Heating and cooling
Gas fireplace installation cost
A direct-vent gas fireplace built into a wall is about $8,452 installed, and the fireplace itself is $2,500 of it: the rest is the vent through the wall, a 30 ft gas line from the meter, the framed enclosure, a tile surround and mantel, an outlet for the blower, three trades and the permit. An insert into an old masonry fireplace is $5,786, a vented log set $1,684, a vent-free unit $2,662 — and the reason not to — a wood insert $4,614, an electric one $2,400. This prices all six on the same house, line by line, with the gas run and the vent route that the showroom price leaves out.
Drafted with AI assistance, edited by Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Published 2026-09-23 · Nothing you type leaves your browser
Gas fireplace installation cost calculator
The fire, and what has to reach it
The unit is rarely half the bill. The vent, the gas line from the meter, the enclosure built round it and the finish on the front are the rest, each a line.
A sealed firebox behind glass that draws its air from outside and sends its exhaust out through a coaxial pipe — through the wall behind it in a morning, or up through the roof in a day.
The gas
From the meter or the nearest tee to the fireplace. Most rooms have no stub, and this is the line the showroom leaves out.
About $20 a foot.
Natural gas from the meter.
A horizontal coaxial vent straight through the wall behind the unit to a cap outside — the short route, with the cap's clearances to windows, doors and the meter checked first..
Over the enclosure or the old brick.
At the manual's clearance above the opening.
An electrician adds one.
Gas is a fitter's and a permit; priced with the trades either way.
Used only to pick a regional labour rate. It stays in your browser.
Direct-vent gas fireplace
$8,452
the unit is 30% of it · 14 h · gas $900 · vent $420
What the showroom price leaves out
The unit is $2,500. The vent, the gas line, the enclosure and the finish are $4,570 more before anybody's hours, and the trades $1,382.
The vent decides
Sealed, and vented outside. The one to buy.
A direct-vent unit draws its air from outside and sends its exhaust out through a coaxial pipe — through the wall in a morning or up through the roof in a day, with the cap's clearances to windows, doors and the meter checked first.
One house, six fires
Every kind of fireplace with the same gas run and vent route. The unit is the band on the left.
What the quote is made of
- Direct-vent gas fireplace
A sealed firebox behind glass that draws its air from outside and sends its exhaust out through a coaxial pipe — through the wall behind it in a morning, or up through the roof in a day. The one to buy where there is no chimney: efficient, safe with the doors closed, and it needs a framed enclosure built round it.$2,500 - Vent kit, through the wall
A horizontal coaxial vent straight through the wall behind the unit to a cap outside — the short route, with the cap's clearances to windows, doors and the meter checked first.$420 - 30 ft of gas pipe
About $20 a foot, run and pressure-tested.$600 - Gas tie-in and pressure test
The tee off the existing line or the meter, the shut-off at the unit, the pressure test and the permit for the piping.$300 - The framed enclosure, in drywall
A framed chase to the manual's dimensions with the clearances to combustibles, sheathed in drywall or cement board, ready for the surround. The new-unit line that a showroom quote never has.$1,200 - Tile surround
Over the enclosure or the old brick, to the manual's clearances.$950 - Mantel
A shelf or a full mantel, with the manual's clearance above the opening — which is why the deep mantel wanted often has to sit higher than expected.$620 - Electrician — an outlet in the enclosure
A 120 V outlet inside the enclosure for the blower and the igniter, or for an electric unit. An electrician's short visit.$220 - 14 hours of the hearth installer
A hearth installer for the unit and the vent, a gas fitter for the line — often the same firm — and an electrician for the outlet. Three trades on a new unit, one on a log set.$1,232 - Trip charge
One firm for the unit, the vent and the gas, usually.$150 - Gas permit and inspection
The piping is pressure-tested and inspected before the unit is lit.$260
What it costs
National average. A direct-vent gas fireplace, 30 ft of gas line, vented through the wall, tile surround, mantel. Not included: a masonry chimney rebuilt, a hearth extension, a new circuit from the panel, or a gas meter the utility has to replace.
The gas line shares the meter with the furnace and a tankless water heater, which is why a long run to a fireplace sometimes means a separate branch, and on a crowded meter a bigger meter.
Worth knowing
- A sealed firebox behind glass that draws its air from outside and sends its exhaust out through a coaxial pipe — through the wall behind it in a morning, or up through the roof in a day. The one to buy where there is no chimney: efficient, safe with the doors closed, and it needs a framed enclosure built round it.
- The unit is $2,500 of a $8,452 job — 30 per cent. The rest is what has to reach it and be built round it: the vent $420, the gas line and tie-in $900, the enclosure $1,200, the surround and mantel $1,570, and the trades.
- 30 ft of new gas pipe from the meter or a tee is $600 at about $20 a foot, plus the tie-in, pressure test and permit. Short enough that the existing line's size usually carries it.
- A horizontal coaxial vent straight through the wall behind the unit to a cap outside — the short route, with the cap's clearances to windows, doors and the meter checked first. $420 and about 2 hours. If the wall behind is not an outside wall, or the cap lands within the code's distance of a window, a door, a soffit or the meter, the vent goes up through the roof instead — about $9,196 all in.
- A framed chase to the manual's dimensions with the clearances to combustibles, sheathed in drywall or cement board, ready for the surround. The new-unit line that a showroom quote never has. $1,200 here plus $950 for the tile surround.
- A shelf or a full mantel, with the manual's clearance above the opening — which is why the deep mantel wanted often has to sit higher than expected. $620 here.
- A 120 V outlet inside the enclosure for the blower and the igniter, or for an electric unit. An electrician's short visit. $220.
On this page — 4 sections
The unit is rarely half of it
The short version
- Direct-vent in a wall $8,452; the unit is $2,500 of it. The rest reaches it or is built round it.
- Insert $5,786. Log set $1,684. Vent-free $2,662. Electric $2,400. Same house.
- The gas line is $20 a foot, and a long run sometimes needs its own branch from the meter.
- Vent-free is cheap because nothing leaves the room. Direct-vent is the one to live with.
A fireplace in a showroom is a price on a card. Installed, it is a hole in the house that needs a vent out — through the wall behind it or up through the roof — a gas line in from the meter, a framed enclosure built to the manual’s clearances, a finish on the front, an outlet for the blower, a permit for the gas and three trades to do it. On the direct-vent unit here the fireplace is 2,500 of a 8,452 job, and every other line is one the card did not mention.
An insert into an old masonry fireplace skips the enclosure and the vent kit and needs liners up the chimney instead; a log set needs almost nothing but the gas; an electric unit needs a plug. The same house, priced six ways, is what the calculator does.
| Direct-vent, new in a wall | Gas insert, in the old fireplace | |
|---|---|---|
| The unit | $2,500 | $2,700 |
| Vent or liner | $420 through the wall | $700 up the chimney |
| Gas line, 30 ft | $900 | $900 |
| Enclosure and finish | $2,770 | The old brick, as it is |
| All in | $8,452 | $5,786 |
MaterialsEstimator, Fireplace installation price estimates · checked 2026-09-23
The vent decides
A direct-vent unit is sealed behind glass: it draws its air from outside and sends its exhaust out through a coaxial pipe, so the room’s air is never part of the fire. Through the wall behind the unit it is a morning’s work; where that is not an outside wall, or the cap would land too close to a window, a door, a soffit or the meter, the vent goes up through the roof and it is a day. A vent-free unit skips all of that and exhausts into the room — the water vapour that fogs the windows and the combustion products an oxygen sensor is meant to catch — which is why California and some cities forbid it and why it is the cheap line on this page and not the recommended one.
An insert into a masonry fireplace has a flue already, and it is the wrong flue: too big and too cold for a modern unit’s exhaust, which condenses on the brick and eats the mortar. Liners run up to a new cap fix that, and a sweep looks up the flue before anything is slid in.
$420
Vent through the wall
2 hours
$900
Vent through the roof
5 hours, with flashing
$700
Liners up a chimney
For an insert
$900
30 ft of gas, tied in
$20 a foot
Heat & Glo / Napoleon / Regency, Direct-vent gas fireplace and insert installation manuals · checked 2026-09-23
The gas line, and sometimes the meter
Most rooms have no gas stub beside the fireplace, so the line runs from the meter or the nearest tee: black iron or CSST at about 20 a foot, a shut-off at the unit, a pressure test and the permit. Thirty feet is 900 here. And the pipe has to be sized for the fireplace’s input over that distance with everything else on the meter — a furnace, a water heater, a range — and teeing a 30,000 BTU fireplace into a line that already feeds them is what fails the table — a new ½ in branch carries it well past 60 ft. Past that distance the fitter usually runs a larger pipe or a separate branch from the meter, and it is the gas fitter who finds it.
| Kind | The unit | Hours | Installed, this house | Unit share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct-vent gas fireplace | $2,500 | 14 | $8,452 | 30% |
| Gas insert | $2,700 | 7 | $5,786 | 47% |
| Vent-free gas unit | $1,000 | 4 | $2,662 | 38% |
| Vented gas log set | $650 | 3 | $1,684 | 39% |
| Wood-burning insert | $2,600 | 8 | $4,614 | 56% |
| Electric fireplace | $650 | 2.5 | $2,400 | 27% |
A 30 ft gas run through the wall; the log set on a stub. The new direct-vent unit carries a tile surround and mantel; the rest are bare.
National Fire Protection Association, NFPA 54 / ANSI Z223.1 — National Fuel Gas Code: piping sizing and vent terminations (2024) · checked 2026-09-23
What goes wrong
01Budgeting the showroom price
The unit is 30 per cent of a new direct-vent installation. The vent, the gas, the enclosure and the finish are the rest.
Instead — Price every line: about $8,452 on this house for a $2,500 unit.
02A vent-free unit to save money
The water vapour and the combustion products stay in the room; it is banned in California and some cities, and kept out of bedrooms and bathrooms everywhere.
Instead — Direct-vent, $5,790 more, and the windows stay clear.
03An insert with no liner
The old masonry flue is too big and cold; the exhaust condenses on the brick and eats the mortar.
Instead — Liners to a new cap, $700, and a sweep's inspection first.
04Ignoring the gas sizing
Teeing a fireplace into a line already feeding a furnace and a water heater can starve all three.
Instead — The gas fitter sizes it from the table with everything on the line; past 60 ft budget a larger pipe or a separate branch.
05A mantel at the height you wanted
The manual sets a clearance above the opening, and a deep mantel has to sit higher than it looks right.
Instead — The mantel depth and height from the manual's chart, before the surround is tiled.
06No outlet in the enclosure
The blower and the igniter need 120 V, and the drywall is closed when it is remembered.
Instead — An outlet inside the chase before the enclosure is finished, about $220.
07Damper clamped open on a log set, and surprise
A vented log set needs the flue open for ever, and the room's heat goes up it when the fire is off.
Instead — A sealed insert instead, if the fireplace is for heat; the log set if it is for the look.
08Fitting a gas unit yourself
The line, the tie-in and the pressure test are licensed work in most places, and the permit is inspected.
Instead — A hearth installer and a gas fitter — often one firm — and an electric unit if it has to be a weekend job.
A fireplace shares the gas meter with the furnace, and a long run to one is what makes the fitter size the pipe for both — the furnace page prices the bigger appliance.
The other thing on the meterCommon questions
- How much does it cost to install a gas fireplace?
- About $8,452 for a direct-vent unit built into a wall — $2,500 of fireplace, a $420 vent through the wall, a 30 ft gas line at $900, a $1,200 framed enclosure, a tile surround and mantel, an outlet for the blower, 14 hours of the installer and the gas permit. With drywall to the unit and no mantel, $6,882; with a stone surround, $9,902; vented through the roof with a 70 ft gas run, $10,596.
- How much does a gas fireplace insert cost to install?
- About $5,786 into an existing masonry fireplace: a $2,700 sealed unit, two flexible liners to a new cap for $700, a chimney sweep's inspection first, the gas line and an outlet for the blower, and 7 hours. It turns a wood fireplace that sent its heat up the flue into one that puts it in the room, and it is the cheapest way to a real gas fire where there is already a chimney.
- Why is the unit such a small part of the cost?
- Because a fireplace is a hole in the house that needs a vent out, gas in, a box built round it and a finish on the front. On the direct-vent unit here, the fireplace is $2,500 and the total is $8,452: 30 per cent. The vent, the gas line, the enclosure, the surround, the mantel and the outlet are the rest before anybody's hours, and none of them is on the showroom ticket.
- What does the gas line cost?
- About $20 a foot for new pipe, plus a $300 tie-in with the pressure test: $900 for 30 ft here. With a stub already beside the fireplace the job is $7,672 instead of $8,452. A new ½ in branch carries a 30,000 BTU fireplace well past 60 ft; what fails is teeing into a line that already feeds the furnace and the water heater, and past about 60 ft the fitter usually runs a larger pipe or a separate branch from the meter instead — about $600, found by the gas fitter, not the showroom. Propane adds a regulator: $8,672 all in.
- Direct-vent or vent-free?
- Direct-vent: sealed behind glass, air from outside, exhaust out through the wall or the roof — $8,452 built into a wall. Vent-free: nothing to vent, so $2,662 — and the water vapour and combustion products stay in the room, with an oxygen sensor as the safeguard. California and a number of cities forbid vent-free units; where they are allowed, the fuel gas code keeps them out of bedrooms and bathrooms, caps them at 40,000 BTU and sizes them to the room. Direct-vent is the one to live with.
- How much does a gas log set cost?
- About $1,684 in a wood fireplace with a gas stub nearby: $650 of vented ceramic logs and burner, the chimney swept and inspected, the damper clamped open, 3 hours and the gas permit. The look of a wood fire at a turn of a key — and with the damper clamped open for ever, most of the heat, and the room's heat when the fire is off, goes up the flue.
- How much does an electric fireplace cost to install?
- About $2,400 recessed into a wall with a mantel — $650 of unit, the opening framed and finished, an outlet added, and 2.5 hours. Yourself, with an outlet within reach, about $1,149. No gas, no vent, no permit: it is furniture with a plug and a 1,500 W heater, and the only fireplace on this page fitted by the person who bought it.
- How much does a wood-burning insert cost?
- About $4,614: a $2,600 EPA-certified stove built to slide into the masonry firebox, a stainless liner to the cap for $700, the sweep's inspection, an outlet for the blower and 8 hours. The wood fire that heats the room instead of the sky, and the one insurers ask about the liner on.
- Through the wall or through the roof?
- Through the wall behind the unit if it is an outside wall and the cap can keep the code's distances from windows, doors, soffits, decks and the meter: $420 and about 2 hours. Otherwise up through the ceiling and the roof with a flashing: $900 and about 5 hours — $2,144 more on this job with the longer gas run that usually goes with an inside wall.
- Do I need a permit for a gas fireplace?
- For the gas piping, almost everywhere: it is pressure-tested and inspected before the unit is lit, about $260 with the fee. The vent and the framing are often on the same permit. An electric fireplace needs none; a wood insert usually needs the liner inspected.
- Can I install a fireplace myself?
- An electric one, yes: an opening to the manual's size, the unit screwed in, a plug within reach — $1,149 of unit and finish. A wood insert with a helper on the roof for the liner, if the flue has been swept and inspected. Gas is a fitter's: the line, the tie-in and the pressure test are licensed work in most places and the permit is inspected, and the calculator prices gas units with the trades whoever asked.
- What is the surround, and do I need one?
- The finish on the front of the enclosure — tile at about $950, stone or brick veneer at $2400 — and the mantel above it at $620, set at the manual's clearance. Drywall to the unit is allowed and it is where most people then spend another thousand a year later. On this job: $6,882 bare, $8,452 with tile and a mantel, $9,902 with stone.
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About the author
Pablo Ruiz Quintero — Editor
Editor of MaterialsEstimator. Decides which documents count as a source, what every default value is, and where the line sits between what the reader parses and what the engines compute.
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