Cost

What a New Roof Costs in Madison in 2026

By Madison Roof Repairs · September 10, 2026 · 8 min read

Ask about new roof cost in 2026 and everyone wants one number. There isn't one, but there is a narrow enough range that you can tell a fair quote from a bad one before the roofer leaves the driveway. Here is what roof replacement Madison WI homeowners are paying in 2026, and why.

The per-square number

Roofers price by the square: 100 square feet of roof surface. In Madison and the Dane County suburbs, architectural shingle replacement with a full tear-off runs $450–$800 per square installed. That includes tear-off and disposal, synthetic underlayment, ice-and-water shield at the eaves, valleys and penetrations, new drip edge, flashing and pipe boots, a ridge vent, the permit, and cleanup.

The low end is a simple gable roof at a walkable pitch with one layer to remove and clean decking. The high end is a steep, cut-up roof with dormers, two layers, and a couple of sheets of rotten plywood.

By house size

A house's roof is bigger than its footprint because of pitch and overhangs. Rough numbers for common Madison house types:

• 1,100 sq ft ranch$9,000–$12,000
• 1,400 sq ft isthmus two-story$10,000–$16,500
• 1,800 sq ft 1990s two-story$11,000–$20,000
• 2,400 sq ft 2000s two-story$14,000–$24,000
• 3,500 sq ft custom home$20,000–$36,000

Typical ranges, not a quote.

So the honest answer to "what does a new roof cost in Madison" is $9,000–$22,000 for most houses, with the big suburban customs above that.

Metal

Standing-seam metal roofing Madison homeowners are choosing more often runs $1,200–$2,000 per square, so two to three times the shingle price: $28,000–$48,000 on that 1,800 sq ft two-story. Exposed-fastener panels are $800–$1,300 per square and are fine on a garage or a cabin but not what most roofers here would put on a house. Metal earns its price in this climate by shedding snow, ignoring hail that would bruise shingles, and lasting 40–60 years. It doesn't make sense if you're moving in five.

What moves the price

Pitch. Most of the isthmus and the older near-west neighborhoods are 8/12 or steeper. Steep roofs need staging, roof jacks and slower work. Add 10–20%.

Layers. A second layer adds $1,000–$2,500 for the extra labor and dumpster weight. Three layers, which still turn up on 1920s houses in the Marquette and Tenney-Lapham neighborhoods, more.

Decking. Plywood sheets are $90–$150 each to replace. The bigger cost is old plank decking: 1x6 or 1x8 boards with gaps too wide for shingle nails. Overlaying the whole roof with new plywood adds $2,000–$4,000. Any quote on a pre-1940 house should say what happens if the planks are bad.

Ice-and-water shield coverage. Wisconsin's code calls for an ice barrier at the eaves — commonly from the edge to at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall, which on a typical overhang means about six feet up the roof; ask the roofer how far up yours will run. Running it further on a low-slope roof or a house with an ice dam history is a few hundred dollars more. It's the best few hundred dollars on the job.

Complexity. Every valley, dormer, skylight and chimney is flashing work. A hip roof has less flashing than a gable with three dormers but more shingle waste.

Shingle line. Moving from a standard architectural shingle to a Class 4 impact-rated one adds $30–$80 per square. Given the hail Dane County gets, it's worth a call: some insurers discount for Class 4 shingles; ask your agent for the amount before you order.

Access. A narrow isthmus lot with the back slope over a neighbor's fence, or a Middleton Hills house with no driveway access to the rear, adds time.

What doesn't move the price much

The color. The brand, within the big three. The month, in terms of price — though the schedule tightens badly for three to six weeks after a hailstorm. And the size of the company: a two-truck outfit and a twenty-truck outfit buy shingles at similar prices; the difference is overhead.

Reading a quote against these numbers

A quote that's $3,000 under the range for your house size is usually leaving something out: it's a roof-over rather than a tear-off, it's felt instead of synthetic, the ice-and-water shield is one course at the eave, or the decking is "as needed" with no per-sheet price. Ask. A quote that's well above the range should be explained by something you can see: three layers, plank decking, a 12/12 pitch.

Every quote should also address the permit. Check with the City of Madison Building Inspection (or your city or village) whether your job needs a permit, and ask the roofer who pulls it and whether it's in the price. Wisconsin has no roofing-specific license; whoever pulls the building permit on a one- or two-family home generally needs a Wisconsin Dwelling Contractor credential — confirm with DSPS or your building department, and look any company up on the DSPS credential search.

A worked example

Take a 1990s two-story near Blackhawk with 25 squares of roof, one layer of shingles, a walkable 6/12 pitch and two valleys. At $450–$800 per square, the base is $11,250–$20,000. Four sheets of plywood at $90–$150 each add $360–$600. Running ice-and-water shield another course up the eaves adds a few hundred dollars. Class 4 shingles would add $750–$2,000 at $30–$80 per square. So the same house can fairly be quoted anywhere from about $12,000 to $23,000, depending on choices you control. That's the math to have in your head when the quotes arrive.

Questions to ask about a quote this year

• What's the per-square price, and what's in it?
• How many squares did you measure, and from where — the roof or a satellite image?
• What happens to the price if the decking is worse than expected?
• Which shingle line is it, and what's its wind rating?
• Is the permit included?
• How long is this price good for?

Ways to lower the bill without cutting corners

• Book a quieter month. Outside the weeks after a hailstorm, schedules are easier and you have more choice of start date.
• Bundle the gutters if they're old or bent by ice; doing them with the roof saves a second setup.
• Fix the attic at the same time. Air-sealing and insulation are separate work, but doing them before the new roof goes on protects it.
• Keep the design simple. Skip a new skylight you don't need; every penetration is flashing work and a future leak point.

What not to cut

Ice barrier distance, decking replacement where it's soft, new flashing, ventilation, and six-nail installation. These are the lines a low quote drops first, and each one is worth more than it costs on a roof that has to handle snow, ice and wind.

When to get the quotes

Two or three written quotes, gathered within a few weeks of each other, are the easiest to compare, since material prices and schedules shift over a season. Ask each roofer to measure from the roof, not a satellite image, and to give you the price per square as well as the total. If one quote lands far from the others, ask that roofer to walk you through the difference line by line before you rule it in or out.

Paying for it

Insurance generally covers sudden hail and wind damage, not age; check your policy. Roof financing Madison contractors offer is usually a manufacturer-backed loan at 12–60 months; a home equity line is often cheaper for a $15,000 roof, and Focus on Energy, the state efficiency program, has offered rebates on attic air-sealing and insulation; check current offers if you're doing attic work at the same time. The pricing page keeps these numbers current, and the roof replacement page lists everything a replacement built for Wisconsin should include. If you're not sure you need one yet, start with the post on repair versus replacement.