Pricing·7 min read

How to Price a Bathroom Renovation

Bathroom renovations are one of the most requested jobs in UK domestic building — and one of the trickiest to price. The range from a basic suite swap to a high-spec en-suite wet room is enormous, and customers often don't know the difference until they see the quote. Here's how to price bathrooms properly.

Realistic cost ranges by bathroom type

These are all-in prices including labour and materials at a mid-spec finish, for an average-sized bathroom (4–6 m²). Larger bathrooms or premium materials will push these higher.

Type	Cost range	What's included
Basic suite swap (bath, basin, WC)	£1,800 – £3,500	Like-for-like replacement, no layout change, no retiling
Full strip and refit	£4,000 – £7,000	New suite, full retile, new flooring, new lighting
Mid-range renovation	£6,000 – £10,000	Better suite, full tile, underfloor heating, new extractor
High-spec / designer bathroom	£10,000 – £20,000+	Premium suite, large format tile, bespoke storage, wet room
En-suite (typically smaller)	£3,500 – £8,000	New build or conversion of existing space
Wet room conversion	£5,000 – £12,000	Tanking, level access drain, frameless screen

Trades and labour breakdown

A full bathroom renovation typically involves four trades. Here's a realistic time estimate for a standard bathroom refit:

Trade	Days	What they do
Labourer (strip out)	1 day	Remove existing suite, take out old tiles
Plumber (first fix)	1 – 2 days	Move or extend pipework, install waste
Electrician	1 day	Zone-compliant circuits, extractor fan, lighting
Tiler	2 – 5 days	Depends on room size and tile size (large tiles take longer)
Plumber (second fix)	1 – 2 days	Fit suite, connect everything up
Flooring / finishing	0.5 – 1 day	Floor tile, skirting, silicone sealing

What drives the price up

Customers often ask why quotes vary so much. Here are the factors that make a bathroom more expensive:

Moving the toilet — repositioning the WC means rerouting the soil stack, which may need building regs approval and is the most disruptive job in any bathroom.
Tiling — labour cost varies from £30/m² for standard ceramic to £80–£100/m² for large format tiles (600x600 or bigger), which take much longer to lay and cut.
Wet room conversion — requires tanking the entire floor and part of the walls before any tile goes down. Typically adds £800–£1,500 vs a standard shower tray.
Underfloor heating — electric mat systems are straightforward (£500–£1,000 fitted), water-based systems require a plumber and are more complex.
Window — if the window needs replacing or moving, this is a separate cost that catches customers off guard.
Electrical zones — bathrooms have strict zone requirements under BS 7671. IP-rated fittings in Zone 1 and 2 cost more than standard fittings.

Things to check before quoting

What's the condition of the floor? Rotten floorboards under an old bathroom are common and need replacing before any tiling.
Is the extractor vented through the wall or roof? Rerouting a duct adds time.
Any signs of damp or mould behind the existing tiles? If so, the plasterboard may need replacing.
Is the soil stack accessible? If it runs through a boxing or down through the floor, moving the WC becomes a much bigger job.
What are the customer's tile expectations? Customers often buy expensive tiles and then expect cheap tile labour. Be clear that large, heavy, or patterned tiles take longer and cost more to lay.

Things builders commonly forget to include

Waterproof membrane / tanking on walls behind the shower area — even with a standard shower tray, the wall behind the showerhead needs waterproofing.
Waste and soil connections — if the new layout differs from the old one even slightly, new waste runs and fittings add up.
Silicone and sealant — sounds trivial but a professional finish requires careful siliconing at every junction, which takes time.
Disposing of the old suite — sanitary ware is heavy. Factor in skip or tip runs.
Access — if you're working in a flat with no parking, or the bathroom is on the fourth floor of a townhouse with narrow stairs, adjust accordingly.

Tip

When customers supply their own sanitaryware, always check the delivery date before you schedule the job. A customer who ordered a bath suite with a six-week lead time and books you in for next week is one of the most common causes of downtime for bathroom fitters.

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