Summary: in the U.S., architecture and engineering for a building are usually priced as a percentage of construction cost. Public references for small commercial projects put that share at 7% in the RSMeans convenience store model, 8% in its service station model and 8.63% to 12.09% in Washington State’s public fee schedule for $1 to $2 million of construction. On federal public works, design production is capped at 6%. Franchise disclosures list $21,000 to $63,000 for architectural drawings in one program and $85,000 to $180,000 for construction plans and specifications in another. Brand identity is priced on its own: most branding projects reviewed on Clutch fall between $10,000 and $49,999.
“Designing a gas station” covers several jobs: the site layout, the store building, the canopy, the convenience store interior, the brand and signs, and the engineering behind them. Each one is priced differently. Every figure below comes from a dated public source, linked in place. None of them is a quote for your site.
Design fees as a share of construction
| Source | What it measures | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| RSMeans convenience store model (2019 data) | Architectural fees in a 4,000 sq ft, one-story store estimate | 7% |
| RSMeans service station model (2019 data) | Architectural fees in a 1,400 sq ft service station estimate | 8% |
| Washington State OFM fee schedule, 2025-27 | Maximum basic-services fee, design-bid-build, at $1 million of construction | 9.21% (simplest buildings), 10.65%, 12.09% (most complex) |
| Same schedule | At $2 million of construction | 8.63%, 10.08%, 11.54% |
| Same schedule | At $3 million of construction | 8.28%, 9.72%, 11.17% |
| Federal Acquisition Regulation 15.404-4(c)(4)(i)(B) | Cap on architect-engineer fees for producing designs, plans, drawings and specifications for federal public works | 6% of estimated construction cost |
| Archtoolbox (Aug. 2021) | Typical basic-services ranges | 3% to 9% for simple commercial buildings; 4% to 10% for fit-out offices, schools and hotels; 5% to 12% for complex facilities |
To put the percentages in dollars: on $2 million of construction, Washington’s range works out to about $173,000 to $231,000 for basic services (our arithmetic). In every column, the percentage falls as the construction budget grows.
How the fee splits across phases
The Washington guidelines (June 2024) give a typical split of the basic fee by phase:
| Phase | Share of basic fee | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Schematic design | 18% | Layout options, general scope, scale and relationships between site, canopy and store |
| Design development | 20% | Sizes, materials and systems fixed for the whole project |
| Construction documents | 31% | Drawings and specifications to permit, bid and build |
| Bidding | 2% | Help with bids, substitutions and the contract |
| Construction | 27% | Submittal reviews, site visits and answers to the contractor |
| Project closeout | 2% | Final documents and closeout |
About 69% of the fee is earned before construction starts. If you hire a firm only through the permit set, you are buying roughly the first three phases, and someone still has to answer the contractor’s questions during the build.
What franchise disclosures show
Franchise disclosure documents (FDDs) estimate opening costs line by line. As summarized by US T Contractors (Oct. 2026):
- Sunoco APLUS (2025 FDD): $21,000 to $63,000 for architectural drawings and $21,000 to $83,000 for permits.
- Holiday (2025 FDD): $85,000 to $180,000 for construction plans and specifications, $30,000 to $100,000 for permits, deposits and related costs, and $80,000 to $250,000 for facade and pylon signs.
- Circle K (2026 FDD): $50,000 to $150,000 for signs.
These are new-store figures inside brand programs, with the brand’s prototype and standards. The sign lines cover the signs themselves, so check whether any quote for “signage” means design, fabrication or both. For the rest of the budget, see how much a gas station costs, and for the store alone, convenience store design cost in the U.S.
Brand identity and signage design
Brand work is not tied to construction cost. It is priced by scope: a logo alone, or a full identity with colors, type, rules for use and the designs for the canopy fascia, price sign, pump toppers and storefront. Marketplace data gives a rough frame. Clutch, a B2B review site, reports an average branding agency rate of $100 to $149 an hour and says most branding projects reviewed on the site fall between $10,000 and $49,999 (Clutch, updated Sept. 2026). Its logo design page lists an average project size under $10,000 for most industries (Clutch). Those figures cover all industries, not fuel retail.
Keep design and fabrication apart in your budget. The design firm delivers the artwork and the design specifications; the sign shop quotes and builds from them. When the specifications are complete, several shops can bid the same package. On a branded station, the fuel supplier’s image manual sets the brand graphics, and the design work is about fitting them to your site and store.
What drives the fee up or down
- Construction budget and size: the fee is a percentage, so a bigger store, canopy and site cost more to design, at a slightly lower rate.
- New build or remodel: Washington allows up to three percent more for basic services on remodels with significant program changes, and Archtoolbox says to expect renovation fees 2% to 4% higher than for new work. Existing conditions have to be measured and worked around.
- Disciplines in scope: ask whether civil, structural, MEP, the canopy structure and the fuel system are included or hired separately.
- Site information and specialists: Washington treats a site survey, geotechnical investigation, entitlement and environmental permitting costs, and specialty consultants such as kitchen, interior design or extra civil work (storm drainage, erosion control) as costs outside the basic fee. Expect the same questions on a private job.
- Repeat sites: Washington prices each replication of a prototype at 40% of the full fee. Multi-site owners can save by designing one prototype and adapting it.
- Revisions and reviews: the number of design rounds and plan-review comments changes the hours. Fix the number of revision rounds in the proposal.
- Hourly work: extra services may be billed by the hour. Washington caps negotiated rates at $250 an hour for a firm’s employees and $350 for a principal.
What a full design package includes
| Deliverable | What it covers | Who usually produces it |
|---|---|---|
| Site layout | Pump islands, canopy footprint, tank area, entrances and exits, parking, truck turning | Design firm, coordinated with the civil engineer |
| Store and canopy architecture | Plans, sections, elevations, details, finishes | Architect or design firm |
| Convenience store layout | Coolers, shelving, coffee and food areas, checkout, restrooms, lighting | Design firm; fixtures from the supplier you choose |
| Brand identity | Logo, colors, typography, rules for use | Brand designer |
| Signage design specifications | Canopy fascia, pylon price sign, pump toppers, storefront signs | Design firm; built by the sign shop |
| 3D renderings | Review by owner, lender, fuel supplier and city | Design firm |
| Engineering | Civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fuel system | Engineers licensed in your state |
| Permit set | Sealed drawings and specifications for the AHJ | Architect or engineer of record licensed in your state |
Before you compare proposals, line them up against this list. Two quotes that look far apart may simply cover different rows. Our guide on how to choose a gas station design firm lists the questions to ask.
How Petrol prices a U.S. project
Petrol works with U.S. owners remotely, from our studio in Brazil. Architecture is priced by the area designed. Brand design follows a set price list that does not change with station size; for networks, each additional station’s adaptation costs on average 60% of the first creation. An architecture project takes 30 to 90 days, depending on size. You receive construction documents, design specifications and editable artwork; your local engineers add the structural, MEP and fuel system design, and the permit set is sealed by a professional licensed in your state. See gas station design for U.S. owners.
Our U.S. work so far is in Texas. For Checkout, a chain founded in southwest Houston, we refined the brand, created the premium fuel brand “Power” and designed the Dallas station in 3D: canopy fascia, price sign, pump toppers and store facade. For Better Buddy, we created the brand identity and logo and designed the store facade; the station is now built.
FAQ
What percentage of construction cost is the architect’s fee?
The RSMeans models use 7% for a convenience store and 8% for a service station. Washington State’s public schedule runs from 8.63% to 12.09% for $1 to $2 million projects, and Archtoolbox gives 3% to 12% depending on complexity.
Are engineering fees included?
In the Washington and Archtoolbox references, basic services include structural, mechanical, electrical and, in Washington’s case, civil engineering. Washington lists the site survey, soil investigation and specialty consultants outside the basic fee, and on our projects the fuel system design comes from your local engineers. Ask each firm to list what is in and out.
How much does a gas station logo or brand identity cost?
It depends on the scope. Clutch reports most branding projects on its site between $10,000 and $49,999, and an average logo project under $10,000 for most industries. A station brand also needs signage design specifications, which belong in the same scope.
Is it cheaper to design a remodel than a new station?
The total can be lower, but the percentage is usually higher: both Washington and Archtoolbox add a few points for remodels, because the designer has to survey and work around what is already there.
How much does Petrol charge?
We quote each project by scope: architecture by the area designed, brand design from a set price list. Request a quote with the site address, a survey or site plan and what you want to build.
Sources (accessed November 2026): RSMeans, convenience store cost model (2019 data); RSMeans, automotive service station cost model (2019 data); Washington State OFM, A/E fee schedule 2025-27 and Chapter 9, A&E fee guidelines (June 2024); Federal Acquisition Regulation 15.404-4; Archtoolbox, calculate architectural fee (Aug. 2021); US T Contractors, cost to build a gas station (Oct. 2026), citing the Sunoco APLUS 2025, Holiday 2025 and Circle K 2026 FDDs; Clutch, branding agency pricing (Sept. 2026); Clutch, logo design pricing (Sept. 2026). Figures are planning references, not quotes.
Budgeting the design for a new station or a reimage? Request a quote and send the site address, photos and the scope you have in mind: layout, store, canopy, brand or the full package.