Kitchen renovation costs in London, 2026
What a proper London kitchen actually costs in 2026 — by spec, by layout, by cabinetry type — and the costs most quotes quietly leave out.
A proper kitchen refit in London lands somewhere between £15,000 and £80,000 in 2026 — and where in that range depends almost entirely on two things: the cabinetry and whether you're changing the layout. Here's the honest breakdown.
The cost tiers
£15,000 – £25,000 — Flat-pack refit, same layout. Howdens, IKEA Metod, DIY Kitchens. No walls moving, existing flooring kept. Laminate or budget quartz worktops. Mid-range Bosch or Neff appliances. Fast install (3–4 weeks).
£25,000 – £40,000 — Mid-range refit, same layout. Magnet, Wren, Benchmarx, or local trade-supplied cabinetry. Engineered stone worktops (Silestone, Caesarstone), upgraded Bosch / Siemens appliances, proper integrated lighting, ceramic tile or engineered oak flooring. 5–7 weeks.
£40,000 – £60,000 — Bespoke or higher-end stock. Handmade in-frame cabinetry, Shaker or slab style, solid timber doors on a stock carcass (Neptune, Olive & Barr, deVOL lite) OR bespoke painted cabinetry from a local joinery. Natural stone or top-tier quartz. Fisher & Paykel, Miele entry, Wolf hob. Often includes layout changes, structural opening, new electrics and plumbing throughout. 8–12 weeks.
£60,000 – £120,000+ — Design-led, bespoke, often extended. Fully bespoke cabinetry (deVOL, Plain English, Roundhouse, Humphrey Munson), Miele / Gaggenau / Wolf appliances, marble or rare stone worktops, structural work to open up the space, skylights, underfloor heating. Often combined with a side-return or rear extension. 14–24 weeks.
Where the money actually goes
For a typical £45,000 mid-range London kitchen, the split is roughly:
- Cabinetry & fitting: 35–45%
- Worktops & splashbacks: 10–15%
- Appliances: 12–18%
- Labour (strip-out, install, snagging): 15–20%
- First & second-fix electrics / plumbing: 5–10%
- Flooring / tiling: 5–10%
- Paint, decoration, lighting fit-off: 3–5%
If your quote is heavy on cabinetry and light on labour, you'll probably run over. Installation and snagging take real time.
The hidden costs nobody quotes for
- Removing a wall. Sounds cheap, isn't. You need a structural engineer (£450–£900), a steel beam (£800–£2,500 supplied and fitted), Building Control sign-off, and the making-good afterwards. Budget £4,000–£8,000 for a single internal wall.
- Moving the gas meter, meter position, or electric distribution board. SSE / UKPN charges, landlord fees on flats. £500–£3,000 depending on what's needed.
- Flooring continuity. If you open the kitchen into the adjacent room, the new floor usually has to continue through. That doubles the flooring budget.
- Bin storage / waste. An integrated bin system sounds minor but adds £300–£800 to cabinetry cost.
- Appliance over-spec. A £3,000 oven + £2,000 fridge + £1,500 hob + £800 dishwasher + £600 hood = £7,900. It adds up fast.
Timeline
A flat-pack refit can be done in 3–4 weeks. A mid-range refit is 5–8 weeks. A bespoke design-led kitchen with layout changes is 12–20 weeks — longer if you're also doing an extension (4–6 months total).
How to lock the price
Get the design finalised, appliance list finalised, worktop confirmed, and flooring selected before anyone lifts a tool. Changes mid-build are where prices blow out. The cheapest way to have a kitchen done twice is to change your mind halfway through.
Planning a London kitchen? Get in touch — we'll survey the space, help you spec properly, and send an itemised quote you can actually trust.
