How we estimate
Every price on Price My New Roof is a general estimate, not a quote. Here is exactly how we get from your address to a range, which public data we use, and what the estimate can't know.
The short version
- We find your home from the address you choose, using Google Places.
- We measure each plane of your roof from Google's satellite-based Solar API: its area, pitch and the direction it faces.
- We look up roofer wages for your area from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
- We price each roof option from published national installed costs, adjusted for local labor and current material prices.
- We round the result to a range and tell you how confident it is.
The same address and the same data always produce the same estimate. Each estimate records the version of the data it used (currently version 2).
Measuring your roof
Google's Solar API reports the roof planes it finds on the building nearest your address. For each plane we keep its area, its pitch and the compass direction it slopes toward. We convert area to roofing squares (1 square = 100 sq ft) and pitch to the rise-over-12 form roofers use, like 6/12. Planes under 50 sq ft are grouped as “Other”.
Material is ordered with extra for cutting and waste: 10% for roofs with up to 4 planes, 12% for 5 to 10, and 15% for more than 10.
When the satellite imagery is lower quality we still use it, but we widen the range: by 10% for medium quality and 20% for low quality. Imagery 5 or more years old lowers our confidence, since recent changes may not show, but doesn't widen the range.
If the roof we find is smaller than 8 or larger than 60 squares, or the building is more than 40 meters from your address, it may be the wrong building. We show you what we measured and ask: if you confirm it's your house, we price it and widen the range by 10%.
If we can't find your roof, or you'd rather not use the measured one, we ask for your home's size, stories and roof shape instead and estimate the roof area from those (living space divided by stories, times 1.15 for overhang and a typical pitch, times 1.0, 1.1 or 1.25 for a simple, average or complex shape). Those estimates are widened by 20%. When more than one of these applies, the widenings add up.
Pricing each option
Each option starts from a national installed cost per square, which includes tear-off. We split it into labor, materials and other costs, then adjust:
We work out the low and high ends separately, then round the low end down and the high end up to the nearest $500.
| Option | Base per square | Labor / materials / other |
|---|---|---|
| Architectural shingle | $550–$900 | 55% / 30% / 15% |
| New concrete tile | $1,000–$1,800 | 55% / 30% / 15% |
| Tile lift and relay | $550–$900 | 65% / 20% / 15% |
Base costs are national, as of August 2026. We show tile options first in states where tile roofs are common (AZ, CA, FL, HI, NM, NV) or when you tell us the roof is tile now.
Where the base costs come from
| Option | Source | Published range per square | Page date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Architectural shingle | Modernize cost calculator | $600–$900 | Updated 2026-08-21 |
| Architectural shingle | HomeAdvisor: roof replacement | $400–$600 | Updated 2026-06-17 |
| Architectural shingle | The Roofing Brief: 2026 Roofing Cost Report | $500–$800 | Published 2026-06-17, reviewed 2026-09 |
| New concrete tile | Modernize cost calculator | $1,000–$1,800 | Updated 2026-08-21 |
| New concrete tile | HomeAdvisor: tile roof | $900–$1,800 | Updated 2026-06-19 |
| New concrete tile | The Roofing Brief: 2026 Roofing Cost Report | $700–$1,900 | Published 2026-06-17, reviewed 2026-09 |
| Tile lift and relay | RoofCost Florida: tile re-underlayment | $600–$1,170 (Florida, all-in. Independent pricing guide, not a roofer.) | Updated 2026-09-26 |
Tile lift and relay has the least published cost data: we found one regional source. Estimates that show it first are marked low confidence.
Local labor
We map your ZIP code to its metro area with the HUD USPS ZIP code crosswalk (2026 Q2), then look up the median hourly wage for roofers (occupation 47-2181) in the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. ZIP codes outside a metro area use their nonmetropolitan area. Your local labor ratio is that wage divided by the national median, kept between 0.75 and 1.6. If BLS doesn't publish a wage for your area, we use your state's, then the national figure, widen the range by 10%, and say so on your estimate.
Material prices
Material costs follow the BLS producer price index: series WPU1361 (asphalt roofing products) for shingles and for the underlayment in tile lift and relay, and series WPU133 (concrete products) for new concrete tile. The material price ratio is the latest index value divided by its value in August 2026, the month our base costs are set to.
Steep roofs and permits
Planes steeper than 6/12 take longer to work safely. We add $75 to $125 per steep square. Permits are estimated at 2% of the job, at least $250 and at most $1,500; actual fees vary by city. In the cost breakdown, steep-roof work and the permit are part of “Tear-off, overhead, steep-roof work and permit”.
Confidence
- High: good satellite imagery and a wage for your metro area.
- Medium: one fallback, such as medium-quality or older imagery, a confirmed building or a state wage.
- Low: two or more fallbacks, or tile lift and relay is the first option shown.
The “Why this price” note
A small AI language model writes a two or three sentence summary of the biggest drivers of your price. It sees only the computed facts (roof size, sections, steepness, area name and wage comparison, cost shares), never your address or contact details, and it never sets a price. We check every note: each number must match the computed facts, and it must be short and avoid promises. If a note fails a check or takes too long, we show a fixed template built from the same facts instead.
What the estimate can't know
- The condition of the underlayment and decking, or how many layers of roofing are already there.
- Flashing, chimneys, skylights, vents, gutters and other details a roofer prices on site.
- Changes since the satellite imagery was taken; trees and shadows can also hide parts of a roof.
- Your city's actual permit fees, local code requirements and how easy the roof is to reach.
- Any one roofer's prices. Real quotes can fall outside the range.
That's why it's a general estimate, not a quote. A roofer confirms the details on site.
How referrals work
Price My New Roof is an independent referral service, not a roofing contractor. If you ask for quotes, we pass your request to a local roofer within one business day. Seeing your estimate never shares your details.
Data sources
- Google Maps Platform Solar API (roof planes, areas, pitch and direction) and Google Places (address lookup). Measurements are shown on a Google map and kept for no more than 30 days.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, occupation 47-2181, Roofers.
- BLS producer price index series WPU1361 and WPU133.
- HUD USPS ZIP code crosswalk files.
- The published cost guides listed in the table above.
BLS and HUD data are public. Price My New Roof is not affiliated with or endorsed by BLS, HUD or Google. Data version 2, built 2026-10-04.