The usual St. Louis permit takes 282 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout, across all 10 kinds of work on file (5,943 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). The usual remodel & alteration permit, the biggest trade here, takes 361 days. Solar is quickest at 154 days; windows & doors the slowest at 382 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. St. Louis'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 St. Louis: For contractors with at least 5 permits a year or more old, the share that were completed.
Speed: How long their permits take from issue to completion, using the city's dates, compared with other St. Louis 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Remodel & Alteration | 1,904 | 361 | 65.6% | 24 |
| Fence | 866 | 213 | 71.9% | 15 |
| Demolition | 744 | 164 | 95.9% | 18 |
| Deck & Porch | 703 | 234 | 68.1% | 6 |
| Roofing | 491 | 294 | 73.2% | 9 |
| Garage & Carport | 355 | 335 | 70.3% | 3 |
| Windows & Doors | 330 | 382 | 70.9% | 3 |
| Foundation & Waterproofing | 304 | 296 | 60.3% | 7 |
| Solar | 148 | 154 | 82.9% | 4 |
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 remodel & alteration permit in St. Louis takes 361 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (1,904 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 65.6% of remodel & alteration permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
The usual fence permit in St. Louis takes 213 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (866 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 71.9% of fence permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 3.6 months, the slowest quarter in 10 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
12 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare St. Louis fence contractors →
The usual demolition permit in St. Louis takes 164 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (744 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 95.9% of demolition permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
The usual deck & porch permit in St. Louis takes 234 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (703 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 68.1% of deck & porch permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 5.1 months, the slowest quarter in 10.9 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
5 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare St. Louis deck & porch contractors →
The usual roofing permit in St. Louis takes 294 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (491 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 73.2% of roofing permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
The usual garage & carport permit in St. Louis takes 335 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (355 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 70.3% of garage & carport permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
The usual windows & doors permit in St. Louis takes 382 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (330 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 70.9% of windows & doors permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 10.4 months, the slowest quarter in 16.9 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
3 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare St. Louis windows & doors contractors →
The usual foundation & waterproofing permit in St. Louis takes 296 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (304 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 60.3% of foundation & waterproofing permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 8.3 months, the slowest quarter in 17.1 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
6 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare St. Louis foundation & waterproofing contractors →
The usual solar permit in St. Louis takes 154 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (148 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 82.9% of solar permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 2.1 months, the slowest quarter in 4.2 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in St. Louis's file.
4 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare St. Louis solar contractors →
Source: City of St. Louis building permits. 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 St. Louis →
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