Service area
Hire a Licensed Electrician in Boston, Massachusetts
Does your Boston home or business need a rewire, a new panel or a repair? A licensed electrician can look at it once you call Hire Local Electrician.
- Line answered
- 24/7
- Electrician
- Licensed
- Price
- Quoted first
- ZIP prefixes
- 021 / 022
Electrical work in Boston
Shared services and old wiring drive most electrical work in Boston. Triple-deckers run three households off one service with meters in the basement, brownstones carry risers extended over many decades, and heat pumps going in quickly change the load all over again.
In a multi-family building the building service is usually the real limit, not your unit's panel, which surprises owners who think of their condo as separate. Adding a heat pump or an induction range on one floor of a triple-decker can mean upgrading the service for all three, and that becomes a building decision.
Age makes it harder. Knob-and-tube and cloth-covered wire still turn up across the older stock, and they come up as both a safety issue and an insurance question when a property sells. Winter nor'easters load ice onto drops, and low-lying areas take coastal water into basement electrical rooms. Massachusetts licenses electricians statewide through the Board of State Examiners of Electricians.
In a house wired before 1950, the usual jobs are home rewiring, an electrical panel upgrade to retire the fuse box, and grounded outlet installation where two-prong receptacles are still in use. If you've just bought one, start with an electrical inspection.
When to call urgently
- A burning smell near outlets, switches or the panel
- Visible sparking, arcing or scorch marks
- A shock from an appliance, switch, faucet or fixture
- Water reaching outlets, the panel or wiring
- A breaker that will not stay reset, or a panel that is hot to the touch
Local conditions
What do electricians get called for in Boston?
We cover Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Roxbury, the South End, East Boston and Brighton, along with the rest of the ZIP codes listed below.
Three households on one service
In a triple-decker, adding a heat pump or induction range to one apartment can mean upgrading the service for the whole building.
Brownstone risers at capacity
Back Bay and South End brownstones split into condos tend to share a riser installed long before the condo association existed. When one unit keeps tripping, the cause is often upstream in a shared system.
Knob-and-tube and cloth-covered wire
Pre-war wire survives in the older housing and raises fire and insurance questions. Taking it out is one of the biggest and most common jobs in these neighborhoods.
Window units on old circuits
Window air conditioners are still the norm in a lot of older housing, and the first humid week of summer brings hot outlets and breakers that won't hold.
Water in the basement electrical room
Heavy rain and, near the harbor, coastal storms put water in basements, and panels and building electrical rooms down there go first.
ZIP codes
Which ZIP codes do you cover here?
The Boston ZIP codes we cover run across the 021 and 022 prefixes, so they reach past the city's own postal district. Type your ZIP into the checker to be sure. Don't see your ZIP? Call anyway and we'll check your address.
- 02108
- 02109
- 02110
- 02111
- 02112
- 02113
- 02114
- 02115
- 02116
- 02117
- 02118
- 02123
- 02127
- 02128
- 02133
- 02163
- 02196
- 02199
- 02201
- 02203
- 02204
- 02205
- 02206
- 02210
- 02211
- 02212
- 02215
- 02217
- 02222
- 02241
- 02266
- 02283
- 02284
- 02293
- 02297
- 02298
Available in Boston
Which electrical service do you need?
Is the old wiring in my Boston house safe?
It depends on its condition more than its age. A licensed electrician checks the splices, the grounding and the panel, tells you which circuits need replacing and which can stay, and you'll have an estimate first.
What does electrical work cost in Boston?
It depends on what the house needs. In a pre-1950 home the big jobs are a rewire and a service upgrade, priced on how many circuits there are and how much wall and ceiling has to be opened. A single repair costs far less. You'll know the price first, and you only pay for work you agreed to.
Can I get an electrician in Boston at night or on a weekend?
Yes, for anything urgent. Our line is answered 24 hours a day. Tell us what's happening and we'll get a licensed electrician out who takes after-hours calls. Nights and weekends usually cost more than a weekday visit.
Talk to us
Need an electrician in Boston?
Tell us roughly when the house was built and what it's doing. We'll get a licensed electrician out to look at the wiring and the panel.
We'll get a licensed electrician out to you, and you only pay for work you agreed to.