How Much Does A Computer Repair Cost?

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Short answer? It depends on the problem! Just like bears and bowls of porridge, computer repairs come in many different shapes and sizes.

Here at Computer Repair Doctor, we offer free quotes for exactly that reason. We’ll take a look the problem you’re having, find the solution to fix it, and give you a free price quote. We’ll include both labor and parts (as needed) in the quote so you know what it will cost to fix. Pretty simple.

Really looking for a price range? We know our answer (above) is a bit broad and generic and a lot of people are hoping for a specific price range. I’ve included a few price ranges below but first a little warning:

PLEASE do not make a decision to repair or replace your computer based off a price range without getting a free quote.

You’d be doing yourself a disservice. Out of the customers who bring in a computer “knowing exactly what’s wrong with it”, over 50% are wrong and the underlying cause is an entirely different issue.

If you’re deciding between a repair vs replacement, you should always let a professional (preferably us!) take a look at the problem and give you a free quote. We can give a lot of estimates within 15 minutes, and almost all the rest within 24hrs. And even if you still decide a repair is to costly, we can help you transfer your data to your new computer, securely erase your data from your old machine, recycle your old machine, or potentially offer you cash to purchase your old machine from you. It’s worth a trip!

Disclaimer over – Some price ranges are below. Keep in mind that these price ranges reflect our company’s labor rates which may vary by market. You’ll likely find cheaper prices if you let “your Uncle Bob who knows about computers” fix your laptop (but you might end up here anyway. Hopefully Bob won’t accidentally delete your data either). You also might get quoted a lot higher from some of our competitors. Our labor rates vary by job difficulty and expected bench time, and are priced competitively for a professional repair shop. Basically, we charge fair prices for a professional service.

Price Ranges

 

Type of Repair

Price Range

Type of Repair

Price Range

Software Repair$40-150Laptop Screen Replacement$125-225+
Hard Drive Replacement$100-$225Memory/RAM Upgrade$50-200
Liquid Damage Repair$99-250+Power Jack Repair$100-200
Motherboard Replacement$150-300+Keyboard Replacement$80-195
Fan Repair/Replacement$99-175Virus Removal$49-100
SSD Upgrade$150-400+Data Recovery$99-1000+

 

Software Repairs – $40-150. Sometimes a software bug can be fixed easily and quickly. I’m talking 5 minutes while you hang out in our lobby quickly. Other times we may need to back up your data and do a complete factory reinstall. Factory reinstalls are a great way to speed up your computer, they are just a bit more invasive and take more time to complete.

Hard Drive Replacements $100-225. A lot of the time this depends on the hard drive you want/need. A 320gb refurbished hdd? That might be a $10 part with a $90 reinstall fee. Or maybe a 1tb Samsung EVO SSD? That could run you $400 for the part and another $199 in labor. However, almost all hard drive replacements we do are $150-225 which includes both parts and labor.

Liquid Damage Repair – $99-250+. Liquid damage cleanilaptop Liquid Damageng fees all depend on the extent of the damage. A laptop without much corrosion might be quoted $99, which a machine thoroughly corroded could be $250 or more. Also keep in mind, it doesn’t always depend on how much liquid went into the computer, it mostly depends on how much damage that liquid caused once it got inside. We can open your machine to evaluate the damage and quote you based on what we find.

Motherboard Replacements – $150-300+. The motherboard tends to be the most expensive part of a computer. It can range from $25-200+ for a motherboard. Regular laptops and desktops tend to have $30-150 motherboards, whereas Macs and higher end machines may have $200-600 motherboards. If you spent $1500-2000 on your computer, it probably has a nice motherboard. If you spent under $800 for your computer, the board is probably much more reasonably priced. Add on $100-200 labor (typically) for a motherboard replacement and there you go!

Fan Repairs/Replacements – $99-175. Computer fans often get clogged and need to be cleaned. Sometimes the fan is fine, and sometimes it needs to be replaced. Computer fans are typically relatively inexpensive ($5-35), and most of the time you’re paying for labor costs. Machines usually need to be disassembled completely to correctly replace the fan, and it’s also best practice to remove the heatsink from the CPU and redo the thermal paste while you’re in there. Long story short, it’s often $99-150 in labor to perform a fan repair or replacement.

SSD Upgrade – $150-400. The cost of an SSD Upgrade depends entirely on the size of the SSD you need and whether you need your data saved. Costs are usually $100-200 labor plus the cost of the SSD. Labor ranges based on whether or not you need your data saved, how difficult it is to open your computer to replace your HDD with an SSD, and the time involved in the entire process. SSD costs can be $50-400 depending on the type of SSD you’re looking for. More space = more money.Laptop Screen Repair

Laptop Screen Replacements – $125-225+. Laptop screen replacements are usually straightforward, but some laptops have specialty screens. Regular laptop screen replacement costs can be $125 for a netbook or ultrabook with a 10.1” or 11.6” screen, or $175-195 for a 17.3” standard screen. MacBook Pro, MacBook Retina, etc. screen replacements tend to be a bit more expensive and can vary by model. In general, you’re looking at $75-225 labor plus the cost of the part for a laptop screen replacement. It all depends on how difficult the repair is, how long it will take, and the cost of the part. Expensive laptops with higher end unique screens can be even more expensive and need to be quoted individually.

Memory/RAM Upgrade – $50-200. First of all, if you’re interested in making your computer faster you probably don’t need a RAM upgrade. Upgrading memory/RAM used to be a great way to increase speed, but these days it doesn’t make a significant difference to most users (if you’re the exception and running software that eats up RAM, you’ll probably know). SSD upgrades, reinstalls, cpu improvements are usually the way to go. But if you really do want a memory upgrade, it all depends on how much memory you have and how much you want. Typically add $50-150 labor onto the cost of the RAM. Some machines have easily accessible RAM slots and others have to be completely disassembled.

Power Jack Repair – $100-200. Prices for powerjack repairs can vary based on whether it’s a soldering job, or the power jack is on a harness. Also, the accessibly of the power jack and the difficulty in dismantling the machine will affect the price quote. If the power jack needs to be resoldered, what does the surrounding board look like? Are there other heat sensitive components nearby or is a straightforward job? All of these factors can affect the cost of a power jack repair. Labor typically accounts for the majority of the cost in a power jack replacement.

Keyboardlaptop keyboard repair Replacement – $80-195. Some keyboards are cheap ($10) and easily replaceable. Others (like a MacBook Pro) require complete machine disassembly and a tiny screw for every key. PC Laptop keyboard replacements are typically around $100-120, whereas Mac keyboard replacements really vary by model. Like everything, specialty models can be more expensive.

Virus Removal – $49-100. Virus removals are pretty straightforward and typically cost $99. However, we run a lot of half price virus removal deals, or offer virus removal at discounted rates with other repairs. Also keep in mind, viruses can’t always be removed 100% of the time. A factory reinstall is the only way to completely guarantee a virus won’t come back. But if we perform a virus removal and you’re still having issues – we’ll be here to help under your repair warranty.

Data Recovery – $99-1000+. Data recovery can vary widely in price. A simple data transfer could cost $99 whereas a Tier 3 RAID recovery on a hard drive with damaged heads could cost $2000. Data recovery works on a tiered system with Tier 1 costing $50-150, Tier 2 costing $250-500, and Tier 3 costing $500-5000. Tier 1 repairs are simple data transfers, data recovery from dead machines, etc. Tier 2 recoveries are software recoveries to fix corrupted partitions, deleted files, recovering bad sectors, etc. Tier 3 recoveries are hardware faults like clicking drives, dropped hard drives, unmountable drives, etc.

We hope this was helpful, and while this post is geared toward people in locations near our stores, if you’re elsewhere, PLEASE get a free quote from a repair store near you.  We recommend not going to Geek Squad or the Genius Bar, their margins require them to charge you much more than the typical computer repair shop.  Without getting a free quote you’re shopping blind, and you’re probably not 100% sure of what is wrong.