Get quotes to fit a burglar alarm in your home

If you’ve ever been victim of a burglary before, you know how stressful it can be. As well as all the hassle that comes with filing a police report, cataloguing what has been stolen and getting in touch with your insurer, it can also leave you feeling unsafe in your own home.

One way to deter burglars and alert you and your neighbours to an intruder is to install a burglar alarm. But how much will it cost?

For a standard house alarm, expect to pay at least £600 for the supply and installation of a burglar alarm. We’ll go into the factors that make up the cost of an intruder alarm in this guide.

Burglar alarm installation cost

How much it costs to install a burglar alarm will depend on the type of burglar alarm you choose, the condition of your electrics and where you live in the country. HaMuch has a large database of hourly and daily rates for electricians all over the UK, so take a look at the table further down the page to get an idea of how much you’ll pay for burglar alarm installation in your town or city.

However, the average burglar alarm installation cost is £120-£240, not including the alarm itself. It takes around 2-3 hours to install a good-quality alarm, so the hourly cost for an electrician or alarm specialist is around £60-£80.

How much should a burglar alarm cost?

How much a burglar alarm costs depends on the brand and the type of alarm you choose. There are a few different types of burglar alarm and some types can be blended together.

Bells-only

Bells-only burglar alarms are exactly what they say they are: they only make a sound and don’t make contact with yourself, an alarm company or the police if they are triggered. They are the simplest type of alarm, and therefore are typically the cheapest. A bells-only wired alarm starts from around £380, whereas wireless bells-only alarms start at around £400.

Monitored

Monitored burglar alarms are more expensive than bells-only alarms as they are designed to put an agent in touch with you if it detects a break-in. The agent can also contact the police for you to increase the likelihood of them catching the burglary in progress.

Monitored alarms generally start from around £500 excluding installation costs.

Smart burglar alarms

Smart burglar alarms are becoming the standard now. Most British Standards-approved alarms will have a connection to smartphones, but you can buy more sophisticated smart burglar alarms that include cameras two-way microphones. These alarms can cost £650 or more.

Wired or wireless

You’ll also need to choose whether you want a wired or wireless system. Wired alarm systems require wiring to connect the sensors and alarm panel together. While wired systems have the benefit of not needing battery changes, you will experience an outage if you have a power cut.

On the other hand, wireless systems will continue to work even if your electricity gets cut off. Battery-powered systems emit signals to connect the sensors to your alarm panel. This means that the sensors need to stay within a set distance from the alarm panel to ensure the signal is strong. If the sensors are installed too far away, the signal could be too weak to trigger the alarm. Generally, wireless burglar alarms are more expensive than wired options.

How long should a burglar alarm last?

A burglar alarm should last at least 10 years. In fact, it could last longer than this – but you’d probably want to update your system by this time to take advantage of new technology.

If you have a wireless alarm system, the battery will typically require changing every 2-3 years. If you have your alarm serviced every year, your alarm specialist will be able to tell you when the battery needs changing.

Wired systems generally have a back up battery to allow for short power cuts. These generally last around 3-5 years before they need to be replaced.

Is it worth installing a burglar alarm?

The decision to install a burglar alarm is a very personal one. While some people will say that they are not worth the money, others will feel much more comfortable knowing that they have one installed.

If you have been burgled before, it can be worth installing a burglar alarm simply for your peace of mind. Knowing that you have a system there to detect an intruder can help you to feel safe in your home again after a burglary.

Some people believe that burglar alarms act as a good enough deterrent when they are visible on the front and back of your home, so burglars won’t even attempt to break into your home if they see one. Because of this, many homeowners decide to install dummy alarms – a fake alarm system that sits on the front of your house – as this is enough to deter someone from entering your home uninvited.

Do burglar alarms stop burglars?

Burglar alarms act act as a good deterrent to burglars. To keep your home efficiently protected, it’s recommended that you install a real home alarm system and keep it maintained. That means that if the presence of the alarm on the front and back of your property isn’t enough to stop someone from breaking in, the alarm will sound as soon as they enter.

Even if your alarm is a monitored alarm, it’s still unlikely that the police would get to you before the intruder runs away. Hopefully they will make a dash for it before they get access to any of your property.

To help deter burglars further and catch them in the act if they do decide to try their luck, you could also consider installing a CCTV system and a smart doorbell alongside your home alarm.

Can an electrician fit a burglar alarm?

Yes, an electrician can fit a burglar alarm – mostly wired systems. You may be able to hire a registered electrician or a security specialist, who is usually a qualified electrician anyway. It’s best to get a few quotes from security firms and electricians to see who can give you the best price and advice for your property.

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Estimates for common electrician jobs;

Job Estimate
Cost to troubleshoot and diagnose an electrical fault £95
Cost to install a smoke alarm £76
Cost to upgrade to smart lighting £49
Cost to fit a satellite dish £80
Cost to rewire a single room or circuit £1000
Cost to rewire a house or flat £6250
Cost to replace a consumer unit £400
Cost to install outside security lights £123
Cheap payment solutions £1.50
Cost to do a PAT test £60
Cost to replace electric oven £154
Cost to install an outside power socket £95
Cost to install outside garden lighting £135
Cost to install a storage heater £201
Cheap mobile phones £20.00 per month
Cost to install LED lights £115
Cost of public liability insurance for electricians £5.00 per month
Cost to install solar panels £7500
Cost to installing an electric shower £450
Cost to install a TV aerial £223
Cost to fit a smart doorbell £61
Cost to install downlights in a room £440
Cost to install CCTV cameras £740
Cost to install a bathroom extractor fan £220
Cost to install or fix a light switches £50
Cost to repair or install an electric hob (or an induction hob) £85
Cost to install or fix a light fitting fixture £90
Cost to fit an new plug socket £180
Cheap electricity £90.00 per month
Cost to install an electric vehicle charger £400
Cost to lay electric underfloor heating £300
Cost to install an electric radiator £204
Cost to install an electric combi boiler £1200
Cost of an EICR test £150
Cost to earth bond a gas meter £470
Cost to install of a cooker hood £260
Cost to fit a carbon monoxide detector £74
Cost to install a burglar alarm £150
Cheap broadband £20.00 per month
Repair of a cooker hood £150

Rates for other trades

Burglar alarm installation cost in the UK
Burglar alarm installation cost in the UK (excluding VAT or callout charges)
Location in UKBurglar alarm installation cost
Burglar alarm installation near Aberdeen£255
Burglar alarm installation near Amber Valley£215
Burglar alarm installation near Angus£223
Burglar alarm installation near Arun£227
Burglar alarm installation near Ashfield£217
Burglar alarm installation near Aylesbury Vale£252
Burglar alarm installation near Barnsley£231
Burglar alarm installation near Basildon£261
Burglar alarm installation near Basingstoke & Deane£261
Burglar alarm installation near Bassetlaw£239
Burglar alarm installation near Bath & North East Somerset£248
Burglar alarm installation near Bedford£257
Burglar alarm installation near Belfast£172
Burglar alarm installation near Birmingham£223
Burglar alarm installation near Blackburn£222
Burglar alarm installation near Blackpool£234
Burglar alarm installation near Bolton£223
Burglar alarm installation near Bournemouth£238
Burglar alarm installation near Bracknell Forest£270
Burglar alarm installation near Bradford£228
Burglar alarm installation near Braintree£246
Burglar alarm installation near Breckland£248
Burglar alarm installation near Bridgend£218
Burglar alarm installation near Brighton£232
Burglar alarm installation near Bristol£242
Burglar alarm installation near Broadland£257
Burglar alarm installation near Broxtowe£217
Burglar alarm installation near Bury£224
Burglar alarm installation near Caerphilly£210
Burglar alarm installation near Calderdale£223
Burglar alarm installation near Cambridge£248
Burglar alarm installation near Canterbury£229
Burglar alarm installation near Cardiff£213
Burglar alarm installation near Carmarthenshire£213
Burglar alarm installation near Charnwood£223
Burglar alarm installation near Chelmsford£258
Burglar alarm installation near Cheltenham£246
Burglar alarm installation near Cherwell£246
Burglar alarm installation near Chester£216
Burglar alarm installation near Colchester£239
Burglar alarm installation near Conway£302
Burglar alarm installation near Coventry£232
Burglar alarm installation near Crewe & Nantwich£214
Burglar alarm installation near Dacorum£261
Burglar alarm installation near Derby£214
Burglar alarm installation near Doncaster£232
Burglar alarm installation near Dover£220
Burglar alarm installation near Dudley£223
Burglar alarm installation near Dumfries & Galloway£232
Burglar alarm installation near Dundee£251
Burglar alarm installation near East Ayrshire£240
Burglar alarm installation near East Devon£222
Burglar alarm installation near East Dunbartonshire£258
Burglar alarm installation near East Hampshire£252
Burglar alarm installation near East Hertfordshire£260
Burglar alarm installation near East Lindsey£185
Burglar alarm installation near East Riding£218
Burglar alarm installation near Eastleigh£255
Burglar alarm installation near Edinburgh£243
Burglar alarm installation near Elmbridge£278
Burglar alarm installation near Epping Forest£272
Burglar alarm installation near Erewash£216
Burglar alarm installation near Exeter£218
Burglar alarm installation near Falkirk£253
Burglar alarm installation near Fife£228
Burglar alarm installation near Flintshire£215
Burglar alarm installation near Gateshead£232
Burglar alarm installation near Gedling£217
Burglar alarm installation near Glasgow£255
Burglar alarm installation near Gloucester£237
Burglar alarm installation near Guildford£273
Burglar alarm installation near Gwynedd£245
Burglar alarm installation near Halton£223
Burglar alarm installation near Harrogate£224
Burglar alarm installation near Havant & Waterloo£252
Burglar alarm installation near Horsham£255
Burglar alarm installation near Huntingdonshire£249
Burglar alarm installation near Ipswich£234
Burglar alarm installation near Isle of Wight£249
Burglar alarm installation near Kings Lynn & West Norfolk£236
Burglar alarm installation near Kingston-upon-Hull£217
Burglar alarm installation near Kirklees£223
Burglar alarm installation near Knowsley£223
Burglar alarm installation near Lancaster£228
Burglar alarm installation near Leeds£231
Burglar alarm installation near Leicester£233
Burglar alarm installation near Lisburn£170
Burglar alarm installation near Liverpool£223
Burglar alarm installation near London£274
Burglar alarm installation near Luton£257
Burglar alarm installation near Macclesfield£224
Burglar alarm installation near Maidstone£255
Burglar alarm installation near Manchester£224
Burglar alarm installation near Mid Bedfordshire£255
Burglar alarm installation near Mid Sussex£249
Burglar alarm installation near Middlesbrough£232
Burglar alarm installation near Milton Keynes£250
Burglar alarm installation near Neath Port Talbot£221
Burglar alarm installation near New Forest£246
Burglar alarm installation near Newbury£260
Burglar alarm installation near Newcastle-under-Lyme£206
Burglar alarm installation near Newcastle-upon-Tyne£231
Burglar alarm installation near Newport£214
Burglar alarm installation near North Ayrshire£248
Burglar alarm installation near North East Lincolnshire£213
Burglar alarm installation near North Hertfordshire£257
Burglar alarm installation near North Lanarkshire£255
Burglar alarm installation near North Lincolnshire£232
Burglar alarm installation near North Somerset£241
Burglar alarm installation near North Tyneside£231
Burglar alarm installation near North Wiltshire£261
Burglar alarm installation near Northampton£254
Burglar alarm installation near Norwich£259
Burglar alarm installation near Nottingham£216
Burglar alarm installation near Nuneaton & Bedworth£237
Burglar alarm installation near Oldham£223
Burglar alarm installation near Oxford£254
Burglar alarm installation near Pembrokeshire£197
Burglar alarm installation near Perth & Kinross£244
Burglar alarm installation near Peterborough£247
Burglar alarm installation near Plymouth£229
Burglar alarm installation near Poole£239
Burglar alarm installation near Portsmouth£250
Burglar alarm installation near Powys£218
Burglar alarm installation near Preston£228
Burglar alarm installation near Reading£261
Burglar alarm installation near Redcar & Cleveland£239
Burglar alarm installation near Reigate & Banstead£277
Burglar alarm installation near Renfrewshire£256
Burglar alarm installation near Rhondda, Cynon, Taff£216
Burglar alarm installation near Rochdale£226
Burglar alarm installation near Rotherham£221
Burglar alarm installation near Salford£223
Burglar alarm installation near Salisbury£234
Burglar alarm installation near Sandwell£223
Burglar alarm installation near Scarborough£225
Burglar alarm installation near Sefton£225
Burglar alarm installation near Sevenoaks£262
Burglar alarm installation near Sheffield£219
Burglar alarm installation near Slough£270
Burglar alarm installation near Solihull£227
Burglar alarm installation near South Ayrshire£247
Burglar alarm installation near South Bedfordshire£257
Burglar alarm installation near South Cambridgeshire£251
Burglar alarm installation near South Gloucestershire£245
Burglar alarm installation near South Kesteven£231
Burglar alarm installation near South Lanarkshire£252
Burglar alarm installation near South Oxfordshire£252
Burglar alarm installation near South Somerset£225
Burglar alarm installation near South Tyneside£230
Burglar alarm installation near Southampton£255
Burglar alarm installation near Southend-on-Sea£255
Burglar alarm installation near St Albans£264
Burglar alarm installation near St Helens£220
Burglar alarm installation near Stafford£217
Burglar alarm installation near Stockport£223
Burglar alarm installation near Stockton-on-Tees£231
Burglar alarm installation near Stoke-on-Trent£207
Burglar alarm installation near Stratford-on-Avon£231
Burglar alarm installation near Stroud£236
Burglar alarm installation near Suffolk Coastal£237
Burglar alarm installation near Sunderland£231
Burglar alarm installation near Swale£246
Burglar alarm installation near Swansea£219
Burglar alarm installation near Tameside£224
Burglar alarm installation near Teignbridge£214
Burglar alarm installation near Tendring£232
Burglar alarm installation near Test Valley£245
Burglar alarm installation near Thamesdown£260
Burglar alarm installation near Thanet£223
Burglar alarm installation near The Wrekin£207
Burglar alarm installation near Thurrock£262
Burglar alarm installation near Torbay£218
Burglar alarm installation near Trafford£226
Burglar alarm installation near Vale of Glamorgan£217
Burglar alarm installation near Vale of White Horse£250
Burglar alarm installation near Vale Royal£220
Burglar alarm installation near Wakefield£229
Burglar alarm installation near Walsall£222
Burglar alarm installation near Warrington£223
Burglar alarm installation near Warwick£234
Burglar alarm installation near Waveney£255
Burglar alarm installation near Waverley£270
Burglar alarm installation near Wealden£247
Burglar alarm installation near West Lancashire£224
Burglar alarm installation near West Lothian£246
Burglar alarm installation near West Wiltshire£261
Burglar alarm installation near Wigan£217
Burglar alarm installation near Windsor & Maidenhead£271
Burglar alarm installation near Wirral£226
Burglar alarm installation near Wokingham£268
Burglar alarm installation near Wolverhampton£222
Burglar alarm installation near Wrexham Maelor£212
Burglar alarm installation near Wychavon£233
Burglar alarm installation near Wycombe£258
Burglar alarm installation near York£228