Central air installation cost: what owners paid
When owners hired someone for a central air conditioning system, the middle half paid $4,000 to $9,700 and the typical job cost $6,900. Counting do-it-yourself jobs, the typical job was $6,500.
What owners paid
$6,900
The typical job when owners hired it out. The middle half paid $4,000 to $9,700.
Every job, do-it-yourself included: $6,500 typical.
Hired out, by home size: the typical job and the middle half
- Under 1,500 sq ft$5,900$3,500 to $8,400
- 1,500 to 2,499 sq ft$6,600$4,000 to $9,300
- 2,500 sq ft or more$8,000$5,000 to $12,000
Lowest big metro, $4,600: Detroit. Highest, $10,000: Boston and San Francisco.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Housing Survey 2023, the latest release: work owners did in about 2021–2023. Our percentiles from the survey’s public use file, checked October 11, 2026.
When owners hired the work out
89% of these jobs were hired out. Each bar runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile of what those owners paid, so half of the jobs sit inside it; the tick is the median.
- United States$6,900$4,000–$9,700
- Boston$10,000$6,300–$15,000
- San Francisco$10,000$6,000–$14,800
- Seattle$9,500$6,000–$15,000
- Los Angeles$9,200$6,300–$12,000
- Phoenix$8,000$5,000–$12,000
- Riverside$8,000$5,000–$12,700
- Washington DC$8,000$6,000–$11,200
- New York City$7,900$4,500–$10,000
- Dallas$7,200$4,000–$12,000
- Houston$7,000$4,500–$10,000
- Philadelphia$6,700$4,600–$10,000
- Atlanta$6,000$4,000–$8,700
- Chicago$5,900$4,000–$8,000
- Miami$5,400$3,500–$7,400
- Detroit$4,600$3,000–$6,500
The hired-out figures as a table, with margins of error
Scroll the table sideways to see every column on a small screen.
| Homes | Sample jobs | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Every home size | 2,011 | $4,000 ±$365 | $6,900 ±$682 | $9,700 ±$776 |
| Under 1,500 sq ft | 466 | $3,500 ±$406 | $5,900 ±$557 | $8,400 ±$865 |
| 1,500 to 2,499 sq ft | 901 | $4,000 ±$514 | $6,600 ±$542 | $9,300 ±$453 |
| 2,500 sq ft or more | 592 | $5,000 ±$328 | $8,000 ±$167 | $12,000 ±$1,786 |
| Boston | 42 | $6,300 ±$2,108 | $10,000 ±$1,387 | $15,000 ±$2,801 |
| San Francisco | 43 | $6,000 ±$2,341 | $10,000 ±$1,319 | $14,800 ±$2,301 |
| Seattle | 57 | $6,000 ±$2,228 | $9,500 ±$3,304 | $15,000 ±$7,028 |
| Los Angeles | 47 | $6,300 ±$1,639 | $9,200 ±$1,359 | $12,000 ±$1,598 |
| Phoenix | 121 | $5,000 ±$884 | $8,000 ±$618 | $12,000 ±$2,526 |
| Riverside | 93 | $5,000 ±$1,104 | $8,000 ±$1,463 | $12,700 ±$2,255 |
| Washington DC | 106 | $6,000 ±$920 | $8,000 ±$558 | $11,200 ±$2,501 |
| New York City | 55 | $4,500 ±$1,692 | $7,900 ±$1,247 | $10,000 ±$2,697 |
| Dallas | 119 | $4,000 ±$1,098 | $7,200 ±$1,488 | $12,000 ±$1,234 |
| Houston | 109 | $4,500 ±$864 | $7,000 ±$637 | $10,000 ±$589 |
| Philadelphia | 77 | $4,600 ±$952 | $6,700 ±$2,253 | $10,000 ±$1,254 |
| Atlanta | 80 | $4,000 ±$1,419 | $6,000 ±$821 | $8,700 ±$1,139 |
| Chicago | 86 | $4,000 ±$394 | $5,900 ±$1,231 | $8,000 ±$649 |
| Miami | 82 | $3,500 ±$576 | $5,400 ±$762 | $7,400 ±$1,027 |
| Detroit | 69 | $3,000 ±$1,020 | $4,600 ±$1,077 | $6,500 ±$1,126 |
What these figures cover: Central air conditioning added or replaced, as the Census survey asks it: every house size and system together. Heating equipment is counted on its own, and window units are not part of it.
How these figures are made: from the Census Bureau's 2023 American Housing Survey public use file, each job counted with its survey weight and a 90% margin of error from the survey's replicate weights. A job is hired out when the owners said someone outside the household did most of the work. The public file rounds costs.
What moves the price
- The cooling capacity the house needs, in tons, from a load calculation (Manual J) rather than the old unit’s label.
- The efficiency rating (SEER2) of the outdoor unit and the matching indoor coil.
- Whether working ducts exist: adding ductwork to a house without it is a much bigger job.
- Electrical work: a new circuit and disconnect, or a panel with no room for one.
- Removing the old equipment and its refrigerant, the pad, the refrigerant lines, the permit and the start-up check.
Before you compare quotes
Ask every contractor to price the same scope, in writing. Do the quotes name the same equipment (brand, model, tons, SEER2), the same duct work and the same electrical work, and is the permit included?
Put the quotes side by side in the quote worksheet, or keep every price for the project in a budget worksheet.