All tools / Holiday light installation quote calculator / Pricing guide
How to price Christmas light installation
Updated November 8, 2026 by Qazzly
A plain guide for window cleaners, gutter and pressure washing crews, landscapers and anyone hanging lights for customers this season: what installers usually charge for, what published cost guides say, and a worked example you can rerun in the free calculator.
Start with the roofline
Most installers quote by the foot. Fixr puts it simply: most companies base the price on the length of the roof line and charge by the foot [3]. So the first job is measuring. Walk the house and add up every edge you will actually light: gutters, gables (measured along the slope, not across), ridges and peaks. Write the footage down side by side; you will use the same number again for takedown.
Trees, bushes, windows and wreaths are easier to price per item than per foot. Keep them as separate lines so the customer can see what they are paying for and drop an item without asking for a new quote.
Labour only or lights supplied
These are two different jobs. If the customer already owns the lights, you are selling ladder time and skill. If you bring the lights, you are also buying, testing and (often) owning them, and the price has to cover that. HomeAdvisor lists the lights themselves at about $0.40–$2 per foot [2]; clips, cords and timers come on top.
Decide up front who owns the lights after the season. Ware Landscaping's cost table lists the supplied option as installation plus light rental [1]: the lights usually go back to the installer. If the customer keeps them, say so on the quote.
In the calculator, keep the labour line for the work and enter the same footage on the "Lights supplied" line. Raise the "bulbs, clips and supplies" percentage so the margin check counts what the lights cost you.
Takedown and storage
Takedown is a second visit with the same ladders, so agree on it in the first quote. Fixr notes that most companies include the cost for removal in the installation packages [3]. When it is priced on its own, published guides do not agree on what it costs. Ware Landscaping says some companies bundle removal into the per-foot price and others charge an extra $1–$3 per foot [1]. Fixr gives $0.50–$0.65 per foot, or $125–$350 for the whole job [3]. That spread is a good reason to work out your own number from the time it takes you.
Storage only applies if you keep the customer's lights between seasons. It takes shelf space, labelling and a test before they go back up, so price it as one line per job, and leave it out for customers who keep their own lights.
Set a minimum job
A short roofline still means loading the ladders, driving out, setting up safely and coming back for takedown. A minimum charge keeps small jobs worth the trip. In the calculator the minimum applies after any discount, and the quote shows the top-up as its own line, so the customer sees why the price is what it is.
Roof pitch and height
Steep roofs and second stories slow every step and need more safety gear. Fixr says high or difficult roofs (around 16 feet or more) are often priced at about $3.50–$6 per foot [3]. QuoteIQ's calculator adds about 25% for two-story, steep or hard-to-reach rooflines [4].
Our calculator splits these into two multipliers. Roof pitch scales every line, because a steep roof slows all the work. Building height only scales the lines ticked "height applies" (roofline, takedown and window outlines by default). Only take on roofs you have the equipment, training and insurance for.
What published guides say
These figures come from cost guides and a software company, and are mostly written for homeowners. They are not "the market rate": prices vary by region, house and season. Use them as a sanity check next to your own costs.
| Source | What it covers | Published range |
|---|---|---|
| Ware Landscaping [1] | Installation only (the customer's own lights) | $2–$5 per foot |
| Ware Landscaping [1] | Installation with rented lights | $5–$10 per foot |
| Ware Landscaping [1] | Removal, when charged on top | $1–$3 per foot |
| HomeAdvisor [2] | Installation, all in | $2.50–$7 per foot |
| HomeAdvisor [2] | The lights themselves | $0.40–$2 per foot |
| Fixr [3] | High or difficult roofs (about 16 ft or more) | $3.50–$6 per foot |
| Fixr [3] | Removal | $0.50–$0.65 per foot, or $125–$350 per job |
| QuoteIQ [4] | Labour only (customer supplies the lights) | $2–$5 per foot |
| QuoteIQ [4] | Full service, lights supplied | $5–$8 per foot |
| QuoteIQ [4] | Premium or multi-story work | $7–$12 per foot |
A worked example
Here is the same house priced two ways with the calculator's example values. They are only examples, not a recommendation: replace them with your own rates and times.
- 120 linear feet of roofline, labour only, at $3.00 per foot and 1.5 worker-minutes per foot
- Takedown at $0.60 per foot and 0.6 worker-minutes per foot
- 20 minutes of setup and ladder work, 2 workers, labour cost $25 per worker-hour
- Supplies 10% of the work price, minimum job $300, no tax or travel charge
Easy roof, single story (the calculator's example values)
| Roofline lights (labour only), 120 linear ft | $360.00 |
| Takedown, 120 linear ft | $72.00 |
| Total for the customer | $432.00 |
| Time | 2.3 h on site (272 worker-minutes) |
| Labour cost at the example $25 per worker-hour | $113.33 |
Steep roof, two story (same house, same rates)
| Roofline lights (labour only), 120 linear ft | $562.50 |
| Takedown, 120 linear ft | $112.50 |
| Total for the customer | $675.00 |
| Time | 3.5 h on site (419 worker-minutes) |
| Labour cost at the example $25 per worker-hour | $174.48 |
Moving from an easy single-story roof to a steep two-story one takes the example from $3.60 to $5.63 per foot of roofline, takedown included. The roofline and takedown lines are multiplied by 1.25 for the pitch and 1.25 for the height; the setup time only by the pitch.
Small job: 50 ft of roofline, easy roof, single story
| Roofline lights (labour only), 50 linear ft | $150.00 |
| Takedown, 50 linear ft | $30.00 |
| Minimum job charge top-up | $120.00 |
| Total for the customer | $300.00 |
| Time | 1.0 h on site (125 worker-minutes) |
| Labour cost at the example $25 per worker-hour | $52.08 |
On the small job, the work itself comes to $180.00, so the $300 minimum adds a $120.00 top-up line.
Open the calculator, set the roof pitch to "Steep" and the height to "Two story", and you get the same $675.00. Then change the rates to yours and print the quote.
Sources
- Ware Landscaping, "Christmas Light Installation Cost Per Foot" (no page date; checked 2026-11-08). https://warelandscaping.com/christmas-light-installation-cost-per-foot/
- HomeAdvisor, "Holiday Lighting Installation Cost" (updated Jun 19, 2026). https://www.homeadvisor.com/cost/seasonal/install-holiday-lighting
- Fixr, "Christmas Light Installation Cost" (updated Jan 31, 2025). https://www.fixr.com/costs/christmas-light-installation
- QuoteIQ, "Christmas Light Installation Cost Calculator" (published Jun 6, 2026). https://myquoteiq.com/free-tools/christmas-light-installation-cost-calculator/
Ranges are quoted as published by each source on the date shown; they change. The worked example uses the calculator's example values, not market rates. This page is general information, not business or tax advice.