Average Home Maintenance Cost Per Year
Homeowners spent about $3,200 a year on maintenance and repairs in 2025, or $265 a month. Hiring pros for every task runs about $10,900.
The average home maintenance cost per year is about $3,200. That is what homeowners actually spent in 2025, according to Angi's State of Home Spending report: $2,041 on routine maintenance plus $1,143 on emergency repairs, or about $265 a month. Hiring a professional for every recommended upkeep task, including house cleaning and lawn care, costs far more: about $10,946 a year, per Zillow and Thumbtack.
What is the average home maintenance cost per year?
It depends on what is being measured. Three national figures answer the question in different ways:
| Measure | Per year | Per month | What it counts |
|---|---|---|---|
| What homeowners spent (Angi, 2025) | $3,184 | $265 | Routine maintenance ($2,041) plus emergency repairs ($1,143), as reported by homeowners |
| Older homes (Census, 2021 survey) | $1,800 | $150 | Median upkeep for homes built before 1950 |
| Hiring pros for everything (Thumbtack, 2025) | $10,946 | $912 | The going rate for 17 recurring services, from HVAC service to house cleaning |
For most households, Angi's $3,184 is the closest to what a year of ownership actually costs. It rose from $2,728 in 2024, when homeowners spent $1,750 on maintenance and $978 on emergencies.
An alternative for surprise repairs
$50 off + your first month freeAnother way to handle emergency repair bills
Emergency repairs averaged $1,143 in 2025, on top of routine maintenance. A home warranty is an alternative way to plan for some of them: a set yearly cost that may cover eligible breakdowns of covered appliances and home systems.
Choice's Total Plan includes systems such as heating, plumbing and electrical, plus appliances including refrigerator, dishwasher, washer and dryer.
Get your free quote →Takes about 60 seconds · No obligation · No credit card required
Coverage generally applies to eligible systems and appliances that are working when the plan begins. Existing or known problems may not qualify.
We may earn a commission if you use this link. How this works
Why do home maintenance cost estimates range from $1,800 to $10,900?
Because they measure different things. Angi and the Census ask homeowners what they actually spent, which includes doing some jobs yourself and putting others off. Thumbtack prices what it would cost to hire someone for every recurring task: appliance maintenance, carpet cleaning, air conditioning and heating service, deck sealing, duct cleaning, chimney cleaning, full-service lawn care, gutter cleaning, house cleaning, pressure washing, roof maintenance, sprinkler service, tile and grout cleaning, tree trimming, water heater maintenance and window cleaning.
Two of those, full-service lawn care and house cleaning, are jobs many homeowners do themselves. Treat $10,946 as the cost of outsourcing everything, not as a typical bill.
What is the average home maintenance cost per month?
About $265 a month, based on the $3,184 homeowners spent on maintenance and emergency repairs in 2025. Paying professionals for every recurring task works out to about $912 a month. Setting aside a fixed amount each month smooths out bills that arrive unevenly: nothing for months, then a large repair.
How much does home maintenance cost for an older home?
Owners of homes built before 1950 spent a median of $1,800 a year on upkeep, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Housing Survey, with routine maintenance alone around $540. The bigger difference is between owners: people who had just bought an older home spent a median of $3,900 a year, while those who had owned theirs for 10 years or more spent about $1,500. The first couple of years after buying an older home tend to cost the most.
How much does home maintenance cost where you live?
Where you live changes the price of the same work. In Zillow and Thumbtack's 2025 analysis of large metro areas, a full year of outsourced maintenance ranged from $10,079 in Salt Lake City to $12,856 in Seattle.
How much should you budget for home maintenance?
Two rules of thumb are common, per State Farm:
| Rule | How it works | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1% of home value | Set aside 1% of the home's value a year, up to 4% for older homes or homes in poor condition | $400,000 home: $4,000 to $16,000 a year |
| $1 per square foot | Set aside $1 a year for each square foot of living space | 2,000 sq ft home: $2,000 a year |
Both are starting points. Neither accounts for how old the roof, furnace or water heater is, and those replacements are the costs that actually break a budget.
Home maintenance cost calculator
What will your home cost to maintain?
National averages can't tell you that. Answer eight questions about your home's size, age, condition and systems, and get your own yearly upkeep, replacement fund and emergency reserve.
Calculate my home maintenance cost →Free · Personalized to your home · Takes about 2 minutes
Your home
- Routine upkeep
- Replacement fund
- Emergency reserve
Estimated annual budget
$ —
If you would rather not carry the whole risk of surprise repairs yourself, a home warranty is the other route.
Prefer a set yearly cost for surprise repairs?
A home warranty may cover eligible breakdowns of covered appliances and home systems.
We may earn a commission if you use this link. How this works
Which home maintenance costs are the biggest?
The large bills are replacements, not upkeep. A water heater replacement averages about $1,300 installed, and a furnace $2,800 to $6,900. Thumbtack's figure covers recurring services only, so it leaves them out entirely. Knowing how old those systems are tells you when they are likely to come due: the appliance age calculator and furnace and AC age tool read the manufacture date from a serial number. For the routine tasks that keep them running longer, see the fall home maintenance checklist.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the 1% rule for home maintenance?
It says to set aside 1% of your home's value each year for maintenance: $4,000 a year on a $400,000 home. State Farm widens it to 1–4% for older homes or homes in poor condition. A second rule of thumb is $1 per square foot, which gives $2,000 a year for a 2,000-square-foot home.
Is $300 a month enough for home maintenance?
For many homes, yes. It is a little above the $265 a month homeowners actually spent on maintenance and emergency repairs in 2025, according to Angi. It is below the 1% rule for any home worth more than $360,000, and it will not cover a roof or furnace replacement on its own, so an older home or one with aging systems needs more.
How much does it cost to maintain a $500,000 house?
By the 1% rule, about $5,000 a year, or roughly $417 a month. State Farm puts the range at 1–4% of value, $5,000 to $20,000, with older homes and homes in poor condition at the high end. The rule scales with price rather than with upkeep, so a smaller or newer $500,000 home often needs less.
Does the average include emergency repairs?
Angi's figure does: $2,041 of routine maintenance plus $1,143 of emergency repairs, $3,184 in total for 2025. Thumbtack's $10,946 covers recurring services only, not replacing a major system such as a roof or HVAC, which is why it is worth saving separately for those.
Sources
- Angi — State of Home Spending Report (January 2026, 2025 data) — average spent on maintenance ($2,041) and emergency repairs ($1,143) in 2025; 2024 comparison; Millennial figures
- Zillow and Thumbtack — Hidden costs of homeownership reach $16K per year (November 2025) — $10,946 a year maintenance, the 17 services in the index, metro range (Seattle $12,856, Salt Lake City $10,079)
- U.S. Census Bureau — Cost of Improving and Maintaining Older Homes Higher for New Owners (October 2023) — 2021 American Housing Survey: pre-1950 homes, median upkeep $1,800, maintenance alone $540, new vs longtime owners
- State Farm — How Much To Budget for Home Maintenance — 1–4% of home value rule and the $1 per square foot rule