Computer Repair Price

Computer repair prices can vary from business to business. But what is considered a fair price and who makes this determination? We will try to demonstrate to consumers what computer repair businesses charge and why. Clients can then determine if they are being treated fairly by technicians. The Primary factors are location, price structure, walk-in or onsite repair, faulty hardware and the actual skill level involved in the repair.

Location
Geography can be a determining factor in the price of repairing PCs. Inner-city shops will tend to charge more for PC repair than suburban shops. This is simply because everything costs more in the city. While we are no saying some shops do not have great rates in the city, most city computer repair shops will have rates that are slightly higher than the region outside of city limits.

Price Structure
Some shops will have a set rate for certain tasks and some will charge an hourly rate. The set price may sometimes seem steep compared to the hourly rate of a computer job, but if a complication arises, the set rate may actually wind up being cheaper than the hourly rate. This is especially true for repairing Windows installations that have a lot spyware and viruses.

Walk-in or Onsite Repair
Businesses will generally charge a lot more for onsite computer repair jobs. If the tech has to drive to a remote location to fix a PC, there will be extra costs involved to cover travel time and fuel surcharges. If possible, you will want to bring your equipment into a shop to potentially save time and money on the repair.

Faulty Hardware
It’s not unusual for a seemingly minor repair to escalate into a costly expense. If a tech first tells you the hard drive is bad, it will sometimes mean that something else caused the hard drive to fail–like a bad power supply, for instance. Until a tech can properly diagnose a computer, shops should explain other expenses might occur.

Type of Service
The type of job being performed will also determine the price. For instance, networking is considered a specialized trade and are generally more expensive than standard service calls.

In Conclusion
So what is a fair price for computer repair? If we would consider a tech to have a $30 and hour walk-in charge, then an onsite repair would probably be $50 and hour with at least on hour guaranteed. If you want a network installed, a tech working under a simial price structure we’re using in this example would probably charge around $75 per hour.

Be sure to shop around and make some calls. Look for a place close to your home or office and get as much information up front before you have a tech even touch your computer.