Which scope are you leaning toward for your kitchen?
Houzz's 2026 study found 52% of renovators changed the layout but 68% kept the footprint.
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Make your kitchen easier to cook in, gather in, and live with.
Plan the kitchen remodel before you price it
Kitchen Scopebook is a planning resource for U.S. homeowners deciding between a surface refresh, a same-layout renovation and a full redesign. It explains what each scope costs and why, which decisions lock in others, and how to compare written proposals. When you are ready, it connects you with independent local professionals for a free written estimate with no obligation.
- Free written estimates from independent local pros
- No obligation to hire
- Sourced numbers, not sales copy
By the numbers
Kitchen remodeling by the numbers
Every figure links to its published source.
$26,940
Angi national average from 13,100 verified kitchen projects ($14,588 to $41,550 range)
Angi's project data from 13,100 kitchen jobs completed by its pros lands at a $26,940 average, with most homeowners paying $14,588 to $41,550 depending on scope, materials and local labor. It is a national project mix, not a cabinet-only price or a local estimate.
Angi / How Much Does a Kitchen Remodel Cost (2026)$55,000
median spend on a major kitchen remodel among Houzz renovators (2025 projects)
The 2026 Houzz Kitchen Trends Study, drawn from 1,780 homeowners surveyed in July 2025, puts the median major kitchen remodel at $55,000 and a minor remodel at $20,000. The top 10% of spenders on large kitchens reached $150,000. This is a platform sample, not a national average.
Houzz / 2026 U.S. Houzz Kitchen Trends Study (2026)112.9%
of cost recouped at resale by a minor midrange kitchen remodel (2025 Cost vs. Value report)
Zonda's 2025 Cost vs. Value report prices a minor midrange kitchen remodel (refaced cabinet fronts, new counters, sink, appliances and flooring) at a $28,458 national average job cost against $32,141 in resale value, the strongest return of any interior project it tracks.
Zonda / 2025 Cost vs. Value Report (2025)52%
of Houzz kitchen renovators changed the layout; 68% kept the same footprint
Just over half of the kitchen renovators in Houzz's 2026 study reworked the layout, but 68% stayed inside the existing footprint and only 6% made the kitchen significantly larger. Moving the sink or range changes the scope far more than new finishes do.
Houzz / 2026 U.S. Houzz Kitchen Trends Study (2026)Most kitchen remodels start with a short list of daily irritations: nowhere to set a hot pan, a corner cabinet that swallows things, a refrigerator door that blocks the walkway. The mistake is jumping from that list straight to a showroom. Before you look at a single door sample, decide whether the layout stays. That one decision separates a $15,000 project from a $55,000 one, and it determines whether you are hiring a cabinet installer, a general contractor, or a designer plus a contractor.
This site walks through that decision the way an estimator would. Cost figures come from Angi, HomeAdvisor, Fixr, Houzz and Zonda, with the source linked beside every number. Use the cost calculator to size a budget, the comparison guides to settle reface-versus-replace and quartz-versus-granite, and the service pages to see what a proposal for each scope should contain.
What our analysis of government data shows
Kitchen Scopebook ran these numbers on the federal government's own household data. You won't find them in a contractor's brochure.
Kitchen Scopebook analysis · 2024
Owner-occupied dishwasher homes built before 199031.3%
95% interval 29.7%–32.8% · about 12.5 million homes · 5,529 survey households
Owner-occupied dishwasher homes built in 1990–202427.1%
95% interval 25.7%–28.6% · about 9.1 million homes · 4,491 survey households
Difference: 4.1 percentage points (95% interval 2.0 to 6.3).
Older houses tend to have older dishwashers, but only by a few points. Check the appliance itself rather than assuming the house's age tells you it's due for replacement.
Source: Kitchen Scopebook analysis of 2024 federal household survey data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. How we calculated it
Kitchen Scopebook analysis · 2024
Owner households with income of $100,000 or more6.6%
95% interval 5.9%–7.3% · about 2.5 million homes · 5,384 survey households
Owner households with income below $100,0004.0%
95% interval 3.4%–4.5% · about 2.0 million homes · 6,581 survey households
Difference: 2.6 percentage points (95% interval 1.7 to 3.6).
Induction is still uncommon, even in higher-income homes. If you're switching, plan for the 240-volt circuit and panel capacity, which most kitchens don't have yet.
Source: Kitchen Scopebook analysis of 2024 federal household survey data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. How we calculated it
What do you want to build or fix?
Each guide covers what it costs, what fails first, and how to compare written proposals.
Service guideComplete Kitchen RenovationA complete kitchen renovation replaces cabinets, counters, flooring, lighting and usually appliances under a single plan, and may relocate plumbing, gas and electrical or remove a wall.
Service guideCabinet Refacing & InstallationCabinet refacing replaces doors, drawer fronts and hardware and covers the exposed box faces with matching veneer, leaving the layout unchanged.
Service guideCountertop InstallationCountertop installation replaces the work surface, sink and often the backsplash on cabinets you keep.
Service guideKitchen Island Design & BuildA kitchen island is a freestanding cabinet unit with its own countertop, often with seating, storage, a sink or a cooktop.
What does a kitchen remodel actually cost in 2026?
The national benchmarks cluster tightly. Angi's data from 13,100 completed projects puts the average at $26,940, HomeAdvisor's surveyed customers average $26,945, and Fixr's 2026 guide lands at $27,000 with high-end jobs reaching $130,000. Those averages blend small cosmetic jobs with gut renovations, so the more useful number is the median for the scope you actually want. Houzz's 2026 study of 1,780 renovators found a median of $55,000 for a major remodel and $20,000 for a minor one.
Room size moves the number more than most people expect. In the same Houzz study, major remodels of kitchens 250 square feet or larger carried a $75,000 median while smaller kitchens came in at $46,000. Measure your room, count the linear feet of cabinet run, and note how many appliances you plan to replace before you use the calculator. A proposal that does not state the square footage and linear footage it was priced on cannot be compared to another one.
| Scope | Typical 2025–2026 range | What drives it |
|---|---|---|
| Cosmetic refresh (reface, counters, paint, lighting) | $10,000 – $25,000 | Door style, counter material, whether appliances change |
| Same-layout renovation (new cabinets, counters, floors) | $25,000 – $60,000 | Cabinet grade, linear feet, appliance package |
| Layout redesign (moving sink, range, walls) | $45,000 – $130,000+ | Plumbing and electrical relocation, structural work, permits |
Refresh, renovate, or redesign: which scope fits your kitchen?
Ask one question first: do the cabinet boxes and the utility locations work? If the boxes are solid plywood or well-built particleboard, the drawers still run true, and the sink and range are where you would put them anyway, a refresh makes sense. Refacing plus new countertops delivers most of the visible change at a fraction of the price, and Zonda's 2025 Cost vs. Value report shows that a minor midrange kitchen remodel recouped 112.9% of its cost at resale.
If the boxes are failing, the corner is dead space, or the refrigerator sits across the room from the counter, you are looking at a complete renovation. Houzz's 2026 study found 52% of renovators changed the layout, yet 68% stayed inside the existing footprint. That middle path, new arrangement inside the same walls, is where most value lives: you fix the workflow without paying for structural work or an addition.
Take the scope quiz if you are unsure. It scores your answers about cabinet condition, storage complaints and appliance plans and points you to the service page that matches. The result is not a verdict; it is a starting scope you can test against the cost table on that page and revise after a pro has looked at the boxes and the panel.
Where does the money go inside a kitchen budget?
Cabinets lead every published breakdown. HomeAdvisor puts them near ~30% of the total with labor at about 25%; Fixr allocates 40% to cabinetry, 18% to flooring and 14% to countertops. The practical takeaway is that cabinet grade (stock, semi-custom, custom) and box construction are the first two levers on your total, well ahead of tile or faucets.
The second lever is anything that moves. Relocating a sink means new supply and drain lines, often through a slab or a finished ceiling below. Moving a range can require a new gas line or a 240-volt circuit plus a hood with make-up air. Each of those trades adds a permit and an inspection. On the services hub each page lists the specific line items a proposal should show so you can see where relocation costs hide.
- Cabinets and installation: 30–40% of the budget
- Labor across all trades: roughly 25%
- Countertops with fabrication: about 14%
- Flooring: up to 18% if it is replaced wall to wall
- Appliances, plumbing and electrical fixtures: the remainder, highly variable
How long will the kitchen be out of service?
HomeAdvisor's guide estimates 6 to 10 weeks of construction and roughly four months end to end once planning is included. The part homeowners underestimate is the gap before demolition: semi-custom cabinets commonly take six to ten weeks from order to delivery, and a good contractor will not tear out your old kitchen until the new boxes are on site. Countertops add another one to two weeks after templating, because the fabricator measures only once the cabinets are set.
Plan the temporary kitchen as seriously as the permanent one. A microwave, a hot plate or induction burner, a mini fridge and a utility sink or bathroom tap will carry a household for six weeks; takeout every night for that long shows up as a real budget line. Ask each pro how they sequence flooring, whether the dishwasher can run early, and what day the sink comes back. The polls show how other homeowners are handling the gap.
Which materials and layouts are homeowners choosing right now?
Engineered quartz remains the leading countertop at 32% of Houzz upgrades, and 62% of NKBA's surveyed designers expect it to stay on top. Wood-tone cabinets edged past white for the first time in the 2026 Houzz study, 29% to 28%, which matters if you plan to reface, because a wood veneer job costs more than painted doors. Islands appear in most projects: 58% of Houzz renovators added or upgraded one, and more than half of new islands run longer than seven feet.
Buyers have preferences too. NAHB's 2024 survey of more than 3,000 home buyers ranked a walk-in pantry at 80% essential-or-desirable and natural stone counters at 73%. If resale is part of your reasoning, the compare page weighs quartz against granite and an island against a peninsula with those numbers in the table.
Built-ins and appliances are the other half of the choice. Houzz's 2026 Kitchen Trends Study found 76% of renovators added built-in features, led by pantry cabinets at 47% and beverage stations at 24%. On cooking fuel, our analysis of the federal government's 2024 household survey found only 5.2% of occupied homes cook on induction, and among owners the rate runs 2.6 points higher in households earning $100,000 or more (6.6%) than below that line (4.0%). That is observed adoption, not a price barrier, but if your range is gas today, induction means a new 240-volt circuit.
What are the mistakes that cost the most to undo?
Ordering cabinets before the appliance models are final is the classic one. A 36-inch refrigerator that arrives 70 inches tall instead of 69 does not fit the panel opening, and the fix is a new cabinet, not a shim. Second is comparing proposals with different allowances: one bid carries a $3,000 tile allowance and another $800, and the cheaper total is simply less tile. Third is removing a wall on a hunch. Houzz found 35% of renovators enlarged the footprint, usually from the dining room; every one of those needs a structural assessment before demolition.
Budget slippage is common enough to plan for. the 2026 Houzz & Home Study found 37% of renovators exceeded their budget, mostly by upgrading materials mid-stream or expanding scope. Hold 10 to 15 percent in reserve, fix your selections before demolition, and write the change-order process into the contract. Treat the reserve as untouchable until demolition is done.
Replacing appliances on the wrong schedule is the quieter mistake. Our analysis of the EIA's 2024 household survey found 20.6% of occupied homes running a dishwasher at least ten years old and 26.6% running a main refrigerator that old. Among homes with a dishwasher, the share with an old one is 4.1 points higher in owner-occupied houses built before 1990 (31.3%) than in newer ones (27.1%), a modest gap: house age is not appliance age. Test each machine, and if it is near the end, replace it while the cabinet openings are still being built.
Does a kitchen remodel pay back at resale?
It depends heavily on scope. Zonda's Cost vs. Value data favors the minor remodel, which returned more than its cost in 2025. NAR's 2025 Remodeling Impact Report, which uses Realtor estimates rather than appraisals, puts a complete kitchen renovation at 71% recovery and a minor upgrade at 60%. The same report found 48% of Realtors saw the biggest jump in buyer demand in kitchen upgrades, and homeowners gave a finished kitchen a Joy Score of 10 out of 10, so the non-financial return is real.
The honest framing: remodel for how you live, and treat resale as a floor rather than a goal. A mid-priced kitchen matched to the neighborhood recovers most of its cost; a $120,000 kitchen in a $400,000 house does not. Check recent sales in your neighborhood before setting the finish grade, and let the regional notes adjust the national figures.
How do you get a written estimate that can be compared?
Give every pro the same brief: room dimensions, photos, the appliance list with model numbers if you have them, what stays, what moves, and your target range. Ask for a written proposal that separates cabinets, counters, labor by trade, allowances and permits. Then ask the four questions on the contact page: which existing cabinets and utilities can stay, whether appliance installation and cutouts are included, which items are allowances, and when the sink will be unavailable.
Houzz found 87% of kitchen renovators hired at least one professional, and nearly all of them did on projects above $50,000. Getting three proposals built on the same brief is the single most useful thing you can do before signing, and doing it early matters: the 2026 Houzz & Home Study found 54% of surveyed homeowners renovated in 2025 and 50% planned to in 2026, which keeps good firms booked. Browse the locations hub for regional notes, then request estimates from independent pros in your area.
Homeowner polls
What other planners are choosing
Vote to see live results from other homeowners planning the same project.
What bothers you most about the kitchen you have now?
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What total budget are you planning for?
Angi's national average is $26,940; Houzz's major-remodel median is $55,000.
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Free planning tools
Free toolKitchen remodel cost calculatorSize, material tier and complexity in, a realistic budget range out.
Free toolKitchen comparisons: the five decisions that move the budgetSide-by-side tables for the decisions that change the price most.
Free toolKitchen remodel quiz: find your scope and check the numbers10 questions that show what you already know and what to check next.
Free toolKitchen remodel polls: see what other homeowners are choosingSee what other planners chose and add your vote.
Kitchen remodeling: questions homeowners ask
How much should I budget for a mid-range kitchen remodel in 2026?
For a same-layout renovation with semi-custom cabinets, quartz counters and a mid-tier appliance package, published benchmarks cluster between $25,000 and $60,000. Angi's average across 13,100 projects is $26,940; Houzz's median for a major remodel is $55,000. Size your number from linear feet of cabinet and the appliance list, then add a 10 to 15 percent reserve.
Is it cheaper to reface cabinets or replace them?
Refacing typically costs one-third to one-half of replacement for the same door style, because the boxes, installation labor and most demolition disappear from the bill. It only makes sense when the boxes are structurally sound and the layout works. If you want deeper drawers, a different corner solution or a moved sink, replacement is the only route.
Do I need a permit for a kitchen remodel?
Cosmetic work such as refacing, counters and paint rarely needs one. Anything that touches plumbing, gas, electrical circuits, structural walls or a range hood ducted to the outside almost always does, and the inspection protects you when you sell. A pro who suggests skipping permits on relocation work is a signal to keep looking.
How long does a full kitchen remodel take from start to finish?
Plan on about four months. HomeAdvisor's estimate is six to ten weeks of construction after roughly four weeks of planning, but cabinet lead times of six to ten weeks usually sit in front of demolition. The kitchen is typically unusable from demolition until the counters are set and the sink reconnected, often four to seven weeks.
What is the most common kitchen layout after a remodel?
Among Houzz renovators who changed their layout in the 2026 study, 35% chose an L-shape, 31% a U-shape and 14% a galley. L-shapes are popular because they leave the floor open for an island, which 58% of renovators added or upgraded. The right shape depends on your room's dimensions and where the doors and windows already are.
Should I hire a kitchen designer or go straight to a contractor?
For a refresh, a cabinet installer or fabricator can plan it. For a layout change, a designer earns the fee by catching clearance and appliance conflicts before cabinets are ordered. Houzz found 22% of kitchen renovators hired a designer and 48% a general contractor; many design-build firms combine both roles under one contract.
What is the difference between an estimate and a written proposal?
An estimate is a ballpark figure, often given after a short visit. A written proposal lists scope, materials, allowances, exclusions, schedule and payment terms and becomes part of the contract. Compare proposals, not estimates. Two proposals with the same scope and different allowances are not the same price, even if the totals match.
How do I pay for a kitchen remodel without going over budget?
NAR reports 54% of remodelers used home equity loans or HELOCs, and Houzz found 84% of renovations drew on savings. Arrange financing before signing so cabinet orders are not delayed. Fix selections before demolition, keep a written change-order process, and hold a reserve, because 37% of renovators exceeded their budget in 2025.
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Ready to price your kitchen remodeling?
Tell us the size, the condition of what is there now, and what you want to change. Kitchen Scopebook passes your request to independent local professionals, who reply with written, no-obligation estimates. The service is free to use.