Combo Pricing · Updated 15 October 2026
Spring and Cable
Replacement Combo Cost
The cables lift the door with the springs and are under the same tension, so worn cables are best replaced on the same visit. What that costs, and how to tell whether yours need it.
| Job | Price |
|---|---|
| Torsion spring pair, installedOur estimate (parts, labor, service call) | $145 to $520 |
| Cables replaced on their ownBob Vila, updated April 2024 | $75 to $200 |
| Cables replaced with a broken springBob Vila, updated April 2024 | $175 to $450 |
| One more visit of laborOur estimate on Yelp's published rates | $75 to $200 |
Bob Vila's figures are quoted from its spring replacement cost guide (updated 17 April 2024, read 14 October 2026); it does not say how they were gathered. We found no supplier price for a standard residential cable pair we could record, so we do not add a cable line to our own estimate.
How we price this: Our ranges are estimates built from published inputs, not quotes: retail spring prices, the service-call and hourly rates in Yelp's cost guide, and job times from HomeAdvisor and Yelp. Low ends are rounded down and high ends up to the nearest $5. Sources, read 13 October 2026: DDM Garage Doors, DIY Garage Door Parts, Yelp cost guide and HomeAdvisor. HomeAdvisor and Angi are both owned by Angi Inc., which pays this site a commission for quote requests. (Angi Inc. 2025 Form 10-K)
Show the arithmetic
- Pair of torsion springs replaced (pair; estimate from stated inputs; includes parts, labor, service call): $145 to $520. parts 2 x $35.38 to 2 x $157.94, plus labor $75 to $200 (a $75 to $100 service call covering the first hour, plus up to one more hour at $100): $145.76 to $515.88, rounded out to the nearest $5.
- Labor and service call for one visit (per job; estimate from stated inputs; includes labor, service call, minimum labor): $75 to $200. $75 service call when the job fits in the first hour (HomeAdvisor: two springs in 30 minutes to one hour); $100 service call plus one more hour at $100 when it runs to about two hours (Yelp): $75 to $200.
Parts are priced at what the two suppliers charge the public. Installers buy for less and many mark parts up, and neither figure is published, so a quote's parts line can be higher than ours.
Wage check: The BLS puts the median mechanical door repairer (the occupation that includes garage door mechanics) at $26.79 an hour (May 2025). Wages are 70.0% of private-industry employer costs (June 2026), so that technician costs an employer about $38.27 an hour before the van, insurance, overhead and profit. Yelp's $40 to $100 hourly rate sits at or above that cost, which is what a billed rate should do. (BLS OEWS, 49-9011 Mechanical Door Repairers; BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation)
Why the two jobs go together
On a torsion system, a cable runs from each bottom corner of the door up to a drum on the spring shaft. The springs turn the shaft, the drums wind the cables, and the cables lift the door. To change a cable, the technician has to take the tension off the springs, which is exactly what a spring replacement already does. That is why Bob Vila's combined figure ($175 to $450) is not much more than the spring job, and why a separate cable visit later means paying for a visit again ($75 to $200 of labor on our estimate).
Some suppliers sell the springs with cables. DIY Garage Door Parts says "Every Torsion Spring Order Includes Winding Bars, 3/32" Torsion Cables"; its springs run $75.25 to $157.94 each. If your installer fits springs that come with cables, ask whether the cables are being replaced and whether they are on the bill twice.
When the cables need replacing
- Fraying: broken strands sticking out, usually where the cable winds onto the drum or at the bottom bracket
- Rust along the cable
- Kinks, or a cable that has jumped the drum, which also leaves the door lifting unevenly
If none of these show, the cables can usually stay. Ask the technician to show you the wear before agreeing, and to price the cables as a separate line so you can accept or decline them. Do not handle the cables yourself: they are under the springs' tension, and DASMA says only trained door systems technicians should repair or adjust door system components.
What to ask the technician
- Can you show me the wear on the cables?
- What is the spring-only price, and what do the cables add?
- Do the springs you are fitting come with cables?
- Are the drums and bottom brackets in good condition?
- What is the warranty on the springs and on the labor, in writing?
Related cost guides on this site
Frequently Asked
How much does it cost to replace garage door springs and cables together?
Bob Vila (updated April 2024) says that if cables "are replaced simultaneously with a broken spring, a homeowner will likely pay $175 to $450." Our own estimate for the springs alone, a torsion pair, is $145 to $520. Some spring suppliers include cables with the springs: DIY Garage Door Parts says every torsion spring order includes 3/32 in torsion cables.
How much do garage door cables cost on their own?
Bob Vila says "a technician can replace the cables for $75 to $200". A separate visit for cables also means paying for the visit again; on Yelp's published rates one visit of labor is $75 to $200.
When do cables need replacing?
When they are frayed (broken strands sticking out, usually at the drum or the bottom bracket), rusted, kinked, or have slipped off the drum. Ask the technician to show you the wear before agreeing to replace them. Cables are under the same tension as the springs, so this is a job for the technician, not a DIY repair.