The door will not open
If the opener strains and stops, or the door will not lift by hand once released, a broken spring is the usual cause. The door is now carrying its full weight. Do not force it.
Spring repairGarage door repair · independent guide
Find out what failed, what moves the price, and which jobs you should never do yourself. Then tell us about the door, and we will follow up about garage door companies serving your area.
Not a garage door company. We do not repair, sell or install doors, and no company pays to appear here.
Sources on the page. Safety, code and cost statements name the standard, the agency or the report, with a date.
Your numbers. 10 free tools use your door and your quotes instead of a national price.
Your details stay yours. Nothing goes to a garage door company unless you agree. Sending the form is not a contract.
The short answer
No honest national average exists for garage door repair. The part that failed sets a repair price, and the door’s build sets a replacement price.
The one common benchmark, Zonda’s 2025 Cost vs. Value report, models $4,672 to replace a standard 16 × 7 ft four-section door. It is a model, not an average bill. Ask every company to quote the same written job.
Garage door services
Seven guides, each built the same way: when you need the work, what a professional checks, what moves the price, and what to ask before you sign.
Where to start
A garage door holds a lot of stored energy, and most failures give a clear sign. Match what you see to the list below to know if it is a small repair, an adjustment or a new door.
If the opener strains and stops, or the door will not lift by hand once released, a broken spring is the usual cause. The door is now carrying its full weight. Do not force it.
Spring repairMost often the photo-eye sensors near the floor are dirty, knocked out of line, or blocked. If they are clean and lined up, the opener settings are the next thing to check.
Photo-eye problemsA loud bang and a heavy door almost always mean a broken spring. Springs store enough energy to injure you, and replacing them takes special tools. Leave it closed and call a professional.
Spring repairOne panel can sometimes be swapped if the model is still made and the color still matches. Ask about that before you agree to a whole new door.
Repair or replace?Usually rollers, hinges or a loose track, sometimes a door out of balance, and sometimes just a chain drive. Describe the sound exactly. It tells the technician where to look.
Garage door repairTry the battery, then reprogram the remote. If the wall button works and no remote does, the problem is in the opener, not in your hand.
Garage door openersThis usually follows a bump, a broken cable or a failed roller. Do not run the opener. A door off its track can jam, fall or bend the frame.
Garage door repairA gear, belt, trolley or circuit board has failed. The opener’s age and whether parts are still sold decide repair or replace more than the fault does.
Opener selectorWhat moves the price
We do not publish an average price. We publish what moves it, so two quotes can describe the same job.
How it works
A repair, a new door, an opener or a broken spring, plus your ZIP code so we know which local companies are relevant.
Start the formWe get back to you about garage door companies serving your area. Nothing goes to a company unless you agree.
How matching worksAsk every company to quote the same written job: door build, spring cycle rating, track, disposal and both warranties.
How to compare quotesPick the company that fits the job and your timeline, and ask to see the safety reverse tested. Or keep researching first.
Check a quoteFree tools and research
Get connected
Three short steps: the problem, your home, and how to reach you. Nothing goes to a garage door company unless you agree.
A straight answer first. Our matching is still being built, so this is not an instant quote form.
If a spring has snapped or the door is off its track, leave it closed and call a local garage door company now. For anything else, tell us what is happening and we will help you think it through.
Find a Garage Door Professional
Tell us about the door and where you are. We will follow up about connecting you with garage door companies serving your area.
Questions
We read your project type, ZIP code and notes, then follow up about next steps. Matching with companies is still being built, so this is not a dispatch line.
Where we can, we help connect you with garage door companies serving your area. We never sell your details, and no company gets them unless you agree.
No. The form is free. It does not commit you to a company, a product or a start date. You decide whether to talk to anyone and whether to hire.
It depends on the part that failed, not on the door. Rollers, hinges and seals are small parts jobs. Springs, cables and drums need specialist tools. Most companies charge a trip fee, so ask if it counts toward the repair. We publish no average, because local labor rates and parts move it too far.
The door’s build sets most of the price. A one-layer and a three-layer insulated door of the same size weigh differently and need different springs.
Size, windows, the opener, disposal and any wind rating add more. According to Zonda’s 2025 Cost vs. Value report, one standard replacement is modeled at $4,672. That is a model, not an average bill.
There is no honest single number. Life depends on the material, how well the door was built, how often it runs, the climate and upkeep. A door opened a dozen times a day wears faster than its age suggests. The state of the panels, hardware, track and balance tells you more.
Replace it when the panels are rusted through, coming apart or badly damaged; when parts are no longer made; when several major parts wear out at once; or when it must meet a new need, like insulation or a wind rating. A sound door with one broken part is usually a repair.
Springs are rated in cycles, not years. One cycle is one open and one close. Our research found the same 10,000-cycle spring lasts 13.7 years in a home that opens the door twice a day and 2.7 years in one that opens it ten times. Ask for the cycle rating in writing.
The kind of noise tells you where to look. Grinding often means rollers or track. Squealing is usually hinges or rollers. A deep rumble can be a door out of balance or a chain drive. A loud bang is different: it usually means a broken spring. Stop using the door and call a professional.
Pull the release cord and try to lift the door by hand. If it is suddenly very heavy, a spring has broken, so stop and do not force it.
If it lifts normally, the opener is the problem. If it will not move at all, it may be off its track or have a broken cable. Call a professional.
The drive type, motor rating, battery backup and smart features set the price of the unit, and installation sits on top. Belt drives cost more than chain drives and run quieter. Wall-mounted jackshaft units cost more again and keep the ceiling clear. California requires battery backup on new residential openers.
Repair it when the panels are sound and one part has failed, like a spring, a cable, the rollers or the opener.
Replace it when the panels fail, parts are gone, several major parts wear out together, or the door must meet a new rule like a wind rating. Be wary of anyone who says replace before inspecting.
Ask for an itemized quote that names the door build and the spring cycle rating. Ask what is included: removal, disposal, new track, weather seal, and whether your opener stays. Get the product and labor warranties as two separate figures. Ask them to show the balance test and the safety reverse before they leave.
More in the full FAQ, or read who we are and how we are paid and how we check garage door companies.
Contact
Ask us how this site works, or what a garage door quote means.
We are not a garage door company, and we cannot diagnose a door from a message. Anything urgent belongs with a local professional.