What Does Central Air Cost for a 1,500 sq ft House?
The figure below includes the parts of the job that do not shrink when the job does — the permit, the delivery, the crew's morning. That is why a smaller job costs more per sq ft than a bigger one.
Adjust for your state
Fixed costs of $400 are included in every figure on this page, so the per-square-foot price falls as the job gets bigger.
What the number is made of
Every figure on this page follows the same arithmetic: a fixed portion for permits, delivery and getting a crew to your address, plus a per-sq ft rate for material and labor. The fixed part is why the per-sq ft price on this page is not the same as on a larger job.
| Component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed costs (permits, delivery, setup) | $400 | $400 |
| Materials | $2,612 | $6,160 |
| Labor | $2,138 | $5,040 |
| Total | $4,750 | $11,200 |
The same size, five different states
Material prices do not change at the state line. Labor does. These five states sit at different points of the federal wage distribution for this trade.
| State | Labor factor | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | ×0.79 | $4,290 | $10,116 |
| Arizona | ×0.85 | $4,432 | $10,449 |
| West Virginia | ×0.92 | $4,579 | $10,797 |
| New Hampshire | ×1.08 | $4,912 | $11,583 |
| Illinois | ×1.40 | $5,607 | $13,221 |
Only the labor line moves between states. That is a deliberate limitation, not an oversight: state-level material pricing is not something we have reliable data for, so we do not pretend to.
By material
| Material | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| 1.5 tons (18,000 BTU) | $5,875 | $9,775 |
| 2 tons (24,000 BTU) | $6,775 | $11,650 |
| 2.5 tons (30,000 BTU) | $7,150 | $12,400 |
| 3 tons (36,000 BTU) | $7,900 | $14,125 |
| 3.5 tons (42,000 BTU) | $8,575 | $14,950 |
| 4 tons (48,000 BTU) | $10,825 | $17,800 |
| 5 tons (60,000 BTU) | $12,100 | $21,400 |
Other sizes
| Size | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| 800 sq ft | $2,720 | $6,160 |
| 1,000 sq ft | $3,300 | $7,600 |
| 1,200 sq ft | $3,880 | $9,040 |
| 1,500 sq ft ← | $4,750 | $11,200 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $6,200 | $14,800 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $7,650 | $18,400 |
| 3,000 sq ft | $9,100 | $22,000 |
| 3,500 sq ft | $10,550 | $25,600 |
Updated October 2026