Removes the Appliances line (about 15% of the tier budget per HomeGuide's own breakdown) if you are not replacing appliances.
Adds $3,000 to $5,000 installed, per HomeGuide, on top of the tier budget above.
Adds $5.00 to $12.50 per sq ft for demo and debris removal, per HomeGuide, on top of the tier budget above.
Kitchen remodel cost is driven mostly by size and remodel tier, since HomeGuide's own tier table already bundles cabinets, countertops, appliances, and finishes at three cost levels. Add-ons like a kitchen island, a full gut, or a structural layout change sit on top of that tier budget rather than inside it. The inputs above account for all of it, plus your own local permit fee.
Last reviewed September 2026
| Line item | Low | Mid | High |
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| Tier | Low | Mid | High |
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This calculator starts with your kitchen's square footage and your chosen remodel tier, and multiplies them using HomeGuide's own published $/sq ft rate for that tier (Basic $60-$150/SF, Average $150-$250/SF, High-End $250-$350/SF), the same rate that produces HomeGuide's own size-by-type table. That tier total is then split into 11 categories using HomeGuide's own kitchen remodel budget-percentage table (cabinets 25%, appliances 15%, installation and labor 15%, and so on), so the low/mid/high breakdown table below is not a separate estimate, it is the same total broken into its published parts. Region only moves the "Installation & Labor" line. Add-ons like a kitchen island, a full gut, or a structural layout change are priced separately and added on top, since HomeGuide's own tier descriptions treat them as optional scope, not baked into every tier.
Tier is the single biggest lever on total cost. A basic refresh (refacing cabinets, new countertops or flooring, some new appliances, same layout) runs $60 to $150 per square foot. An average full remodel (all new appliances, new floors and countertops, semi-custom cabinets) runs $150 to $250 per square foot. A high-end remodel that changes the structural layout and uses custom cabinets and luxury finishes runs $250 to $350 per square foot or more.
Cabinets are typically the largest single line item, about 25% of the total budget per HomeGuide. Replacing cabinets completely runs $4,500 to $15,000. Refacing (new doors, drawer fronts, hardware, and a veneer over the existing boxes) runs $5,000 to $13,000 for a 100 to 200 square foot kitchen. Refinishing runs $1,500 to $4,500, and painting alone runs $900 to $3,800.
A new appliance package (dishwasher, microwave, range, and refrigerator) typically runs $2,500 to $6,800 installed, and buying a matching set often costs less than replacing each appliance separately. Skip this line with the "keep your existing appliances" toggle above if yours are staying.
Countertop replacement runs $1,500 to $6,000 for an average kitchen, "depending on the material and customization level" per HomeGuide, which does not publish a separate dollar figure for each specific material on this page. Backsplash installation runs $500 to $1,700, or $10 to $50 per square foot installed.
A new kitchen island runs $3,000 to $5,000 installed. Adding a sink, cooktop, dishwasher, or an outlet that needs its own plumbing or electrical increases that cost.
Changing the kitchen's footprint, or moving plumbing, electrical, or gas lines, is the item that separates a "remodel" from a "renovation" in HomeGuide's own terminology, and it is the item that most often needs a permit and a structural engineer. Modifying or removing a non-load-bearing wall runs $500 to $2,000; removing a load-bearing wall runs $4,000 to $15,000, plus a structural engineer at $1,900 to $3,700 or more.
HomeGuide's own kitchen remodel page notes that material costs are largely national, while labor and geographic location move the number the most: "a California kitchen remodel can reach $800+ per square foot, while the cost to remodel a kitchen in Florida typically costs far less." This calculator applies its region multiplier only to the "Installation & Labor" budget line, the same convention used across this site's other remodel and construction calculators.
An average, full kitchen remodel typically costs $15,000 to $50,000, or $150 to $250 per square foot. A basic refresh runs $4,000 to $18,000. A high-end remodel with structural changes runs $50,000 to $70,000 or more.
Basic: $60 to $150 per square foot. Average full remodel: $150 to $250 per square foot. High-end: $250 to $350 per square foot. Smaller kitchens often run higher per square foot because fixed costs like permits and appliance hookups do not shrink proportionally with size.
Kitchen remodeling permits typically cost $500 to $1,500. Projects that change the structural layout, or move plumbing, electrical, or gas lines, typically require one or more permits and inspections. Confirm exact requirements with your local building department.
Tier $/sq ft rates, the size-by-type table, the 11-category budget-percentage breakdown, cabinet/countertop/appliance/flooring/lighting/plumbing/window-door line items, the kitchen island figure, the structural-change and structural-engineer figures, the gut-remodel per-square-foot figure, the permit-fee figure, and the materials-vs-labor split: HomeGuide.com, "How Much Does a Kitchen Remodel Cost? (2026)", written by Tara Farmer (December 31, 2025), edited by Kristen Cramer, fact-checked by Tom Grupa. Region labor multiplier reused from this site's bathroom remodel, fence, retaining-wall, excavation, concrete-slab, well-drilling, and septic-system-cost calculators, calibrated against the JLC/Zonda 2025 Cost vs Value report.
Disclosed simplification: HomeGuide's kitchen remodel page gives one combined countertop-replacement range ($1,500-$6,000) rather than a per-material breakdown, and a second HomeGuide page dedicated to countertop material pricing could not be found live tonight (three guessed URLs all returned 404). This calculator prices countertops using the one sourced combined range (10% of the tier budget) rather than fabricate a per-material multiplier.
Disclosed conflict: HomeGuide's own budget-percentage table folds permits into a 1% "Miscellaneous (smart upgrades, permits, etc.)" bucket, smaller than the same page's separately stated "$500 to $1,500" permit figure. This calculator removes the 1% bucket and replaces it with your own permit-fee input (sourced default $1,000), shown here rather than silently stacked.
Building more than one thing at once? See also the Bathroom Remodel Cost Calculator, the Flooring Cost Calculator, and the Deck Cost Calculator for other home remodel estimates.