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How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Structural Engineer in St. Louis? [2025 Data]
Normal Range: $440 - $677
Hiring a structural engineer in St. Louis, MO costs $511 on average, or between $440 and $677, depending on the exact services you need from a pro.
How we get this data
Cost Insights
Structural engineering costs in St. Louis, Missouri, increase with project complexity, ranging from $1,500 to $7,000.
Older St. Louis brick homes with settling foundations may require extended inspections, which can raise fees by $300 to $800.
Foundation damage, load-bearing wall removals, or stamped plan requirements can add $200 to $1,500 to total costs.
Homeowners in St. Louis, Missouri, should plan carefully when budgeting for a structural engineering assessment or design project. The structural engineer cost in St. Louis averages $511, with most homeowners spending between $440 and $677. St. Louis’ mix of historic brick homes, century-old foundations, and newer suburban builds often requires engineers to evaluate masonry stability, settling issues, and framing conditions.
Local factors such as seasonal temperature swings, clay-heavy soils, and Missouri building code requirements can also influence engineering needs and pricing. Whether you’re removing a wall, addressing foundation concerns, or planning a major renovation, here’s what you can expect to pay for a structural engineer in St. Louis.
Structural Engineer Cost Factors
Structural engineering costs in St. Louis, Missouri, vary based on fee structure, project complexity, inspection type, and required plans—especially for older local homes showing potential signs of structural damage, foundation settling, or shifting brickwork.
Fee Structure
When hiring a structural engineer in your area, you will pay per project, per hour, or per square foot. If your engineer charges by the project, they may either charge a flat fee or a percentage of the entire renovation cost or the cost to build a house. The type of billing depends on the professional and the exact scope of work requested.
| Price Structure | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Per project (fee) | $1,500–$7,000 |
| Per project (%) | 1%–8% |
| Per hour | $90–$200 |
| Per square foot | $1.50–$9 |
Project Complexity
The cost of a structural engineer for a home inspection will also vary based on the complexity of your project. If you’re just building an add-on to your existing home, your engineer will have minimal work to do to ensure the addition is safe.
If you’re instead altering your roof structure, replacing standard beams with more supportive steel I-beams to open up your space, or removing load-bearing walls, your engineer will have more work to do and will charge more accordingly. Custom new construction projects are the most involved and will be the most expensive.
Type of Inspection
When working with a structural engineer, an inspection is the first step—and may also be the only step, depending on why you’re hiring them. A structural engineer charges a flat fee for inspections, including checks during the sale of a home. The cost of a structural report in St. Louis sits at $650, but prices can range from $400 to $1,200, depending on the size and complexity of your home.
Your structural engineer inspection cost will more likely reach $1,200 or more if you’re having your professional perform a foundation inspection for foundational cracks, bowing foundation walls, wavy rooflines, or sagging or squeaky floors.
| Type of Inspection | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Beams/joists/trusses | $300–$450 |
| Buying or selling a home | $500–$900 |
| Foundation damage | $600–$1,500 |
| Home remodel | $500–$1,200 |
| Load-bearing walls | $300–$450 |
| New construction | $350–$700 |
| Storm damage | $550–$1,400 |
Engineer Plans
Engineer plans are the drawings that detail the construction project, and in the case of new construction, they’re the plans that an architect and builder will work off of to construct your home safely.
The engineer plans themselves, and the process to produce them, will cost you anywhere from $400 to $3,000, depending on the scope of the project. The cost can be much higher for more complex, large-scale projects, sometimes reaching 45% of the engineering budget. It’s a good idea to budget an additional $300 to $700 for revisions in case you want to make changes after the first round of drafting. Additional revisions after that point will cost the same amount.
Below, we've included some average pricing for standard drawings you might request from a structural engineer:
| Drawing Type | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Commercial construction | $4,000–$80,000 |
| Home add-on or bump-out | $1,800–$4,000 |
| Major home renovation | $1,800–$4,000 |
| New construction | $1,800–$8,000 |
| Outbuilding construction | $400–$7,000 |
Additional Structural Engineer Costs
Structural engineering projects in St. Louis often come with location-specific add-ons that influence your final bill. Local labor rates, PE stamp requirements, and even tipping norms can shift total costs depending on your project and neighborhood.
Labor
Labor rates in St. Louis vary based on project complexity, home age, and the engineer's experience level. Many local homeowners report paying $500 to $1,500 for a structural review in St. Louis, with higher costs for in-depth reports. A professional structural engineer inspection in St. Louis might cost $900 on average, though it can climb if significant issues are found.
PE Stamps
In Missouri, licensed engineers must apply a PE stamp on drawings or reports that are submitted for permitting, and the cost can vary depending on how many drawings need stamping. For smaller residential projects in the St. Louis region, engineers often include PE-stamping fees in a broader service, but when broken out, it might add $200 to $500 to the cost for the stamp and associated paperwork.
Permits
St. Louis homeowners do not need a permit to hire a structural engineer or to have an inspection performed. However, permits are required for any construction work that follows the engineer’s findings—such as load-bearing wall removals, structural framing changes, additions, or foundation repairs. Depending on the municipality, these permits cost $75 to $300 in the City of St. Louis, with nearby suburbs like Clayton or Kirkwood sometimes charging higher review or plan-check fees.
Taxes
Missouri charges a state sales tax on certain engineering services, and St. Louis city or county may add local tax depending on how the engineer bills their work. Most homeowners can expect an additional 4% to 9% combined tax applied to engineering labor or stamped plan fees, depending on the project type.
Tipping
Tipping isn’t standard for structural engineers in St. Louis, but some homeowners choose to offer a small gratuity when inspections involve extensive on-site time or short-notice scheduling. While not expected, a modest $20 to $40 gesture is occasionally given for exceptional service or detailed follow-up explanations.
Can a Structural Engineer Add Value to Your Home?
Hiring a structural engineer in St. Louis doesn’t come with a direct return on investment (ROI) by itself—your returns depend on the project that follows their assessment. For example, if you bring in a structural engineer because you’re adding a room to a historic St. Louis brick home, you might see an ROI of 20% to 50% once the addition is complete. But if you’re hiring an engineer for a pre-purchase inspection or to evaluate soil movement after a severe storm, the financial return is smaller, though the peace of mind and risk prevention can be invaluable in older St. Louis neighborhoods.
How Angi Gets Its Cost Data
Home is the most important place on earth, which is why Angi has helped more than 150 million homeowners transform their houses into homes they adore. To help homeowners with their next project, Angi provides readers with the most accurate cost data and upholds strict editorial standards. We survey real Angi customers about their project costs to develop the pricing data you see, so you can make the best decisions for you and your home. We pair this data with research from reputable sources, including the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, academic journals, market studies, and interviews with industry experts—all to ensure our prices reflect real-world projects.
Want to help us improve our cost data? Send us a recent project quote to [email protected]. Quotes and personal information will not be shared publicly.
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