two years before the survey (9.2%).
American Housing Survey 2023 · about 920 Chicago-area homes asked
Are roof prices going up?
Across the whole US, yes. Owners paid a median of $10,000 for a new roof in 2021 and $12,000 in 2023 (jobs up to mid-year). These numbers are for the US, not Chicago alone.
American Housing Survey 2023 · whole US
Is a new roof cheaper on a smaller house?
Across the whole US, yes. Owners of homes under 1,500 sq ft paid a median of $8,200. For homes of 1,500 to 2,499 sq ft, it was $12,000, and for homes of 2,500 sq ft and up, $14,000. The survey can't say if the biggest homes pay more than mid-size ones. This is the size of the house, not the roof.
American Housing Survey 2023 · whole US · jobs from 2021 to mid-2023
What can't this page tell you about Chicago yet?
Roof size, flat or sloped roofs, and neighborhoods. The survey doesn't ask about the roof itself. Homeowner reports will fill this in.
Why: this page uses only the survey and homeowner reports
Questions people ask
Is $30,000 too much for a roof in Chicago?
It is on the high side, but not rare. In the survey, about 3 in 4 Chicago-area owners paid $23,900 or less for a new roof, and about 9 in 10 paid $35,000 or less (jobs from 2021 to mid-2023). Roof size, flat or sloped, and how many deck boards need replacing all change the price. Check your amount at the top of this page.
Will insurance cover a 20-year-old roof?
We can't tell. It depends on your policy and on what damaged the roof, so ask your insurer before you sign an estimate. What we can show: in the Chicago area, insurance was the main source of money for about 2 in 5 new roofs (43%). In Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin together, these roofs had a median of $14,000, and other new roofs $10,000. The survey doesn't say why. These two numbers are for the five-state region, not just Chicago. The survey price is for the whole job, including any part insurance paid.
What is the 25% rule for roofing?
In Chicago, it's a permit rule: repairing up to 25% of a roof surface doesn't need a permit, as long as no part of the roof is cut away or removed. Source: City of Chicago, "Roofing Work" ↗. In some other states, like Florida, the "25% rule" means something else. There, if more than 25% of a roof section is repaired or replaced within 12 months, the whole section may have to meet today's building code. Since 2022, Florida applies this only to older roofs, not to roofs built to the 2007 code or later. Source: J.S. Held, "Florida Building Code 25% rule" ↗
How much does it cost to replace a roof on a 2,200 square-foot house?
Across the whole US, owners of homes from 1,500 to 2,499 sq ft paid a median of $12,000 for a new roof (jobs from 2021 to mid-2023). The survey has too few Chicago-area roofs to split them by house size. This is the size of the house, not the roof.
Do I need a permit to replace a roof in Chicago?
It depends on the slope. Chicago requires a permit for any work on a flat or low-slope roof (under 2:12). For a sloped roof of 2:12 or steeper on a home up to 4 stories, replacement does not need a permit unless the structure is changed. Repairs of up to 25% of a roof surface don't need one, as long as no part of the roof is cut away or removed. If your home is a Chicago Landmark or in a landmark district, these exceptions may not apply, so ask the city's Historic Preservation Division first. Source: City of Chicago, "Roofing Work" ↗
Why are there no Chicago permit numbers?
Chicago publishes its building permits. But the city's terms for that data say any site that uses it must pay the city's legal costs if someone sues the city over that use. We don't take that on, so this page doesn't use Chicago permit records.
Where do these numbers come from?
Two places, kept apart: the American Housing Survey 2023 (U.S. Census Bureau and HUD) and reports from homeowners like you. We review every homeowner report before it shows.
Why do cost guides show a lower number?
Most cost guides give one average for a typical shingle roof, worked out from national prices or from their own customers, then adjusted for your area. They rarely say how many jobs are behind the number or which years it covers. We show what Chicago-area owners said they paid in a government survey, with the count of jobs behind each number. A bigger roof, a flat roof, or rotten deck boards push a real job well above a guide's average.
More ways to look at roof costs.