Outdoor Socket Installation Costs UK — What to Charge to Fit an External Socket in 2026

What to Charge for an Outdoor Socket

The single biggest variable is the cable run. A socket fitted directly through the wall behind an existing internal socket is a 30-minute job; a socket fed from the consumer unit at the other end of the house is a half-day job. Price the job on the run, not on the accessory. Here are the current UK ranges.

Short Spur — External Socket Behind an Existing Internal Socket

This is the easy win. You take a spur from an existing internal socket, drill straight through the wall, and mount a weatherproof IP66 double socket on the outside face directly behind it. The cable run is a few hundred millimetres, the work is contained to one room, and there's minimal making good. As long as the existing ring or radial circuit has spare capacity and is RCD protected, this is fast, clean work.

• Supply and fit, short spur, RCD-protected circuit: £100–£180

Most of that figure is your labour, your travel and your testing and certification time — the IP66 socket itself is only £15–£40. Don't let a customer talk you down on the basis that "it's only a socket": the value is in doing it safely, testing it and self-certifying it correctly.

Longer Cable Run — From the Consumer Unit or Along a Wall

When there's no suitable socket to spur from, or the customer wants the socket at the far end of the garden, you're looking at a proper cable run. That might mean running a new circuit from the consumer unit, chasing or clipping cable along internal walls, or running armoured cable (SWA) along an outside wall or buried in a trench to a remote point. The labour multiplies, and the materials cost rises with every metre.

• Longer run, surface or buried SWA, or new circuit from the board: £180–£350+

The "plus" matters. A 20-metre buried SWA run to a garden building, complete with trench, gland terminations at both ends and a new way in the consumer unit, can run well beyond £350 once you account for the digging, the cable and the dedicated circuit. Always measure the run and confirm the route before you give a fixed price.

Adding RCD Protection

All outdoor sockets must be protected by a 30mA RCD — this is a wiring regulations requirement, not optional. If the circuit you're spurring from is already RCD protected (most modern consumer units with RCBOs or RCD-protected ways are), you don't need to add anything. But on older installations with no RCD protection, you'll need to fit an RCD spur, an RCD fused connection unit (FCU), or upgrade the protection at the board.

• Add an RCD spur / RCD FCU, or upgrade protection: add £40–£120

Always test the existing installation before you quote. If you find the consumer unit has no RCD protection at all, that may open a wider conversation about a board upgrade — flag it, but quote the socket job on its own merits and price the RCD provision as a clear separate line.

The Weatherproof Socket Itself

Outdoor sockets need to be rated for exposure to the weather. The standard is an IP66 weatherproof enclosure — sealed against dust and powerful jets of water — typically a double socket with a hinged, gasket-sealed lid that closes over the plugs in use. Common brands include BG, MK Masterseal, Knightsbridge and Hager.

The accessory cost is modest: £15–£40 for the weatherproof socket unit. That means on a supply-and-fit job, the overwhelming majority of your price is labour, cable and testing — not the part. Customers who price-shop the socket online and assume the job should cost "a bit more than the part" are misunderstanding where the work is. Be ready to explain that.

The Regulations You Must Build Into Every Quote

RCD Protection (30mA)

Every socket that could reasonably be used to supply equipment outdoors must have 30mA RCD protection. For an outdoor socket this is mandatory. If the source circuit isn't already protected, you must provide it — see the pricing above.

IP Ratings and Weatherproofing

Use IP66-rated accessories for external sockets. The enclosure must keep water out even when a plug is inserted, so the lid design and the gland or grommet entries matter. Where cable enters the back of an enclosure through a wall, seal the penetration properly; where SWA terminates, use the correct gland to maintain the IP rating and provide earthing continuity through the armour.

Correct Cable Type for the Run

Cable choice depends on where it runs. Standard twin and earth (T&E) is fine for internal runs to the back of a wall-mounted socket. For cable that is buried, run along the outside of a building, or otherwise exposed and at risk of mechanical damage, use steel wire armoured (SWA) cable, correctly glanded at each end. Buried cable must be at adequate depth and ideally marked with warning tape. Getting the cable type right is both a safety and a sign-off issue.

Part P — Notifiable Work

Fixed outdoor electrical work is notifiable under Part P of the Building Regulations in England and Wales. That means the work must either be carried out by an electrician registered with a competent person scheme (NICEIC, NAPIT, etc.) who self-certifies and notifies building control, or it must be notified to building control directly and inspected. Either way, the customer receives an Electrical Installation Certificate. Building this into your quote — and explaining that you self-certify — is part of justifying your price against an unregistered competitor.

What Affects the Price

Two outdoor socket jobs that sound identical on the phone can differ by hundreds of pounds once you're on site. These are the factors that move the quote:

• Distance from the supply: The further the socket is from a suitable spur point or the consumer unit, the more cable, the more labour and the more likely you'll need a dedicated circuit.
• Wall material and drilling: Punching through a single-skin internal wall is quick. Drilling through a solid stone, rendered or cavity wall — or coring for SWA — takes longer and needs the right kit.
• Surface vs buried cable: Clipped surface SWA is fast. A buried run means trenching, backfill, warning tape and reinstatement — often the single biggest cost on a remote socket.
• Existing RCD protection: If the circuit is already RCD protected you add nothing. If not, you add £40–£120 for an RCD spur, FCU or board work.
• Access: A clear internal wall and an easy garden is straightforward. Awkward loft routing, boarded floors, finished decoration to make good, or restricted side access all add time.

Never give a firm price down the phone for anything beyond an obvious short spur. Ask where the nearest internal socket is, what the wall is made of, and how far the customer wants the socket from the house — then quote properly once you've seen it.

Quick Reference: Outdoor Socket Prices UK 2026