The usual Seattle permit takes 57 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout, across all 10 kinds of work on file (57,209 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). The usual furnace & heating permit, the biggest trade here, takes 66 days. EV Charger is quickest at 20 days; fire sprinkler the slowest at 413 days. This is the turnaround to finish the work and close the permit, not the wait for approval.
“How long does a permit take?” can mean two waits. This page measures the second one.
Getting the permit (not measured): application → issue, the wait for the city to approve it. Seattle's file we read does not carry a usable application date, so we don't guess at it. Ask the permit office for its current review times.
Finishing the work (measured here): issue → completion. The day the city issued the permit to the day it recorded a final inspection or closeout. That is the contractor's part: doing the work and getting it signed off.
What “finished” means in Seattle: For contractors with at least 5 permits a year or more old, the share the city completed or closed, adjusted for permit age. Permits that expire without a final count against it.
Speed: How long their permits take from issue to the city's completion date, compared with other Seattle contractors in the trade. Shown for firms with 10+ permits.
Usual is the middle permit: half finish sooner, half later. Finished is the share of permits a year or more old that the city closed out.
| Trade | Permits | Usual days to finish | Finished | Firms with 10+ permits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Furnace & Heating | 18,668 | 66 | 86.1% | 134 |
| Heat Pump & AC | 15,441 | 105 | 85.4% | 129 |
| Electrical | 15,130 | 44 | 94.6% | 254 |
| EV Charger | 2,602 | 20 | 94.0% | 46 |
| Solar & Battery | 1,858 | 43 | 96.9% | 19 |
| Alarm & Low-Voltage | 1,830 | 25 | 95.0% | 14 |
| Roofing | 633 | 67 | 87.4% | 4 |
| Boiler | 428 | 24 | 91.7% | 9 |
| Stairlift & Home Elevator | 342 | 51 | 92.6% | 4 |
| Fire Sprinkler | 277 | 413 | 87.7% | 7 |
Each trade on its own, from issue to the city's sign-off. The spread between the quickest and slowest quarter of firms is the part you can choose.
The usual furnace & heating permit in Seattle takes 66 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (18,668 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 86.1% of furnace & heating permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 1 month, the slowest quarter in 4.5 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
128 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle furnace & heating contractors →
The usual heat pump & AC permit in Seattle takes 105 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (15,441 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 85.4% of heat pump & AC permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 1 month, the slowest quarter in 5.2 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
124 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle heat pump & AC contractors →
The usual electrical permit in Seattle takes 44 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (15,130 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 94.6% of electrical permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 0.8 months, the slowest quarter in 2.7 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
254 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle electrical contractors →
The usual EV charger permit in Seattle takes 20 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (2,602 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 94.0% of EV charger permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 0.4 months, the slowest quarter in 0.8 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
46 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle EV charger contractors →
The usual solar & battery permit in Seattle takes 43 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (1,858 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 96.9% of solar & battery permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 1.4 months, the slowest quarter in 1.7 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
19 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle solar & battery contractors →
The usual alarm & low-voltage permit in Seattle takes 25 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (1,830 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 95.0% of alarm & low-voltage permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 0.3 months, the slowest quarter in 4 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
14 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle alarm & low-voltage contractors →
The usual roofing permit in Seattle takes 67 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (633 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 87.4% of roofing permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
The usual boiler permit in Seattle takes 24 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (428 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 91.7% of boiler permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 0.5 months, the slowest quarter in 0.9 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
9 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle boiler contractors →
The usual stairlift & home elevator permit in Seattle takes 51 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (342 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 92.6% of stairlift & home elevator permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 1.2 months, the slowest quarter in 2.7 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
4 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle stairlift & home elevator contractors →
The usual fire sprinkler permit in Seattle takes 413 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (277 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 87.7% of fire sprinkler permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 11.5 months, the slowest quarter in 12.9 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Seattle's file.
6 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Seattle fire sprinkler contractors →
Source: City of Seattle (SDCI) building, trade and electrical permits on single-family and duplex homes (the city's open-data exports). The window is October 2023 through September 2026; a permit filed after that isn't here yet.
A filed value is what the contractor wrote on the permit when they applied. It is not a quote and not the final bill.
Counts are permits, not jobs: one job can need several permits, and one permit can cover several visits.
Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can. How the records work in Seattle →
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