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How to Compare Electrical Quotes in Ontario: The Line-by-Line Grid, and Three Example Quotes for the Same 2,000 sq ft New House
Electrical & Lighting
Three Electrical Quotes, One Grid: Make Them Price the Same House Before You Pick the Cheap One
Three quotes come in for wiring the same new house at $12,000, $16,000 and $20,000, and the natural thing is to toss the top one and haggle with the bottom one. Most of the time that is backwards. Electrical quotes are rarely for the same job, because every electrician draws the line between “included” and “by others” in a different place. This page gives you the thirteen lines to fill in for every quote, then runs three example quotes through them so you can watch the cheapest one stop being cheapest.
The Thirteen Lines
| Line | What the quote has to say | If it is missing, budget |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Service and panel | 200 A, overhead or underground, meter base, panel make and number of spaces, who digs the trench | Underground stage is 10 to 15 percent of a complete package; trench $400 to $800 if no machine is on site |
| 2. Circuits | Each appliance circuit named: range, dryer, heat pump or AC, HRV, furnace or air handler, hot tub | Heat pump circuit $300 to $600; hot tub $750 to $1,100 |
| 3. Devices | Receptacles and switches counted, tamper-resistant, GFCI and AFCI where the code requires, dimmers named | Dimmer $40 to $80 labour plus $25 to $100 for the device |
| 4. Fixtures | Supply or install only, and the allowance in dollars if supplied | We carry a $3,000 to $6,000 allowance for 2,000 sq ft |
| 5. Pot lights | A count, and the type of housing | $100 to $200 each, new construction |
| 6. Exterior | Receptacles, wall lights, soffit lights, by count | Soffit pot light $200 to $400 |
| 7. EV | A 240 V EV-ready circuit to the garage, or the charger itself | $750 to $1,200 now; $2,000 to $2,800 after drywall |
| 8. Low voltage | Cat6 drops by count, or “by others” | $80 to $150 a drop, new construction |
| 9. Surge and backup | Whole-home surge protector; generator inlet | Surge $250 to $400; inlet $700 to $1,200 |
| 10. ESA | The LEC files the notification, and the fee is in the price | $253 on a new house up to 200 A |
| 11. Utility | Who books the connection with the utility, and who pays its fee | $200 to $800 in utility fees |
| 12. Patching | On a renovation: who patches drywall or plaster, and to what finish | $2,000 to $8,000 on a rewire |
| 13. Warranty | Years, what it covers, in writing | Nothing, if it is blank |
October 2026 prices, before HST. The fixture allowance is our assumption, not a researched price. What wiring a new house costs in full is on the cost to wire a house page; the utility side is on the hydro connection page.
Why Ontario prices are all over the map: before you blame an electrician for being high, know that the contractors we checked for this page could not agree either. An Ottawa contractor said $4 to $7 a square foot to wire a new house, a London contractor $6 to $8, and an Eastern Ontario contractor $18,000 to $24,000 for 2,000 to 2,500 sq ft with the underground service and the permit in, about $9 to $10.50 a foot. On a 2,000 sq ft house that is $8,000 to $24,000 for what sounds like one job. The difference is the service, the permit, the exterior and appliance circuits, and who supplies the fixtures. Budget $10 a square foot plus a fixture allowance, and get two or three quotes on the same written scope.
Three Example Quotes on the Grid
This is a made-up example. The house is a 2,000 sq ft two-storey on a full basement, three bedrooms, a heat pump and HRV, an induction range, an attached garage and a 200 A underground service. The three quotes are fictional, priced with the ranges on this page, to show how the comparison works.
| Line | Quote A | Quote B | Quote C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price on paper | $12,000 | $16,000 | $20,000 |
| Service, meter base, underground | Panel only; service “by others”: add $2,500 (12.5 percent of C, the middle of 10 to 15) | Included | Included |
| ESA notification | “Permit by owner”: add $253, and see below | Included | Included |
| Heat pump circuit | Not listed: add $450 | Included | Included |
| Pot lights | 20: add 10 at $140 = $1,400 | 25: add 5 at $140 = $700 | 30 |
| Exterior receptacles and lights | Not listed: add $800 (our allowance) | Not listed: add $800 (our allowance) | Included |
| EV-ready circuit to the garage | Add $975 | Add $975 | Included |
| Whole-home surge protector | Add $325 | Add $325 | Included |
| Ceiling fan rough-in, 3 bedrooms | Add 3 at $85 = $255 | Add 3 at $85 = $255 | Included |
| Light fixtures, supply | None: add $4,000 allowance | $2,000 allowance: add $2,000 | None: add $4,000 allowance |
| Low voltage, utility fee | Excluded | Excluded | Excluded |
| Warranty | Not stated | 1 year | 2 years, in writing |
| Same scope | $22,958 | $21,055 | $24,000 |
Example only. Every added number is the middle of its range on this page: heat pump circuit $300 to $600, EV-ready circuit $750 to $1,200, surge protector $250 to $400, fan rough-in $50 to $120, pot lights at the $140 default. A: $12,000 + $2,500 + $253 + $450 + $1,400 + $800 + $975 + $325 + $255 + $4,000 = $22,958. B: $16,000 + $700 + $800 + $975 + $325 + $255 + $2,000 = $21,055. C: $20,000 + $4,000 = $24,000. Low voltage and the utility fee are left out of all three alike.
On paper, A is $8,000 under C. On the same scope it is $1,042 under C and $1,903 over B. The middle quote is the cheap one.
Then there is the line in A that ends the conversation: “permit by owner”. A homeowner may only file a notification for work they do themselves. A quote that asks you to file for the electrician’s work is not a cheaper quote; it is an unlicensed arrangement with a price on it.
What I would do: ask B to price its five missing lines in writing. If B comes back near my numbers, B. If B suddenly finds $4,000 of extras, C, which wrote down everything and puts two years of warranty behind it.
Reading the Grid
- Send every electrician the same package. Plans, the appliance list, the lighting plan and a list of extras. The lighting and outlet planning page is how to build that list.
- Count, do not read adjectives. “Full pot light package” means nothing. “30 IC-rated airtight pot lights” means something.
- Put the same fixture allowance in every column. A quote with a $2,000 allowance looks dearer than one with none, and is not.
- Check the licence number on every quote. The hiring page shows how.
- “Permit by owner” disqualifies the quote. The ESA permit page explains why.
- A blank counts as zero. If it is not written down, assume it is not in the price.
The Grid Is Free; the Review Is $99
Honestly, the grid answers most of it. Fill it in at the kitchen table with a pencil and a coffee, and nine times out of ten the answer is obvious. You do not need to pay anybody to tell you that a quote without a service is missing a service.
The $99 review is for the other time: two quotes are close, a line is written so you cannot tell if it is in or out, or one quote and the photos of your panel do not seem to agree. I read up to three quotes, or one quote plus the panel photos, fill in the thirteen lines and write down what each one left out and what I would ask. It is a written review, not a referral. We do not sell electricians and we take no referral fees.
Questions people ask
How many electrical quotes should I get?
Two or three on the same written scope. More than that and you are comparing salesmen instead of jobs. Send each one the same plans and the same list of extras.
Why are electrical quotes for a new house so different?
Because they rarely cover the same job. One includes the 200 A service, the ESA permit, the exterior and appliance circuits and a fixture allowance, and another leaves some of those to “others”. Published Ontario figures run from $4 a square foot to about $10.50 for that reason.
What should an electrical quote include?
The service and panel, every appliance circuit named, device and pot light counts, fixtures as supply or install, exterior work, EV, low voltage, surge, the ESA notification filed by the contractor, who books the utility, patching on a renovation, and the warranty in writing.
Is the cheapest electrical quote a bad sign?
Usually it is an incomplete quote rather than a bad one. Price the missing lines and compare again. If it is still cheapest on the same scope and the licence checks out, take it.
Should the electrician supply the light fixtures?
Either works, as long as the quote says which. Most complete packages include hanging the fixtures but not buying them; carry a fixture allowance of your own either way.
Build your own column before the quotes arrive
The whole-house electrical cost calculator prices your house by the square foot with the add-ons you pick, without counting anything twice, which gives you the column every quote is read against. If the grid still leaves a question, the $99 review reads up to three quotes and writes down what each one is missing.
Sources and further reading
- ESA 2026 Fee Guide: the actual ESA fees for a new house, a service change, an EV charger and renovation work, contractor and homeowner rates.
- ESA notifications and inspections: when a notification of work is needed, who files it, and the rule that nothing is covered until an inspector authorizes it.
- Your rights when starting home renovations or repairs: Ontario government: written contracts, estimates and the cooling-off rules for work done at your home.
