What Waco exempts, and what needs a permit
From the City's Do I Need a Permit? page (read 23 October 2026), which says plumbing "includes all plumbing work performed within the property line":
| No permit in Waco | Residential Plumbing permit |
|---|---|
| Replacing toilets, faucets and other fixtures in the same location without altering the pipes | Repairs to the pipe system: removing, replacing or relocating piping |
| Unclogging drains and sewers | Adding new fixtures |
| Minor repairs "as long as the removal, replacement, or relocation of piping is not required" | Installing a water heater |
| Sewer and water yard lines (priced per 100 feet) |
Gas piping is not on the plumbing permit: Waco issues a separate gas permit for the service line from the meter or for gas piping in the house. The City builds to the currently adopted International Residential Code and Chapter 6 of its Code of Ordinances.
Who can pull it
A licensed plumber registered with the City. The permit "requires a licensed plumber, unless a homestead owner is doing the work themselves on their homesteaded property." To register, a plumbing contractor emails permits@wacotx.gov its state license, the license holder's driver's license and a certificate of insurance naming the City of Waco; there is no registration fee (Registering & Applying). Plumbers are licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners; check the responsible master plumber on the TSBPE public search. 75.0% of Waco plumbing firms in our file matched an active TSBPE license; 22.7% had no match by name.
You, on your homestead. The City's residential checklist asks a homestead owner for a copy of their driver's license, and "The name and address must match the homestead owner information on the McLennan County Appraisal District." A rental or a house you have not homesteaded does not qualify.
How to apply and get inspected
- Apply in the City's Citizen Self Service portal. For a water heater, the scope goes in the application; there is no separate checklist.
- Request each inspection online by 4 p.m. the day before. The required inspections are "listed on the permit in the required sequence" (Inspection Procedures).
- Clear every comment before the reinspection. A fee applies from the third visit, and it must be paid before that visit is booked. Inspection Services: (254) 750-5612.
What it costs
From the plumbing section of the City's fee schedules (read 23 October 2026):
| Fee line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Plumbing & Irrigation Administration Fee | $60 |
| Technology Fee, plumbing & irrigation | $15 |
| Each plumbing fixture, trap, hot water heater or gas-fired appliance | $8 |
| Each house sewer, water or gas service (yard line) | $20 per line, per 100 feet |
| Each sump pump, grinder pump or lift station | $10 |
| Design / scope of work change | $60 + 10% of original permit fee |
| Permit renewal | 50% of original fee, $60 minimum |
| Failed reinspection: 1st / 2nd / 3rd or later | $55 / $100 / $150 |
By our arithmetic a water heater swap is $60 + $15 + $8 = $83, if the lines add as listed; the page does not say how they combine, so the portal invoice is the final word.
What 2,700 Waco plumbing permits show
| Measure | Waco plumbing |
|---|---|
| Permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026 | 2,700 |
| Firms | 132 |
| Firms with a permit in the last 12 months of the window | 82 |
| Finaled (permits a year or more old) | 89.6% |
| Usual days from issue to final | 126 |
| Share of permits held by the busiest firm | 37.1% |
| 10th / 90th-percentile firm's finaled share (10+ permits) | 58.1% / 98.1% |
| Firms under 70% finaled | 6 of 36 |
| Busiest / quietest month | February (index 116) / November (66) |
One firm, J & S Plumbing, holds 37.1% of Waco plumbing permits, so the citywide finaled share mostly reflects it. The spread below it is wider: the 10th-percentile firm with 10 or more permits finaled 58.1%, and 6 firms finaled under 70%. Filing peaks in February and bottoms out in November. Waco's trade permits carry no job value, so we cannot show prices; national figures are in plumbing labor cost and water heater replacement cost. Counts by year are on Waco permit statistics.
See every Waco plumber by permits finaled →
Before you hire
Check the TSBPE license with the Waco contractor license lookup, then compare firms on the Waco plumber list. Rules elsewhere: do I need a permit for plumbing repairs, water heaters and gas lines. Past permits on your address: Waco building permit search.
What this does not tell you
Exempt fixture swaps and unpermitted work leave no record. Days to final count open permits as unfinished. Our license match is by company name, so an unmatched firm is not necessarily unlicensed. The fee page carries no effective date; check it before you budget.
How we know this
Exemptions, the homestead rule and code basis are quoted from the City of Waco's Do I Need a Permit? page; homestead documentation from its Building Residential checklist; fees from its Fee Schedules page and inspection rules from its Procedures page, all read 23 October 2026. The fee example is our arithmetic. Permit counts are City of Waco plumbing permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026, with the plumbing contractor from each permit's contact list; finaled share uses permits a year or more old.
Numbers come from City of Waco EnerGov building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits on homes (the city's June 9, 2026 permit extract, updated to October 22, 2026 from the city's Citizen Self Service permit search), with the contractor taken from each permit's public contact list on that site, data through October 22, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Do I need a permit to replace a toilet or faucet in Waco?
No. Waco's Do I Need a Permit page says changing out fixtures, such as replacing a toilet, does not require a permit, and neither does replacing faucets and other fixtures in the same location without altering the pipes, or unclogging drains and sewers.
- Do I need a permit to replace a water heater in Waco?
Yes. The City says installing a water heater requires a Residential Plumbing permit, pulled by a licensed plumber unless a homestead owner does the work on their own homestead. The fee schedule charges $8 per water heater on top of the $60 plumbing administration fee and $15 technology fee.
- How much is a plumbing permit in Waco?
The City's fee schedule lists a $60 Plumbing and Irrigation Administration Fee, a $15 technology fee, $8 per fixture, trap or water heater, and $20 per 100 feet of sewer, water or gas yard line. Failed reinspections cost $55, then $100, then $150.
- Can a homeowner pull a plumbing permit in Waco?
Only on their own homestead, doing the work themselves. The City asks for a copy of the owner's driver's license, and the name and address must match the McLennan County Appraisal District homestead record.
- How long does a plumbing permit take to close in Waco?
Inspections must be requested online by 4 p.m. the day before. In our file the usual Waco plumbing permit finaled 126 days after issue, and 89.6% of those a year or more old finaled.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Do I need a plumbing permit in Arlington, VA? The like-for-like rule, gas, and timing
- Austin building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Do I need a plumbing permit in Austin? What is exempt, who can pull it, and the fees
- Do I need a plumbing permit in Bellevue, WA? Fixtures, showers, water heaters and the homeowner rule
For one city
- Do I Need a Permit? — City of Waco Inspection Services (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Fee Schedules — City of Waco Inspection Services (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Inspection Procedures — City of Waco Inspection Services (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Submission Checklists: Building Residential — City of Waco (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Registering & Applying for a Permit — City of Waco Inspection Services (2026-10-21)
- Citizen Self Service — City of Waco (2026-10-23)
- Free Licensee List and Public License Search — Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (2026-10-20)