How Much Does a Kitchen Renovation Cost in the UK?

Kitchen renovation cost is one of the widest-ranging figures in home improvement, and for a specific reason: unlike a bathroom or a coat of paint, most of a kitchen's cost sits in the units, worktop and appliances you choose — not in the labour to fit them. Two kitchens the same size can differ by tens of thousands of pounds depending purely on specification.

Typical UK kitchen renovation costs

These are broad, genuinely typical ranges for supply-and-fit — actual cost depends heavily on unit count, worktop material, appliance specification and whether the layout changes.

• Small kitchen: roughly £8,000–£14,000
• Medium kitchen: roughly £14,000–£22,000
• Large kitchen: roughly £22,000–£32,000+

Use our Kitchen Cost Calculator to build a figure specific to your cabinetry, worktop, appliances and finish level rather than relying on a size-only estimate.

A worked example

Take a fairly typical medium UK kitchen: roughly 12 units, a laminate or mid-range composite worktop, and four integrated appliances (oven, hob, extractor, dishwasher) in their existing positions. That specification tends to land around £16,000–£18,000 supply and fit — toward the lower end of the medium band. Swap the worktop for quartz, add a fridge-freezer and move the sink to an island, and the same-sized kitchen can move to £22,000–£26,000 — the layout change and the worktop upgrade are doing most of that work, not the extra floor space.

What actually drives kitchen cost

Cabinetry and worktop

Unit count and material are the single biggest lever. A laminate worktop and mid-range units cost meaningfully less than quartz and a larger unit run — often the difference between a budget and premium kitchen overall.

Appliances

Integrated appliances (oven, hob, extractor, dishwasher, fridge-freezer) add up quickly, and specification varies enormously — a mid-range oven and a premium one can differ by hundreds of pounds each.

Plumbing and electrical work

A kitchen with a sink and appliances in their existing positions needs far less plumbing/electrical work than one with a relocated sink, moved hob, or an island with its own services run to it.

Layout changes

Keeping the existing footprint keeps cost down. Moving where units, appliances or the sink sit — especially onto a different wall — adds real plumbing, electrical and sometimes structural cost.

Budget, mid-range and premium finish levels

• Budget: laminate worktop, standard-depth units from a builders' merchant range, entry-level integrated appliances — a smart, functional kitchen without designer pricing.
• Mid-range: composite or engineered-stone worktop options, a wider choice of door finishes, mid-tier integrated appliances, soft-close as standard.
• Premium: natural stone or large-format worktops, bespoke or semi-bespoke cabinetry, premium integrated appliances, an island with its own services.

Hidden costs people forget to budget for

• Making good to walls, ceiling and flooring where old units and tiling are removed
• Skip hire and waste disposal for the strip-out
• Temporary kitchen arrangements (see our timeline guide) if you're living in the property during the work
• Redecorating the kitchen once fitting is complete — units rarely cover a wall edge to edge
• A contingency of around 10% for anything found once the old kitchen comes out

What you can reasonably do yourself, and what you shouldn't

Painting walls, fitting handles, and some cosmetic finishing touches are genuinely within reach for a competent DIYer once the kitchen fitter has finished. Plumbing and electrical connections — including anything involving a gas hob — are not: they need a qualified, registered professional, both for safety and because most warranties and home insurance depend on it. Strip-out is sometimes offered as a way to trim cost, but confirm with your fitter first — some prefer to control it themselves to avoid damage to pipework they'll need intact.

Where the money actually goes

See our companion guide, Kitchen Renovation Labour Costs Explained, for the real split between labour and materials in a typical kitchen project — it's a different balance to almost any other room.

How long it takes

Timeline is one of the most-asked follow-up questions once budget is settled — see How Long Does a Kitchen Renovation Take? for a realistic week-by-week view.

A quick checklist before you get quotes

• Have you decided whether the layout is staying the same or changing?
• Do you know roughly which finish tier (budget/mid-range/premium) you're aiming for?
• Have you measured the space accurately, including door swings and window positions?
• Do you have a contingency built into your budget, not just the headline quote figure?
• Are you comparing quotes on the same specification, not just the same headline price?

Budgeting for the whole project

If your kitchen is part of a wider renovation, our general renovation budgeting guide covers contingency, VAT and the other costs that sit alongside any single room's price tag.