Contractor costs in Philadelphia, PA

Services indexed

9

Hourly range, avg

$82–$136/hr

Philadelphia median

$109/hr

Most affordable: Handyman · Premium: Attorney

The Philadelphia contractor market

Philadelphia indexes 9 services across 3 categories, with hourly rates spanning $33/hr (Handyman) to $495/hr (Attorney). The city median of $109/hr runs 27% above the national average across all indexed cities. Home Repair & Maintenance is the largest service block here (4 of 9 services).

Source: BLS OEWS May 2024 wage data adjusted for Philadelphia cost of living. Read the methodology.

Home Repair & Maintenance

4 services

Construction

3 services

Professional Services

2 services

Frequently asked

7 answers

What's the average hourly rate for home services in Philadelphia?

Across the 9 home and professional services we index in Philadelphia, the median consumer rate is $109/hr. Hourly rates span $82/hr at the affordable end to $136/hr at the premium end, depending on service type and contractor.

Which service is most expensive in Philadelphia?

Attorney carries the highest typical rate in Philadelphia at $297–$495/hr. Premium professional and licensed services consistently command the highest rates across our index.

Which service is most affordable in Philadelphia?

Handyman sits at the lower end of the Philadelphia index at $32.67–$54.45/hr. Routine maintenance and cleaning categories typically cluster at the bottom of any city's price spread.

How do Philadelphia rates compare to the national average?

Philadelphia is 27% above the national average of $86/hr across our 49-city corpus. Local wage data and cost of living drive most of this difference — see the geographic precision note for the underlying data.

Which service category has the broadest coverage in Philadelphia?

Home Repair & Maintenance has the most indexed services in Philadelphia (4 guides), reflecting both local demand and the breadth of BLS wage data available for that segment.

Are these prices what consumers pay, or what workers earn?

Consumer-facing rates. We apply industry-standard 1.5–2.5× multipliers to BLS hourly wages to account for business overhead, insurance, licensing, employer costs, and profit margin. The full calculation is documented in the methodology.

How often is Philadelphia pricing data updated?

Pricing reflects the BLS OEWS May 2024 release. The next refresh lands when May 2025 data is published in April 2026. Cadence is documented in the update schedule.

Data: BLS OEWS May 2024 · Methodology · Last refreshed January 2026