Any major home renovation likely includes the kitchen. According to the Houzz & Home study of renovation trends for 2018 and 2019, the kitchen remains the most popular room to renovate. Of the more than 140,000 people surveyed, 28% renovated their kitchen last year. However, the kitchen is also the most expensive room to renovate. The median cost of a kitchen remodel was $14,000 in 2018, according to the report, followed by the second-most expensive renovation, the master bathroom, with a median cost of $8,000.
Given that you’ll replace major appliances, plumbing, countertops and cabinets, it’s easy to see why the kitchen is such a pricey room to remodel. And depending on your vision for a kitchen renovation, you may need to prepare for the cost to far exceed the $14,000 median.
According to home improvement resource company HomeAdvisor, the national average for a kitchen renovation is $23,887, with a low-end remodel starting around $4,000 and a high-end project reaching $58,000 or more. The disparities between cost estimates are due to the range of options for renovations and the scale of projects. Many kitchen remodels are smaller projects, like a countertop replacement as opposed to an overhaul of the entire room.
When you’re considering a kitchen overhaul, how much should you spend? “A really good rule of thumb for a kitchen project is that it should cost anywhere from 5% to 15% of the home’s value,” says Dan DiClerico, home expert and smart home strategist for HomeAdvisor.
How much you’ll spend on your kitchen renovation also depends on how much cash you’ve set aside or the amount of the home improvement-related loan you’ve obtained. Based on online estimates, HomeAdvisor’s national averages and DiClerico’s calculations, here’s how the cost of a major kitchen remodel breaks down:
- Labor: 25% to 35%
- Cabinets: 25%
- Appliances and ventilation: 15%
- Countertops: 10%
- Lighting: 5%
- Floors: 5%
- Fixtures and plumbing: 5%
- Additional finishes and budget cushion: 10% to 15%
Additionally, it’s important to keep in mind where you live, the condition of your kitchen, the materials you would like to use and the scale of the overall renovation determine the total cost of your renovation. Especially if you’re planning to gut your entire kitchen, estimates for the project will likely be higher than nationally reported medians and averages.
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