How much does an electrician charge to change a socket?
Swapping an existing socket for a new one costs £45 to £80 as part of a visit; adding a completely new double socket runs £110 to £180 excluding VAT in Bristol. The difference is the work behind the plate: a swap reuses the wiring, a new socket extends the circuit and must be tested as an alteration.
The question hides two different jobs. A like-for-like change (cracked plate, dated finish, adding USB ports in the same position) is quick: isolate, swap, test the connections, done, and it prices as part of a minimum-charge visit with room to spare for the next job on your list.
A new socket where none existed is circuit work: the ring or radial is extended, the route is chased or clipped, and the alteration is tested against the regulations, insulation resistance, polarity, earth continuity, the lot. That is the £110 to £180 job, with wall construction and distance from the nearest supply point setting the position in the range.
Watch for the wrong-cheap version: a spur taken from a spur, or a socket added without testing the circuit's existing loading. It works on day one, which is the problem; the failure arrives later as a warm plate or a nuisance trip. Part of what you pay a qualified electrician for is knowing what the circuit can honestly accept.
Batch pricing applies strongly here: sockets two and three on the same visit price well below the first, which is why we ask for the whole list.
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