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What Is Xactimate, Who Uses It, and Why Does It Control Your Claim?
Xactimate is a property damage estimating platform developed by Verisk Analytics and used by most major property insurance carriers in the United States to scope and price restoration claims. When a carrier adjuster writes up your water damage or fire damage scope, they are almost certainly doing it in Xactimate. When a professional restoration contractor like Studio 24 prepares a scope for your claim, we also produce it in Xactimate, specifically so that our line-item breakdown arrives to the carrier in the format their adjusters are trained to review and approve. The shared platform is an advantage for homeowners: it means the dispute between a contractor scope and an adjuster scope is a conversation about specific line items, not a translation problem between two incompatible formats.
Xactimate estimates are built from regional price lists that Verisk updates quarterly. For the Boston metropolitan area, the price list reflects local labor and material costs, and it is meaningfully higher than the national baseline on many line items. However, the price list is still a database average, and Boston area construction costs, particularly for older housing stock, specialized trades, and post-storm demand periods, frequently exceed what the database reflects. That gap between what Xactimate lists and what the work actually costs is one of the primary sources of dispute between carrier and contractor estimates, and it is discussed in detail later on this page.
How those estimates fit into the broader claims process, from first notice of loss through ACV payment and recoverable depreciation, is covered in our insurance claims hub. The adjuster meeting dynamics where contractor and carrier estimates are compared and negotiated are described in the guide to working with insurance adjusters. This page focuses on the estimate document itself.
Reading a Line-Item Xactimate Estimate: What Each Column Means
A standard Xactimate estimate output is organized by room or section and contains a row for each scope item. The columns in each row carry specific information that determines the final payment. Understanding what each column contains is the first step to identifying whether the estimate you received from the carrier accurately reflects the scope of the loss. The following reflects the standard output format; individual carrier presentations may vary slightly.
| Column or element | What it contains | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Description / line code | A standardized item description and an alphanumeric code (e.g., WTR-EXTR for water extraction) pulled from Verisk’s item database | The line code determines which price list entry is used; a missing description means a missing payment for that task |
| Quantity and unit | How much of the item is being claimed (square feet, linear feet, hours, each) and the unit of measurement | Underestimated quantities, measured in the office from a partial inspection, are the most common source of scope underpayment |
| Unit Price (RCV) | The regional price list cost per unit, pulled from the quarterly Xactimate price list for the Boston area | If the carrier’s estimate uses an older price list, unit costs may be lower than current market; the publication date of the price list used should appear on the estimate |
| RCV (Replacement Cost Value) | Quantity multiplied by unit price: the full cost to replace or repair at current prices | This is the total before any depreciation is applied; it is what the estimate is claiming the item is worth at today’s prices |
| Depreciation and Age/Life | The estimated age of the material and its expected useful life, used to calculate a depreciation percentage and dollar amount | Depreciation is subtracted from RCV to arrive at ACV; on older Boston and South Shore housing, depreciation on original materials can be significant |
| ACV (Actual Cash Value) | RCV minus depreciation: the initial payment amount | This is typically what the first check covers; the depreciation is recoverable on most policies after repairs are complete |
| Overhead and Profit (O&P) | A combined percentage markup, often 10% overhead and 10% profit, added to the subtotal to reflect general contractor coordination costs | Carriers often exclude O&P on mitigation-only jobs, arguing no GC is coordinating; contractors argue it applies when multiple trades and phases are involved; this is one of the most disputed elements of any restoration estimate |
The simplest check a homeowner can perform on a carrier’s Xactimate estimate is to compare the room-by-room line items against the physical scope of what was damaged. If a room appears in the carrier’s photos but its flooring does not appear as a line item, that is a scope gap. If the estimate shows extraction but not antimicrobial application, ask whether that item is included. If an item is present in the scope but the quantity seems low relative to the room measurements, the carrier’s measurement may be based on a partial field inspection. Each of these gaps is addressable through the supplement process with supporting documentation.
Why Do Carrier and Contractor Xactimate Estimates Diverge?
Two restoration professionals using the same Xactimate software will routinely produce estimates that differ by 20% to 40% on the same loss. Understanding why is essential to understanding what can be corrected through documentation and what requires a broader scope dispute. The primary divergence sources are scope completeness, price list currency, overhead and profit treatment, and depreciation aggressiveness.
Scope completeness is the most significant factor. A carrier adjuster conducting a 90-minute field visit on a water-damaged South Shore colonial is measuring what is visible and accessible. The contractor who has spent three days on the job, opened wall cavities, lifted flooring, and run daily moisture meters through the drying process, has a significantly more complete picture of the scope. Items the adjuster never saw, insulation inside a wall cavity confirmed wet by meter readings, the subfloor saturation visible only when the hardwood was lifted, structural members that tested above the IICRC S500 drying threshold, represent real damage that is absent from the carrier’s estimate not because it was disputed but because it was never seen. That gap closes through the supplement process when the contractor’s documentation makes the discovery provable.
For the water damage restoration and full reconstruction work Studio 24 handles, owner Ansy Chevalier (IICRC cert #70268689) prepares the Xactimate scope from direct field measurement and daily monitoring logs, not from a single office visit. When that scope is placed beside the carrier’s estimate at the adjuster meeting, line-item discrepancies are resolvable because every Studio 24 item is backed by the specific field observation that supports it.
The Myth
“Both estimates are in Xactimate, so they should come out the same number. If the contractor’s is higher, they are padding the scope.”
What Actually Happens
The same software does not guarantee the same scope or the same price list version. Two estimates in Xactimate can legitimately differ on: which items were included based on what each party actually observed; whether the most current regional price list was used; whether overhead and profit was applied; and how aggressively depreciation was assessed on each material. A contractor estimate that is higher than a carrier estimate is more likely to reflect a more complete scope backed by more extensive field documentation than it is to reflect inflated pricing. The line-item format makes the specific differences transparent and auditable, which is the system working as designed.
Price list dates matter. Xactimate price lists are published quarterly. A carrier estimate generated in February using a Q4 2025 price list will show lower unit costs than a contractor estimate prepared in August 2026 using the current Q3 2026 list. Ask what price list date the carrier’s estimate uses; if it is more than one quarter old, that is a source of legitimate price discrepancy.
Where Boston Area Labor Costs and Older Housing Create Persistent Gaps
The Boston metropolitan Xactimate price list is among the higher regional lists in the country, reflecting the area’s real construction costs. But regional averages still lag the specific premium that certain Boston and South Shore restoration work commands, and the gap is widest on three categories of work: licensed trade labor, specialty matching for original materials, and demand-period pricing after major weather events.
Licensed plumbing and electrical work in Greater Boston is governed by Chapter 142 (plumbing) and Chapter 141 (electrical) of the Massachusetts General Laws, which require licensed journeyman and master contractors for work on residential properties. The licensed trade market in Boston reflects union wage scales and benefit structures that can run significantly above the Xactimate database average for those trade categories. When a water loss requires replumbing a branch line in a Dorchester triple-decker or rewiring a panel in a Roxbury Victorian after a fire event, the actual licensed contractor invoice will frequently exceed the Xactimate line item for the same scope. This is a documented and legitimate supplement basis: an actual trade contractor invoice showing costs above the Xactimate database entry supports a line-item adjustment without requiring any dispute about scope or depreciation.
Specialty material matching creates a second persistent gap for Boston’s older housing stock. The horsehair plaster walls and ornate wood trim common in pre-1920 Boston triple-deckers, Quincy colonials, and Milton Victorians are not economically reproducible with standard drywall and paint. The Xactimate database carries entries for plaster work, but the hand-applied, multi-coat system in a century-old Dorchester home costs more to match than the database average, and the matching standard matters for the claim: if the standard of restoration is to return the property to pre-loss condition, the replacement has to match what was there, not the cheapest available substitute. Our structural drying scope frequently exposes the extent of original material when wall cavities are opened, and the material assessment drives the supplemental rebuild scope accordingly.
Post-nor’easter demand pricing is the third gap. Following a significant coastal storm, every restoration contractor in the Boston and South Shore market is working at capacity. The effective price for a crew, a dehumidifier rental, and emergency board-up services in the days after the January 2018 bomb cyclone or the back-to-back March 2018 nor’easters reflected market scarcity, not Xactimate database averages. Xactimate price lists are updated quarterly and cannot reflect a post-storm demand surge in real time. Carrier adjusters processing claims from the same storm event are working from the same static price list, which means virtually every contractor performing work in that period incurred costs above what the Xactimate scope generated. Documenting actual invoices and submitting them as part of the supplement file is the mechanism that addresses that gap. According to the Insurance Information Institute, weather-related property claims cluster heavily after named storm and severe weather events, and the documentation quality of claims filed in those concentrated periods is the primary determinant of settlement outcomes.
How Do You Read the Xactimate Estimate Your Carrier Sends You?
When your carrier sends you an Xactimate estimate, it is a document you can and should review before accepting it as the final scope. The estimate is organized by room or area, with a subtotal for each section and a grand total that shows both the RCV and the ACV. Four things are worth checking immediately.
First, are all damaged rooms represented? Walk the loss area against the estimate section list. If a room or area that sustained damage does not appear as a section in the estimate, the carrier may not have inspected it, or may have combined it with an adjacent area. Missing sections mean missing line items and missing payment.
Second, are the quantities plausible? A basement that is 800 square feet should show roughly 800 square feet of affected floor area if the entire floor was saturated. An estimate showing 400 square feet for that room either reflects a partial loss or a partial inspection. Contractor field measurements taken during actual work are the basis for correcting quantity discrepancies.
Third, is overhead and profit present, and if not, why not? If the job involves multiple trades and phases from mitigation through reconstruction, O&P is a legitimate line item. Its absence should be a specific question to the adjuster: on what basis was O&P excluded, and does the carrier’s scope include reconstruction work that would justify it?
Fourth, what is the depreciation rate being applied to your materials, and does it reflect the actual age and condition of what was damaged? Depreciation on a three-year-old engineered hardwood floor should be modest. Depreciation on an original 1915 hardwood floor is more significant, but the replacement cost for that floor is also higher because of the matching requirements. If the depreciation rate seems excessive relative to what the replacement actually costs, that is a supplement basis: show the carrier the actual material cost and the matching requirement.
Studio 24 reviews carrier Xactimate estimates against our own field scope on every claim we handle. When the two diverge, we identify the specific line-item sources of the gap and build the supplement documentation for each. Homeowners who have already received a carrier estimate and want a professional review of whether the scope is complete can call (781) 390-9855 and bring the estimate to the free inspection. The review is honest: if the carrier’s estimate is accurate, we say so.
Xactimate is the language of restoration insurance claims, and the homeowner who understands its basic structure is much better positioned to evaluate what the carrier sent and to participate in resolving the gaps. Studio 24 produces Xactimate scopes from day one on every claim, which means by the time the adjuster arrives, we have a line-item document ready for comparison rather than a rough estimate assembled after the visit. That parallel process is what makes the adjuster conversation a focused review rather than a blank-page exercise. Call (781) 390-9855 before the adjuster is scheduled. Last updated August 2026.
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