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Step 1 of 5: Rooms
Pick one or more. Use + for repeated rooms, such as two bathrooms.
Type the floor area in sq ft, or measure width and length and we will multiply them.
Turn on the trades you need. Quantities start from the room size and you can change any of them.
The same scope priced four ways. You can switch later and compare all four on the estimate.
This renovation cost calculator prices a remodel the way contractors quote one: room by room and trade by trade. Pick the rooms, enter their size, switch on the work each room needs and choose a finish level. You get a line by line estimate, the split between material and labor, the same scope priced at all four quality levels, and a realistic budget range once permits, overhead and contingency are added.
How to use the renovation cost calculator
- Pick the rooms. Select every room you plan to renovate. Use the plus button for repeated rooms, for example two bathrooms with the same finish. Whole home selects every room type at once.
- Enter the size. Type the floor area of each room, or enter its width and length and the calculator multiplies them for you. Every room starts at a typical size, so you can also leave it as it is for a first figure.
- Choose the work. Each room opens with a typical scope already switched on, such as cabinets, appliances and a backsplash in a kitchen. Turn trades on or off and edit any quantity: the line total and the running estimate update as you type.
- Choose a finish quality. Economy, Standard, Premium and Luxury price the same scope with different materials and workmanship. Each card shows what your current selection would cost at that level.
- Read the estimate. The result shows the total, a budget range, the cost per square foot, charts by type of work and by room, and a line by line table for each room. Email it to yourself, print it or save it as a PDF, or save it in this browser and open it again later.
Your last estimate stays on this device, so you can close the page and pick up where you left off. The currency menu converts the result into 75 other currencies at an approximate rate; the prices themselves stay US averages, so a converted figure is a rough guide rather than a local price.
How the estimate is calculated
Every line in the estimate follows one formula: quantity × (material cost + labor cost) × number of identical rooms. Material and labor are priced separately for each item, which is why the result can show how much of the budget goes to products and how much to the people installing them. The room totals add up to the base cost of the work.
Where the quantities come from
When you switch a trade on, its quantity starts from the room you described. You can overwrite any of them, and an edited quantity is kept when you change the room size or the quality level.
| Unit | Used for | Starting quantity |
|---|---|---|
| Per sq ft | Demolition, flooring, walls, ceiling, painting, tiling, insulation | The floor area of the room |
| Per linear ft | Cabinets with countertop, vanities | A typical run: about 18 ft in a kitchen, 5 ft for a bathroom vanity |
| Per point | Electrical outlets and switches | One point per 43 sq ft of floor, at least one |
| Per point | Plumbing fixtures | The usual fixture count: 2 in a kitchen, 3 in a bathroom |
| Per piece | Windows and doors, light fixtures, appliance package | One |
Area based lines start from the floor area because that is the one measurement everybody has. If you have measured the wall area, the backsplash or the tiled shower walls, type those figures in instead: a 6 ft tall tiled shower wall or a short backsplash can be far smaller or larger than the floor below it.
Finish quality levels
Each trade has its own item at every level. In a kitchen, flooring runs from 12 x 12 ceramic tile at Economy to large format porcelain at Premium, and cabinetry from stock cabinets with a laminate top at Economy to custom cabinets with a stone counter at Premium and solid wood at Luxury. Moving up a level changes the material and the labor, because better finishes usually take more careful installation.
From the cost of the work to a real budget
The bundled price list is built from 2026 published US cost guides (Angi, HomeGuide, HomeAdvisor, Homewyse, Thumbtack, This Old House and Block Renovation) and covers installed cost: product and labor. It does not include permits, the contractor’s overhead and profit, structural changes or the repairs you only find once walls are open. Together those typically add 20% to 35%, so the calculator shows that range under every total. Plan around the upper end for an older house or a project with a lot of plumbing.
Renovation cost by room and quality level
The table shows what the calculator returns for a typical size of each room with the scope it switches on by default. Use it to see how far apart the quality levels are before you enter your own rooms.
| Room (typical size) | Economy | Standard | Premium | Luxury |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen (130 sq ft) | $14,835 | $26,828 | $44,875 | $76,175 |
| Bathroom (65 sq ft) | $6,708 | $11,260 | $17,648 | $27,700 |
| Living room (270 sq ft) | $3,257 | $5,464 | $8,161 | $11,921 |
| Bedroom (170 sq ft) | $1,894 | $3,162 | $4,798 | $6,754 |
| Hallway (85 sq ft) | $752 | $1,435 | $2,200 | $3,383 |
| Balcony (65 sq ft) | $728 | $1,118 | $1,599 | $2,373 |
The default scope is a working refresh: in living rooms and bedrooms that means new flooring, paint, outlets and a light fixture, without new walls, windows or insulation. Switch every trade on and a standard kitchen of the same size comes to $29,058 and a standard bathroom to $13,038. Those figures are the base cost of the work; with 20% to 35% added they line up with the $30,000 to $50,000 that the same 2026 guides quote for a mid range kitchen remodel.
Worked examples
Example 1: a 150 sq ft kitchen at Standard quality
With the default kitchen scope, a 150 sq ft kitchen at Standard comes to $27,818, or about $185 per sq ft. Semi custom cabinets with a quartz counter are the largest line at $10,800 (18 linear ft at $600), followed by the appliance package at $6,000 and a glass mosaic backsplash at $4,050. Material is 66% of the total, which is typical of kitchens: the products cost more than the hours to fit them.
Add 20% to 35% for permits, overhead and contingency and the budget is $33,382 to $37,554. The same scope costs $15,485 at Economy and $78,405 at Luxury, so the finish level moves the total far more than a few extra square feet. If the backsplash only runs along 30 sq ft of wall, typing 30 instead of 150 takes about $3,240 off the estimate.
Example 2: two 50 sq ft bathrooms at Premium quality
Two identical 50 sq ft bathrooms at Premium cost $32,850 together. Plumbing dominates at $13,800, or 42% of the total: each bathroom has three fixtures (toilet, vanity basin and shower or tub) at $2,300 each, supplied and installed. Labor is 51% of this estimate, higher than in the kitchen, because bathrooms pack waterproofing, tiling and plumbing work into a small floor.
The budget range is $39,420 to $44,348. Dropping both bathrooms to Standard brings the base cost down to $20,900. Keeping the plumbing in its current position matters even more than the finish: moving a drain means opening the floor, which this estimate does not include.
Example 3: refreshing a living room, two bedrooms and a hallway
A cosmetic refresh of a 300 sq ft living room, two 150 sq ft bedrooms and an 80 sq ft hallway at Economy comes to $7,707, about $11 per sq ft across 680 sq ft. New flooring is half of it ($3,890), then outlets and switches ($2,020), paint ($1,186) and light fixtures ($611). The same rooms at Standard cost $13,065.
What drives renovation costs
Scope and the number of trades
Every trade you add brings its own crew, schedule and minimum charge. A refresh that only touches finishes stays cheap per square foot; anything that involves plumbing, electrical circuits or cabinetry raises the price quickly. That is why the kitchen and bathroom rows in the table above cost several times more per square foot than the bedrooms.
Finish quality
The gap between quality levels is wide: a standard kitchen costs about 1.8 times the economy version, and luxury about 2.8 times standard. Decide on a level before you collect quotes, and upgrade only the items you touch every day, such as the countertop or the shower.
Labor and location
Labor makes up a third or more of most estimates and over half in bathrooms. The bundled prices are US national averages; rates in large, expensive metro areas run well above them and rural areas often below. The estimate is a starting point for a conversation with local contractors, not a local price list.
Age and hidden conditions
Older houses hide outdated wiring, rotten subfloor and old pipework behind finishes that look fine. In the US, work that disturbs painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 falls under the EPA lead renovation, repair and painting rule, which requires a certified firm and adds time and cost. Hold back a contingency for an older house even when the estimate looks complete.
Permits, overhead and profit
A general contractor adds overhead and profit on top of the trade prices, and structural, electrical and plumbing work usually needs a permit. These are the costs behind the 20% to 35% range in the result.
How to keep a renovation on budget
- Fix the scope first. Run the calculator with the rooms and trades you actually need, then save the estimate so every quote is compared against the same list.
- Measure the lines that matter. Replace the starting quantities for tiling, backsplash and cabinetry with real measurements; they are the lines that move most.
- Keep plumbing where it is. Relocating fixtures adds demolition, new supply and drain lines and often a permit.
- Spend on the items you use most. Use the quality comparison on the estimate to see what one level up costs and upgrade selectively instead of moving the whole project to Premium.
- Get at least three written quotes for the same scope and compare them line by line with the breakdown from this calculator.
- Preview the result before you commit. A virtual renovation render shows how a finish level will look in your own room, which helps you decide whether the upgrade is worth the price.
If you are weighing materials, our guide to building materials and where each one works best and the article on sustainable architecture on a budget explain the trade offs behind the price differences. Kitchen professionals can see how kitchen builders use AI renders to present options to clients.
What the calculator does not include
The estimate covers the work you select and nothing else. It leaves out permits and inspections, design fees, contractor overhead and profit, structural changes such as removing a wall, moving plumbing or gas lines, asbestos or lead abatement, furniture, and repairs that only show up during demolition. Prices are US national averages for 2026 and are not adjusted for your region. For long term context on what US homeowners spend on improvements, the Census Bureau’s American Housing Survey tracks home improvement activity across the country.
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is a renovation cost calculator?
It gives a planning figure, not a quote. The prices are 2026 US national averages for installed work, so the result is most useful for comparing scopes and quality levels and for setting a first budget. Local labor rates, the condition of the house and the contractor’s overhead decide the final price, which is why the calculator adds a 20% to 35% range to every total.
How much does it cost to renovate a kitchen?
For a typical 130 sq ft kitchen with cabinets, counters, appliances, flooring, backsplash, electrical and plumbing, the calculator returns about $14,800 at Economy, $26,800 at Standard, $44,900 at Premium and $76,200 at Luxury before permits, overhead and contingency. Cabinetry and appliances are usually the largest lines.
How much does a bathroom renovation cost?
A typical 65 sq ft bathroom comes to about $6,700 at Economy, $11,300 at Standard, $17,600 at Premium and $27,700 at Luxury for the default scope. Plumbing fixtures, tiling and the vanity make up most of it, and labor is often half of the total.
What is the cost per square foot to renovate a house?
It depends almost entirely on the rooms involved. A cosmetic refresh of living areas can stay around $10 to $20 per sq ft, while kitchens and bathrooms run from about $100 to over $400 per sq ft depending on the finish level. The calculator shows the cost per square foot of your own mix of rooms under the total.
Does the estimate include labor?
Yes. Every item has a material cost and a labor cost, and the result shows both totals and their share. It does not include the general contractor’s overhead and profit or permits, which are covered by the 20% to 35% budget range.
Can I use the calculator in square meters or another currency?
The currency menu converts the result into 75 other currencies at an approximate exchange rate, but the underlying prices remain US averages. Site owners can switch the calculator to metric units in the plugin settings, which converts every price to square meters and meters.