How Much a Seattle Building Permit Costs

Seattle sets building permit fees from the value of the work. The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections, known as SDCI, publishes the full schedule each year in the Fee Subtitle, which is Chapter 22.900 of the Seattle Municipal Code. If you know your construction value, you can work out the fee yourself before you apply.

This guide walks through the 2026 fee subtitle and shows the arithmetic on three projects of different sizes.

The fee has two parts

Section 22.900D.010 calls the total a development fee. The code says it "shall consist of a permit fee and, where plans are reviewed, a separate plan review fee." Both parts are calculated from the same valuation. SDCI says on its fees page that it charges fees "to cover the costs of processing applications, inspecting and reviewing plans, and preparing detailed statements."

How SDCI sets your valuation

You report a construction value on the application, but the Director decides the number used for the fee. Section 22.900D.010.C defines value as the estimated current value of all labor and materials, whether actually paid or not, including finish work, mechanical and electrical systems, elevators, sprinklers, retaining walls and rockeries. Furnishings are left out. SDCI uses building valuation data from the International Code Council.

Section 22.900D.010.B says the fees are recalculated during review and the balance is due before the permit is issued. If what you paid at application turns out to be less than 90 percent of the revised amount, review stops until you pay the difference.

The valuation table

Table D-1 of the 2026 fee subtitle converts your valuation into a figure SDCI calls the Development Fee Index. Each bracket has a starting amount plus a marginal rate on the value above the bracket floor. Below $100,000 the rate runs per $100 of extra value. Above $100,000 it runs per $1,000. These are some of the brackets.

The table repeats the phrase "or fraction thereof," which means partial increments round up. A project $200 above a bracket floor pays for a full $1,000 increment.

Table D-2 turns the index into the actual charges. For a building permit reviewed against drawings, the permit fee is 100 percent of the index and the plan review fee is another 100 percent, so the development fee is twice the index. For a permit subject to field inspection, which covers simpler work checked in the field instead of over a full plan set, the permit fee is 100 percent of the index and the plan review fee is 40 percent. The minimum permit fee and the minimum plan review fee are both $292, except that footnote 2 to Table D-2 sets the plan review minimum at $116.75 for permits subject to field inspection. Section 22.900A.100 then adds a technology fee of 5 percent.

Three worked examples

An addition valued at $150,000

The valuation falls in the $100,001 to $175,000 bracket. The index starts at $1,821.50 for the first $100,000. The remaining $50,000 is 50 increments of $1,000 at $7.75 each, which adds $387.50. The index is $2,209.

The permit fee is $2,209 and the plan review fee is $2,209, so the development fee is $4,418. The technology fee adds $220.90, for $4,638.90 in total.

A four unit townhouse building valued at $1,117,740

SDCI uses this project value in its own 2026 fee examples. The valuation falls in the $1,000,001 to $1,500,000 bracket, so the index starts at $8,359. The remaining $117,740 rounds up to 118 increments of $1,000 at $6.75 each, which adds $796.50. The index is $9,155.50.

Doubling that gives $18,311 in permit and plan review fees, the same figure SDCI publishes for this example in its 2026 fee changes summary. The technology fee adds $915.55. Across four homes the permit and plan review fees come to about $4,578 each.

A new apartment building valued at $12,000,000

The valuation falls in the $10,000,001 to $25,000,000 bracket. The index starts at $50,609. The remaining $2,000,000 is 2,000 increments of $1,000 at $4 each, which adds $8,000. The index is $58,609.

The permit fee and the plan review fee are each $58,609, so the development fee is $117,218. The technology fee adds $5,860.90, for $123,078.90.

Fees as a share of construction value

The marginal rate in Table D-1 falls as valuation rises, from $1.60 per $100 at the bottom to $2 per $1,000 at the top. That shows up in the three examples above. The $150,000 addition pays about 3.1 percent of its construction value. The townhouse building pays about 1.7 percent. The $12,000,000 apartment building pays about 1 percent.

SDCI's 2026 fee changes summary shows a 21,000 square foot, 35 unit apartment building with a project value of $3,644,970 paying $48,741 in plan review and permit fees, which is $1,393 per home.

When payment is due

Applications for building permits with plan review pay the plan review fee plus half the permit fee at application. On the $12,000,000 example that is $87,913.50 before the technology fee. The remaining half is collected at issuance.

Other charges on the same project

• A correction fee of two times the base fee, or $584, may be charged for each extra correction cycle caused by an incomplete response from the applicant.
• Revisions to an issued permit carry a nonrefundable fee of $292 when the revisions are submitted.
• A pre application conference you request yourself costs $438 per meeting. Where the code requires one, such as for atriums or highrise buildings, the charge is 35 percent of the estimated plan review fee, applied toward the permit fee if you apply within six months.
• Correcting the address on an application or an issued permit costs $79.25.
• Applications that include an affordable housing contribution pay $550 to the Office of Housing for its review.
• Land use review is billed separately at $551 an hour, so a project needing a master use permit pays that on top of the building permit fees.

What changed for 2026

SDCI's 2026 fee changes summary says most fees rose 6.5 percent from the prior year and that construction permit and master use permit fees rose 18 percent. The base fee and the base hourly rate for 2026 are both $292. The department says the larger increase is meant to sustain permitting services as the mix of work shifts from high value projects toward a greater volume of small and mid sized ones.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a building permit cost in Seattle? Take your construction value through Table D-1 to get the Development Fee Index, double it, and add 5 percent.

Do I pay the whole amount up front? No. You pay the plan review fee plus half the permit fee at application. The rest is due before the permit is issued.

What is the smallest building permit fee? For fees calculated from value, the minimum permit fee is $292 and the minimum plan review fee is $292, plus the technology fee. Permits subject to field inspection have a lower plan review minimum of $116.75.

Does a simpler plan set lower my fee? No. The fee is calculated from construction value rather than the size of the plan set. Incomplete drawings can raise the bill, because each extra correction cycle can carry the $584 correction fee.

Are permit fees separate from land use fees? Yes. Building permit fees come out of Chapter 22.900D. Land use review, including design review and environmental review, is billed under Chapter 22.900C at the land use hourly rate.

Checking real project values

Every Seattle building permit lists the construction value used for the fee, so you can compare your project against real filings. BuildVue collects those values by address, and you can sort and filter them on the map. For what your site allows, read Seattle zoning explained.