Executive Summary
We pulled 62 completed Houston roof replacement jobs from a traditional roofing company. Each one had a professional roof measurement and the customer's final price, and the set includes both retail and insurance-claim jobs. Then we ran the same roofs through Simple Roofing Co's own cost-plus pricing engine. The gap is the whole reason cost-plus pricing exists.
Traditional Houston Roofer
Simple Roofing Co
Typical Retail Job
Key findings:
- On retail jobs with no insurance claim (21 of the 62), the traditional roofer's median was $466/sq, with the middle half between $350 and $507/sq.
- On insurance-claim jobs (41 of the 62), the median was higher, $549/sq -- claims often carry more scope and supplements than a straight re-roof.
- Of 261 roofs that company measured, 74% had 15 or fewer roof planes, 17% had 16-25 planes, and 8% had more than 25. That plane count is exactly what sets Simple Roofing's fee tier (below).
- Texas requires every licensed home insurer to give a mandatory premium credit for Class 4 (UL 2218) impact-resistant shingles -- see Houston Facts below.
What Simple Roofing Co Actually Charges
This is the real output of our pricing engine, built on our actual supplier invoice. It includes materials with 8.25% Texas sales tax, labor, tear-off, and the dumpster. It does not include a permit -- that's added at cost, separately, only when your city requires one. This table is the 20% fee tier, which applies to roofs with 15 or fewer planes -- about 3 out of 4 roofs in the measured-roof data above.
| Roof Size | Heritage (Good) | Titan XT (Better) | Tamko StormFighter IR, Class 4 (Best) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 sq | $5,316 | $5,446 | $5,609 |
| 20 sq | $6,569 | $6,742 | $6,959 |
| 25 sq | $7,854 | $8,070 | $8,341 |
| 30 sq | $8,915 | $9,210 | $9,599 |
| 35 sq | $10,656 | $11,019 | $11,474 |
| 40 sq | $12,119 | $12,535 | $13,054 |
Prices assume normal pitch (up to 6:12) and one story. A "square" is 100 square feet of roof. See pitch and story adjustments under What Actually Changes Your Price. Roofs through about 25 squares, at every shingle tier, land on the $1,500 minimum fee rather than the 20% calculation -- the percentage only overtakes the minimum on larger roofs.
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Shingle Tiers & A Worked Example
Simple Roofing Co quotes three shingle tiers: Heritage (Good), Titan XT (Better), and Tamko StormFighter IR (Best) -- a Class 4, UL 2218 impact-resistant shingle. Here's exactly how a price is built, using a 30-square roof with Titan XT, normal pitch, one story, 15 or fewer planes:
| Line Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Materials, including 8.25% Texas sales tax | $4,975 |
| Labor (30 sq, normal pitch, one story -- tear-off and dumpster included) | $2,700 |
| Real cost | $7,675 |
| Fee (20%, roof has 15 or fewer planes) | $1,535 |
| Total | $9,210 |
A permit isn't in that total. Houston requires a residential re-roof permit for any roof covering over 100 square feet, added at cost -- see Houston Facts. If photos show rotted decking underneath, that's added too: $15 per sheet of plywood, plus the labor to replace it, plus the same fee -- never a blanket allowance tacked onto every job.
The shingle and material unit prices behind this worked example are published on their own, dated page: the Houston Roofing Material Price Index, read straight out of our live Instant Quote pricing engine and updated monthly, with a downloadable CSV.
On insurance savings: Texas requires every licensed homeowner's insurer to give a mandatory premium credit to roofs covered in Class 4 (UL 2218) impact-resistant shingles, like the StormFighter IR above, under a Texas Department of Insurance order (TDI Bulletin B-0024-98). The credit amount depends on your insurer, policy, and territory -- ask your agent what it's worth on your policy before you decide between tiers.
Complex Roofs: 25% and 30% Fee
Roofs with more valleys, dormers, hips, and cuts take longer to build and waste more material (waste for cuts runs about 10% on a simple roof and up to 18% on a complex one). Simple Roofing Co's fee moves up in two steps for that reason. Here's the same Titan XT tier at three sizes, across all three fee bands:
| Roof Complexity | Fee | 20 sq | 30 sq | 40 sq |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 or fewer planes (most roofs -- 74% measured) | 20% | $6,742 | $9,210 | $12,535 |
| 16-25 planes (17% measured) | 25% | $6,742 | $9,593 | $13,057 |
| 26+ planes (8% measured) | 30% | $6,815 | $9,977 | $13,579 |
Plane-count distribution is from the same 261-roof measured dataset referenced in the Executive Summary. The full Heritage and StormFighter IR pricing at every fee tier is in the instant quote tool. At 20 squares the 20% and 25% rows both land on the $1,500 minimum fee and show the same total -- the 25% rate only overtakes the minimum on larger roofs.
One Price, Every Houston Address
Our material and labor costs don't change by zip code -- a sheet of plywood and a published labor rate cost the same in Katy as they do in the Heights. Simple Roofing Co quotes every Houston-area address with the same formula: real invoice cost, real labor rate, one stated fee. If a neighborhood's typical roofs run bigger, steeper, or more complex, the price moves for that reason -- not because of the street name.
Prices by neighborhood
The formula above is the same everywhere we work. Each area page names the local permit authority and what that means for your timeline: roofers in Missouri City, roofers in Pasadena, roofers in Bellaire, roofers in West University Place, roofers in Tomball and roofers in Pearland.
What Actually Changes Your Price
What Increases It
- Steep pitch (7:12-8:12): labor moves from $90 to $95/sq. On the 30-sq Titan XT example above, that's $9,390 instead of $9,210 (+$180).
- Very steep pitch (9:12 and up): labor moves to $100/sq -- $9,570 on the same roof (+$360).
- A second story: adds $5/sq to labor -- $9,390 on the same roof (+$180), the same bump as one pitch tier.
- Very steep, two stories: both add up -- $9,750 on the same roof (+$540).
- More roof planes: moves the fee from 20% to 25% (16-25 planes) or 30% (26+ planes) -- see the table above.
- Rotted decking: only after photos confirm it. $15/sheet plus labor plus the fee, not a blanket charge.
- Permit: added at cost when your city requires one.
What Keeps It Down
- A simple roof shape with 15 or fewer planes keeps you in the 20% fee tier instead of 25-30%.
- Sound decking (no rot found under the old shingles) means no $15/sheet add-on.
- A single story skips the $5/sq labor add-on.
- Normal pitch (up to 6:12) keeps labor at the base $90/sq rate.
Houston Facts: Permits, Insurance, Warranties
Permits
The City of Houston requires a residential re-roof permit for any roof covering over 100 square feet, with plan review and inspection. The permit carries a $33.56 administrative fee plus a permit fee set by the city's fee schedule; it's valid for 6 months. (City of Houston Permitting Center, Residential Roofing Permit) Bellaire and West University Place run their own separate permit process; check the roof permit checker for the fee and source in all three.
Insurance Discount for Impact-Resistant Shingles
Texas requires every licensed company writing homeowner's insurance to give a mandatory premium credit for non-metal roofing that meets the UL 2218 Class 4 standard, following a 1998 Commissioner's Order. The credit must appear on your policy declarations and varies by insurer, territory, and classification. (Texas Department of Insurance, Commissioner's Bulletin B-0024-98)
Shingle Warranties
Warranty length and terms vary by manufacturer and shingle tier, and change over time. Ask your contractor which manufacturer warranty applies to the shingle tier you choose, whether it covers labor as well as materials, and whether it transfers if you sell the house.
Methodology
This report draws on three sources only:
- Simple Roofing Co's own live pricing engine, built on its supplier invoice -- every dollar figure under "What Simple Roofing Co Actually Charges," the worked example, and the complexity table above.
- An anonymized set of 62 completed roof replacement jobs (and a separate 261-roof measured dataset) from one established traditional Houston roofing company, where both the professional measurement and the customer's final price are known.
- Public sources cited inline and linked above: the Texas Department of Insurance and the City of Houston Permitting Center.
We dropped every figure we couldn't trace to one of those three sources -- including the neighborhood-by-neighborhood pricing, the material-trend, and the market-share numbers that used to appear on this page. If a number isn't sourced here, we cut it rather than guess.
How to Get the Best Price
How to compare quotes once you have real numbers in hand:
- Get multiple quotes -- But compare apples-to-apples. Same materials, same scope.
- Ask for itemized breakdowns -- Contractors who won't show their math often have something to hide.
- Ask what's included -- Tear-off, dumpster, and permit handling vary by contractor.
- Don't chase the lowest bid -- A number with no breakdown behind it is hard to trust either way.
- Ask about the Class 4 insurance credit -- It's mandatory in Texas, but the amount depends on your policy. Ask your agent before you choose a shingle tier.
- Ask about warranties -- Manufacturer warranty and workmanship warranty are two different things.
- Ask to see the invoice -- A cost-plus contractor should be able to show you exactly what it paid for your materials.
Want to see exactly what your roof costs? Simple Roofing Co uses Cost Plus pricing -- we show you material costs, labor, and one transparent 20 -- 30% fee based on job complexity. No hidden markups, no mystery math. Get your exact price in 60 seconds → or request a quote.