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Montgomery County Shed Permit Cost (2026)

Shed and accessory-building permit fees in Montgomery County, Maryland, pulled directly from the official Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services (DPS) Residential Construction Fee Schedule. Montgomery prices an accessory building 200 square feet or less at a flat $118.96; above 200 square feet it switches to $0.767865 per square foot. Maryland has no statewide percentage levy and the DPS schedule carries no technology fee, so the figure shown is the building permit charge. Electrical and other trade permits are separate. The published DPS schedule carries an FY2022 printed effective date, so confirm the current figure with DPS before relying on it.

Shed 200 sq ft or less
$118.96 flat
Shed over 200 sq ft
$0.767865 / sq ft
State / Local Percentage Levy
None (Maryland has no statewide levy)
Technology Fee
None on the DPS schedule
Electrical / Trade Permits
Separate (not priced here)
Fee Status
DPS schedule - FY2022 printed date (verify current)
What This Guide Covers - and What It Does Not

This guide covers: Montgomery County, Maryland shed and accessory-building permit fees as published in the Montgomery County DPS Residential Construction Fee Schedule (AllFees.pdf). The accessory-building line is a flat $118.96 for 200 square feet or less, and $0.767865 per square foot above 200 square feet. A storage shed, detached garden building, or similar small accessory structure is priced on this line.

This guide does NOT cover: Electrical permits if you wire the shed (a separate DPS trade schedule). Plumbing or mechanical permits if applicable. Sediment control, grading, or right-of-way permits where required. Zoning setbacks, lot-coverage limits, and the size threshold below which Montgomery exempts a shed from a building permit entirely - those rules are set by county code, not by this fee line, so confirm them with DPS. Concrete pads or foundations that may need separate review.

Source-age caveat: The DPS AllFees.pdf currently published carries a printed effective period of July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022 (FY2022). It is the version Montgomery County serves at its official assets path, but the printed effective date is more than 24 months old, so confirm the current accessory-building fee with DPS (240-777-0311) before treating these figures as a load-bearing budget.

When a Montgomery County shed permit is required: Whether a small shed needs a building permit at all depends on its size and how it is anchored, under county code. Always confirm with DPS before buying or building - the fee line below applies once a permit is required.

Key Takeaways
  • Montgomery County prices a shed or accessory building at a flat $118.96 for 200 square feet or less - the most common backyard-shed size band.
  • Above 200 square feet the fee switches to $0.767865 per square foot on the whole structure, so a 240 sq ft shed is about $184.29 and a 400 sq ft shed about $307.15.
  • Because of that switch there is a small step-up just past 200 sq ft: a 201 sq ft shed is priced per square foot (about $154.34), more than the flat $118.96 a 200 sq ft shed pays.
  • Maryland has no statewide percentage building-permit levy, and the DPS schedule carries no technology fee, so there is no percentage add-on like Virginia's 2% USBC levy. The figure shown is the whole building permit charge.
  • Electrical wiring for the shed is a separate DPS trade permit and is not included in the $118.96. Zoning setbacks and the size threshold for needing a permit at all are set by county code - confirm with DPS.
  • The DPS AllFees.pdf carries an FY2022 printed effective date, so this is a source-age-flagged figure; confirm the current accessory-building fee with DPS at 240-777-0311 before relying on it for a budget.
Open the Permit Fee Calculator All Montgomery County Permit Fees

Montgomery County Shed Permit Fee Structure

Montgomery County prices accessory buildings - sheds, detached garden buildings, and similar small structures - with a flat fee up to 200 square feet and a per-square-foot rate above that. There is no percentage levy and no technology fee on the line.

Item Building Permit Fee How It Is Calculated
Accessory building, 200 sq ft or less $118.96 Flat fee. Covers a typical backyard storage shed.
Accessory building, over 200 sq ft $0.767865/sq ft Per square foot on the whole structure (e.g. 400 sq ft = $307.15).
State levy / technology fee None Maryland has no statewide levy; the DPS schedule has no technology fee.
Electrical / trade permits Separate Wiring the shed needs a separate DPS electrical permit, not priced here.
Zoning / size threshold Set by code Setbacks and the permit-exemption size are county-code rules - confirm with DPS.

Source: Montgomery County DPS Residential Construction Fee Schedule (AllFees.pdf), Accessory Building line. Printed effective period FY2022 (July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022) - source-age flagged. Electrical and other trade permits, zoning review, and grading are separate. Confirm current rates with DPS before filing.

Worked Examples - Real Shed Projects in Montgomery County

Each example uses the accessory-building line for the building permit. Sheds 200 square feet or less pay the flat $118.96; larger structures switch to $0.767865 per square foot. Electrical wiring, if any, is a separate trade permit and not priced here.

Example 1: 10 ft x 12 ft storage shed (120 sq ft)

A homeowner installs a 120 square foot prefab storage shed in the backyard, no electrical.

  • Accessory building 200 sq ft or less: flat fee = $118.96
  • Maryland percentage levy / technology fee: $0.00 (none)
  • Total all-in shed building permit: $118.96

Any shed from a tiny 6 x 8 up to 200 sq ft pays the same flat $118.96 on the building-permit line.

Example 2: 12 ft x 20 ft shed (240 sq ft)

A homeowner builds a larger 240 square foot shed - just over the 200 sq ft flat-fee band, so it is priced per square foot.

  • 240 sq ft × $0.767865 = $184.29
  • Maryland percentage levy / technology fee: $0.00 (none)
  • Total all-in shed building permit: $184.29

Once you cross 200 sq ft the whole structure is priced per square foot - so going from 200 to 240 sq ft raises the permit from $118.96 to $184.29.

Example 3: 20 ft x 20 ft detached accessory building (400 sq ft)

A homeowner builds a 400 square foot detached workshop-style accessory building.

  • 400 sq ft × $0.767865 = $307.15
  • Maryland percentage levy / technology fee: $0.00 (none)
  • Building permit subtotal: $307.15

If you run power to the workshop, the electrical permit is a separate DPS trade fee on top of this building-permit figure.

Montgomery County Shed Cost vs Other Verified Jurisdictions

The comparison below uses verified Maryland accessory-building fees for a small shed in the common size band. Carroll and Baltimore counties price small sheds with a single flat fee; Montgomery's flat band is capped at 200 sq ft. Electrical and zoning are excluded everywhere.

Jurisdiction Small Shed Fee Basis Typical Small-Shed Permit
Montgomery County, MD $118.96 flat (≤200 sq ft) $118.96
Carroll County, MD $60 flat (≤500 sq ft, category B) $60.00
Baltimore County, MD $85 flat (≤1,000 sq ft) $85.00

For a small backyard shed, Carroll County's $60 flat fee is the lowest of the three, Baltimore County's $85 covers structures up to 1,000 sq ft on one flat fee, and Montgomery's $118.96 covers up to 200 sq ft before switching to $0.767865/sq ft. All exclude electrical permits and zoning review. Montgomery's and Carroll's schedules carry printed source-age dates (FY2022 and April 6, 2021); Baltimore County's is dated 2018. Confirm current rates with each county.

Related Reading

See the full Montgomery fee picture and compare neighboring counties.

Frequently Asked Questions

A Montgomery County shed or accessory-building permit costs a flat $118.96 for a structure 200 square feet or less. Above 200 square feet it switches to $0.767865 per square foot on the whole structure, so a 400 sq ft shed is about $307.15. Maryland adds no statewide percentage levy and the DPS schedule carries no technology fee. Electrical permits are separate. These figures come from the DPS schedule (FY2022 printed date); confirm with DPS at 240-777-0311.
Whether a small shed needs a building permit depends on its size and how it is anchored, under Montgomery County code. The $118.96 accessory-building fee applies once a permit is required. Because the exemption threshold is a code rule - not a fee-schedule line - confirm with DPS at 240-777-0311 before you buy or build, so you know whether a permit (and the fee) applies to your specific shed.
The flat $118.96 only covers accessory buildings 200 square feet or less. Once a shed is larger than 200 sq ft, Montgomery prices the whole structure at $0.767865 per square foot. So a 240 sq ft shed is 240 x $0.767865 = $184.29, and a 400 sq ft structure is $307.15. There is a small step-up just past 200 sq ft because the pricing method changes from flat to per-square-foot.
No. The $118.96 (or per-square-foot figure) is the building permit for the structure only. If you run power to the shed for lights or outlets, that requires a separate DPS electrical trade permit, billed on its own schedule and not included here. Plumbing or mechanical work, if any, would also be separate.
No. Maryland has no statewide percentage building-permit levy, and the Montgomery County DPS schedule carries no technology fee on the accessory-building line. So there is no percentage add-on like Virginia's 2% USBC levy or Prince George's County's 10% technology fee - the figure shown is the whole building permit charge.
The figures come from the Montgomery County DPS Residential Construction Fee Schedule (AllFees.pdf) currently published at the county's official assets path. Every section of that PDF carries a printed effective period of "July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022" (FY2022), which is more than 24 months old, so this is a source-age-flagged figure. Confirm the current accessory-building fee with DPS at 240-777-0311 before relying on it for a budget.

Sources

Official Sources - Recorded June 2026
Next Step

Confirm your specific Montgomery shed cost or compare against neighbors.

Always verify current shed and accessory-building permit fees directly with the Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services before budgeting or filing. The DPS AllFees.pdf used here carries a printed FY2022 effective period. Call 240-777-0311 or check the DPS website to confirm the current accessory-building fee, the size threshold for needing a permit, and zoning setbacks before submitting an application.
Disclaimer: All fee information on PermitPrice is for informational purposes only and is not an official permit quotation. Actual permit fees are determined by the Montgomery County DPS at the time of application. Fee schedules and permit requirements can change without notice. Electrical and other trade permits, zoning review, grading, and sediment control are handled separately and are excluded from the figures on this page.

Written by: Munib Ur Rehman

Data verified against official fee schedule documents.