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Kitchen remodel cost calculator

Take two 150 sq ft kitchens. With new stock cabinets and laminate counters, one comes to a preliminary $46,620 in Project Pilot's planning model. With full custom cabinets, the other comes to $93,240. Make the first one 50 sq ft bigger and it goes up only $10,500. So settle cabinets, counters and layout before you ask for bids: they move a kitchen budget more than its size does.

Cabinets
Countertop
Appliances
Layout

Preliminary estimate

$46,620

Budget $51,282 to $55,944. That's the estimate plus a 10% to 20% reserve for surprises.

  • Base kitchen allowance$8,000
  • 150 sq ft @ $150/sq ft$22,500
  • Appliance allowance$2,800
  • Labor (40%)$13,320
Start the free readiness assessment

First, keep the cabinet boxes or replace them?

The calculator prices a kitchen with new cabinets. If yours are sound and you're keeping the boxes, you're pricing a different, smaller job.

That job is the minor midrange kitchen remodel in the Cost vs. Value 2025 report: a 200 sq ft kitchen that keeps 30 linear feet of cabinet boxes and gets new Shaker-style fronts and hardware, a new range and refrigerator, and new laminate counters. Its national average job cost is $28,458. Put the same 200 sq ft into the calculator with new stock cabinets and it comes to $57,120, about twice as much.

What cabinets, countertops and layout add

Every kitchen starts from the same base: $8,000, plus $150 per square foot, plus $2,800 if you include appliances. Your cabinet, countertop and layout choices then multiply that whole subtotal, and labor is added at 40% on top.

ChoiceOptionMultiplier
CabinetsStock / RTA×1
CabinetsSemi-custom×1.4
CabinetsFull custom×2
CountertopLaminate×1
CountertopQuartz×1.5
CountertopGranite×1.4
CountertopMarble×1.8
LayoutKeep existing×1
LayoutMinor changes×1.2
LayoutFull reconfiguration×1.5

What one change adds to a $46,620, 150 sq ft kitchen

What one change adds to a $46,620, 150 sq ft kitchenStarting from $46,620 for 150 sq ft with stock cabinets, laminate, appliances and the same layout: full custom cabinets add $46,620, marble $37,296, quartz $23,310, a full layout change $23,310, semi-custom cabinets $18,648, granite $18,648, 50 more square feet $10,500, and a minor layout change $9,324.Full custom cabinets+$46,620Marble countertop+$37,296Quartz countertop+$23,310Full layout change+$23,310Semi-custom cabinets+$18,648Granite countertop+$18,64850 more sq ft+$10,500Minor layout change+$9,324
US dollars, labor included, one change at a time from the default. Project Pilot planning model, October 2026.

A minor layout change, at $9,324, is the only choice on the chart that costs less than 50 more square feet. Start with the cabinet grade.

How the model compares with 2025 job costs

Real kitchen prices swing just as much. Cost vs. Value also prices two full remodels of that 200 sq ft kitchen. The major midrange job, with semi-custom cabinets, a 3 by 5 ft island, laminate counters, new flooring and new appliances, has a national average job cost of $82,793. The upscale job, with custom cabinets and stone counters, is $164,104. Same room, same 30 feet of cabinets: $28,458 to $164,104, depending on what goes into it.

The calculator lands close to both full remodels. At 200 sq ft with semi-custom cabinets, laminate and the appliance allowance, it gives $79,968. Switch to full custom cabinets and it's $159,936 with granite or $171,360 with quartz.

Three 200 sq ft kitchen remodels from 2025, next to the calculator

Three 200 sq ft kitchen remodels from 2025, next to the calculator200 sq ft kitchens. Minor remodel that keeps the cabinet boxes, Cost vs. Value 2025: $28,458; the calculator with new stock cabinets: $57,120. Major midrange remodel: $82,793; the calculator with semi-custom cabinets and laminate: $79,968. Major upscale remodel: $164,104; the calculator with full custom cabinets: $159,936 with granite, $171,360 with quartz.Minor remodel, Cost vs. Value (boxes kept)$28,458Calculator, new stock cabinets$57,120Midrange remodel, Cost vs. Value$82,793Calculator, semi-custom, laminate$79,968Upscale remodel, Cost vs. Value$164,104Calculator, full custom, granite$159,936Calculator, full custom, quartz$171,360
US dollars. Black: Cost vs. Value 2025 national averages. Gold: Project Pilot planning model, October 2026.

All of these are national figures, not prices from your area.

What to pin down in every kitchen bid

Bids only compare when they price the same choices. Ask each contractor to write down:

Also set aside a contingency reserve. HUD's Standard 203(k) renovation loan program requires a contingency reserve of 10% to 20% on homes 30 years or older, and the estimate card shows your total with a 10% and a 20% reserve added. Our Field Journal piece on planning a renovation contingency covers how to build one around your project's unknowns. Adding space too? Use the home addition cost calculator.

Before any of this goes to a contractor, take the free readiness assessment. It turns your kitchen into a list of the decisions still open. When the bids come in, Bid Room (part of Project Pilot Complete, $199 once per project) lines them up against one shared scope, so each contractor's allowances and missing scope sit next to their total.

Questions people ask

Can I redo my kitchen for $10,000?

No, not with new cabinets. The calculator's smallest kitchen (50 sq ft, stock cabinets, laminate counters, no appliances) comes to a preliminary $21,700. At $10,000, you're keeping the cabinet boxes.

Is $20,000 enough for a kitchen remodel?

For a minor project, yes. $20,000 is the median for one in the Houzz 2026 Kitchen Trends Study. A major remodel's median is $55,000.

How much does a 10x10 kitchen remodel cost?

A 10x10 kitchen is 100 sq ft. On the calculator's defaults (stock cabinets, laminate counters, the appliance allowance, same layout), that's a preliminary $36,120. Enter 100 as the size, then change the choices to match your kitchen.