Plumbers charge $80-$200 an hour with call-outs of $60-$150 - but the small jobs most people book are priced as fixed jobs. Here are the cross-checked ranges for tap repairs, tap replacements, toilet repairs and toilet installs, and the two decisions that move every quote.
Business-hours pricing from published Australian rate cards and cost guides.
| Job | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Call-out fee | $60-$150 | To $250 in some areas; emergency call-outs $150-$250+ |
| Hourly rate | $80-$200 / hr | Typical around $120/hr; after-hours about $210/hr |
| Leaking / dripping tap repair | $80-$260 | Typical job about $170 |
| Tap replacement | $150-$350 labour | Whole job to $500 with a supplied mixer |
| Toilet repair (running / leaking) | $100-$350 | Larger faults (cracked cisterns, pan work) price above this |
| Toilet installation - labour only | $200-$400 | Like-for-like, same position |
| Toilet installation - supply + fit | $400-$900 | Typical about $600 with a standard suite |
| Toilet suite (supply only) | ~$480 standard | Back-to-wall suites about $680 |
Almost every small plumbing job is really "call-out plus the first hour" - a $60-$150 call-out layered over an $80-$200 hourly rate. That is why a ten-minute washer swap still lands around $150-$250, and why batching two or three small jobs into one visit is the cheapest plumbing decision you can make: the second tap in the same visit costs a fraction of the first.
Who buys the fixture is the biggest swing on install quotes. A standard toilet suite adds about $480 to labour, a back-to-wall suite about $680; a standard basin mixer adds about $185, a premium mixer up to $380. Supplying your own fixture can work out cheaper - but if it does not suit the existing pipework, you will pay for the plumber's time anyway, and warranty on the fixture becomes your problem, not theirs.
A like-for-like swap uses the existing water and waste points and prices as the tables above. Moving a toilet or tap means cutting into walls and floors to re-run pipework - bathroom rough-in pricing runs $2,000-$6,500 before fixtures. If a quote for a "toilet replacement" comes back in the thousands, this is almost certainly why.
Fixtures add $185-$680 per item over labour. Get the supply decision in writing on the quote so you are comparing like with like.
Concealed cisterns and wall-hung suites price at band tops. Seized valves and perished flexi-hoses found mid-job are the classic add-on - a good plumber flags them before, not after.
After-hours labour runs about 60% above standard ($210 vs $130/hr), and emergency call-outs of $150-$250+ apply before any work starts.
Toilet replacement, plumber supplies a standard suite, business hours: labour $200-$400 + suite $480 = $680-$880. That sits inside the published supply-and-fit band of $400-$900, right around its $600-$760 typical zone.
A note on flexi-hoses: burst flexible hoses are one of the leading causes of household water damage in Australia. If your plumber recommends replacing ageing flexi-hoses while they are on site, that is legitimate preventative advice, not an upsell.
Compliance: most plumbing work - anything connecting to water supply, sanitary drainage or gas - legally requires a licensed plumber in all states. Gas fitting is licensed-only everywhere and requires a compliance certificate. Homeowners can legally do only trivial tasks, such as changing a tap washer or a shower head in most states.
Prices cross-checked against hipages, Yellow Pages, What's The Damage, RipperQuote and published plumber rate cards, October 2026.
Plumbers charge $80-$200 an hour with call-outs of $60-$150 - but the small jobs most people book are priced as fixed jobs. Here are the cross-checked ranges for tap repairs, tap replacements, toilet repairs and toilet installs, and the two decisions that move every quote.
The biggest drivers are supply vs labour-only, access and hidden parts and urgency. Each one is worked through with prices in the guide above, and the calculator prices them for your job.
Use the free calculator linked from this guide - it prices your job with the same installed ranges used here, in about 30 seconds. It is a guide range, not a quote: your contractor confirms a fixed price after seeing the job.
No - they are researched guide ranges, cross-checked across at least two published sources, not quotes. Prices move with your area, the condition of the site and the scope you choose. Get itemised quotes in writing, and check the tradesperson's licence with your state building authority before you book.
The calculator adjusts for fixture supply, position and after-hours timing - get your ballpark in about 30 seconds.