You hit the opener button and the door doesn't budge, or it creeps up an inch and stalls. Maybe you heard a loud bang from the garage earlier that day, like a gunshot, and now there's a gap in the coil above the door or a cable hanging loose at one side. That's almost always a broken spring, and it's not something to force through with the opener. A door with a snapped spring is heavy, often 100 to 400 pounds, and the opener was never built to lift that weight alone.
What Spring Replacement Typically Costs
These are national ranges, not local pricing, since labor rates and parts availability vary by market. Use them to sanity-check a quote, not to predict an exact number.
- Torsion springs: roughly $150 to $350 per spring installed, or about $250 to $450 for a standard two-spring job on a double garage door.
- Extension springs: typically $100 to $200 per spring, with most doors using a pair.
- High-cycle or heavy-duty springs: add roughly $20 to $50 per spring over standard-cycle parts.
- Emergency or same-day service: often adds $75 to $150 to the base price.
Torsion springs mount on a shaft above the door and are the more common setup on newer installations; extension springs run along the horizontal tracks and are more common on older doors. Torsion systems generally cost a bit more upfront but hold up better over time and are safer to service because the spring is contained.
What Drives the Price Up or Down
Door weight and spring size
A heavier door, insulated steel, wood, or a carriage-style door, needs a stronger spring rated for that weight. Heavier-gauge wire and larger springs cost more than standard parts.
One spring or two
If one torsion spring has broken, the other one is usually close behind since they wear out on a matched cycle count. Most reputable techs will recommend replacing both at once rather than waiting for a second breakdown and a second service call.
Cycle rating
Springs are rated by how many open-close cycles they're built to handle, often 10,000 or 25,000-cycle options. A higher-cycle spring costs a bit more but lasts longer, which matters if the door gets heavy daily use.
What else needs attention
Once a spring breaks, it's common to find worn cables, pitted pulleys, or a bent drum from the sudden slack. These get caught during the job and add to the bill, but replacing them now avoids a second breakdown. In this area, inland heat cycles and the dry season's dust can accelerate wear on exposed hardware, while homes closer to the coast deal with salt air that speeds up rust on cables and bearings. Winter rain adds humidity that can affect older, poorly lubricated hardware too.
Access and door type
Custom doors, older builder-grade systems with discontinued parts, or doors that have had an earthquake retrofit adding weight can all shift the price, since the technician may need to source a specific spring size rather than a stock part.
What a Proper Quote Should Include
- The exact spring type, size, and cycle rating matched to your door's measured weight, not a generic swap.
- Whether both springs are being replaced and why.
- A check of cables, pulleys, and the center bearing while the system is open.
- Labor and parts broken out separately, with any trip or diagnostic fee disclosed upfront.
- A written warranty on both the spring and the labor.
If a quote is just a single number with no breakdown of parts versus labor, ask for the specifics before you agree to the work. A spring that's undersized for your door will fail early and cost you the repair twice.
When to Call Cerritos Garage Door Experts
If your door won't open, feels unusually heavy, or you've spotted a gap in the coil or a hanging cable, don't try to force it with the opener or by hand. Our Spring Replacement service includes matching the correct spring size and cycle rating to your door, replacing both springs when one has failed, and inspecting cables and hardware while everything is open. If the spring let go outside normal hours and the door is stuck shut, our Emergency Garage Door Service gets a technician out to get your door moving and secure again.
If you're in Cerritos, CA, or nearby in Artesia, Lakewood, or La Mirada and your garage door has stopped cooperating, give Cerritos Garage Door Experts a call for a straightforward quote and a technician who can get it fixed the same day.