Most installers lease the lights: the customer pays for the season, you own the strands and reuse them. That means each job carries a share of the lights, the install, the takedown and storage. Price all four, then the per foot number.
- Price install and takedown together. The takedown trip is in January, but it is part of this job.
- Fixr puts Christmas light installation at $250 to $650, about $450 on average.
- Fixr lists $2 to $5 a foot for materials and labor, with labor at $1.50 to $3.50 a foot.
- Spread the cost of your lights over the seasons they last.
- Book last year's customers first. They are your cheapest jobs to win.
Setting your labor rate
Start with the wage. The closest group the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes is landscaping and groundskeeping workers, since many lighting crews are lawn and landscape crews in the off season. In its May 2025 wage survey, that group's national mean wage was $20.33 an hour and the median was $18.82 (BLS OEWS 37-3011).
Add your labor burden on top: payroll taxes, workers' comp and any paid time off. If burden in your state comes to 20% of wages, a $20 an hour tech costs you $24 an hour. That loaded number is what goes into the job cost.
Published holiday lighting prices
| Job | Published price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Christmas light installation, typical | $250 to $650 | Fixr |
| Average job | About $450 | Fixr |
| Per foot, materials and labor | $2 to $5 | Fixr |
| Labor, per linear foot | $1.50 to $3.50 | Fixr |
| Strands, per linear foot | $0.50 to $1.50 | Fixr |
A worked example: 140 feet of roofline
Every input is an assumption for the example.
- Scope: 140 feet of one-story roofline with C9 LED lights, installed in November, taken down and stored in January.
- Lights and clips: $0.60 a foot as this season's share of strands you own.
- Crew: two people at $24 an hour loaded, 2.5 hours to install and 1.5 to take down.
- Driving at 76 cents a mile, the IRS business rate for the second half of 2026 (IRS standard mileage rates).
- Overhead 20% of the price and profit 15%.
- LED lights and clips, this season's share: 140 ft x $0.60 = $84
- Install: 2 people x 2.5 hours x $24 = $120
- Takedown and storage: 2 people x 1.5 hours x $24 = $72
- Timer and cords: $25
- Ladders and truck, per job: $30
- Drive: 2 trips x 15 miles x $0.76 = $22.80
- Direct cost: $84 + $120 + $72 + $25 + $30 + $22.80 = $353.80
- Overhead plus profit: 20% + 15% = 35% of the price
- Price: $353.80 / (1 - 0.35) = $353.80 / 0.65 = $544
Check it: 35% of $544 is about $190, and $544 minus $190 is about $354, the direct cost of $353.80. The profit and overhead are inside the price, not added on top of a cost you guessed.
That is about $3.89 a foot, inside Fixr's $2 to $5 range, and the job lands inside its $250 to $650 typical range.
Good, better, best for lights
- Good: roofline only.
- Better: the $544 job above with a timer.
- Best: roofline, trees, bushes and a wreath.
Send them with Koira's estimates. The customer picks one, signs and pays the deposit on the same page. Book the install and the takedown on the same job as two visits.
Fill the calendar early
The season is short. Koira measures a roof from above for a first number from your price list, and on Grow, campaigns text and email last year's customers in the fall with one tap to book.
Common holiday lighting pricing mistakes
- Takedown free. It is a second visit in the cold.
- Lights priced as new every year. Spread them over the seasons they last, but replace failures.
- Two-story at the one-story rate. Height means bigger ladders and more time.
- No deposit. Late cancellations leave a hole you cannot fill in December.
Sources
Every published figure on this page was read on the source page itself on the date shown. Worked example inputs are assumptions, labeled as such.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025, Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers (37-3011), checked October 9, 2026
- Fixr: Christmas light installation cost, checked October 9, 2026
- IRS: Standard mileage rates, checked October 9, 2026
Questions contractors ask
How much should I charge per foot for Christmas lights?
Build it from lights, install, takedown and trips. Fixr lists $2 to $5 a foot for materials and labor.
What does holiday light installation cost on average?
Fixr lists $250 to $650, about $450 on average.
Should takedown be a separate charge?
Price it into the job so the customer sees one number, and book both visits when they sign.
Do installers own the lights?
Many do and lease them each season. Spread the cost of the lights over the seasons they last.
