Roofing is priced by the square — 100 square feet of roof surface — and that is the only unit that lets you compare two quotes that describe the same roof in different words.
For architectural asphalt shingles on a straightforward roof, installed cost in most of the US falls between $350 and $700 per square. On a 20-square roof that is $7,000 to $14,000, and the spread is not noise. It is five specific variables, and each one is knowable before you call anybody.
Ranges here are typical US figures and move with region, season and material markets. Use them to sanity-check a quote, not to replace one.
What is inside a per-square price
| Line | Share of a typical asphalt job |
|---|---|
| Shingles and accessories | 25–35% |
| Labor | 35–45% |
| Tear-off and disposal | 10–15% |
| Underlayment, drip edge, flashing, vents | 10–15% |
| Permit, overhead, warranty | 5–10% |
The single largest line is labor, not material. Which is why "I found cheaper shingles" moves the total far less than people expect, and why access and pitch move it far more.
The five things that move the number
1. Pitch. Below 6/12 a crew walks the roof. At 8/12 and above they need roof jacks, planks or harnesses, and the day rate goes up 20–40%. This is the biggest single multiplier on the labor line, and it is fixed by your house.
2. Layers to remove. One layer of asphalt is 200–350 lb per square. Two layers doubles the tear-off labor and the disposal weight. A 20-square roof with two layers is around 6 tons to strip, carry down and haul away.
3. Roof shape. A simple gable is the cheapest roof on earth to cover. Every valley, dormer, chimney and skylight adds flashing work, and flashing is slow, skilled and where leaks come from. A cut-up roof can cost 30% more per square than a plain one of the same area.
4. Access. Two stories, a narrow side yard, landscaping the crew must protect, or nowhere to park a dumpster — each of these adds hours that appear as a higher per-square rate rather than as a separate line.
5. What is under the shingles. Nobody can price rotten sheathing before tear-off. Expect a per-sheet rate in the contract — typically $70–$150 per 4 × 8 sheet installed — and expect to use some of it.
Material tiers
| Material | Installed, per square |
|---|---|
| Three-tab asphalt | $300–$450 |
| Architectural asphalt | $350–$700 |
| Impact-rated (Class 4) asphalt | $450–$850 |
| Metal standing seam | $900–$1,600 |
| Concrete or clay tile | $1,000–$2,500 |
| Slate | $1,500–$4,000 |
Three-tab is barely cheaper than architectural once labor is in, and it carries a shorter warranty and a lower wind rating. It is rarely the right economy.
Class 4 impact-rated shingles are worth pricing specifically if you are in a hail region — many insurers discount premiums for them, and the discount can return the upgrade over the life of the roof. Ask your insurer for the actual figure before deciding; it varies enormously by state.
Getting a per-square number out of a lump-sum quote
Ask for two things: the number of squares the contractor measured, and the per-sheet rate for replacing bad sheathing.
A contractor who will not give you a square count either has not measured or does not want the quote compared. Both are useful to know. Work out your own square count first — the size and pitch combinations are already calculated — and see whether the two agree within about 10%.
If they disagree by more than that, one of you has the pitch wrong, and it is worth resolving before signing.
Where the money is actually saved
Not on shingles. On timing and scope:
- Off-season work — late autumn and winter in mild climates — is commonly 10–15% cheaper because crews have gaps.
- Roofing over instead of tearing off saves the tear-off line entirely, and costs more later. Whether it is ever the right call has a clear answer.
- Doing the tear-off yourself saves real money and is genuinely hard, dirty, dangerous work with a hard deadline: the roof must be dried in the same day.
The expensive mistake is none of these. It is replacing a roof that needed a repair, or repairing a roof four times that needed replacing — four tests settle which one you have.