Remodeling
Room Remodel Cost Calculator
Prices a single room, where the finishes are visible and the services behind them are not.
Result
A planning estimate, not a quote. Access, the age of the equipment, what is found once it is opened up and local labour rates all move the real figure, sometimes a long way.
Get a Free Business AuditHow the calculation works
Hours times crew times rate, plus materials and the call-out. A single room remodel is the most predictable job in this group, because the scope is bounded and most of it is visible: removing finishes, any framing changes, electrical and lighting, then drywall, trim, paint and floor. The uncertainty is concentrated in what the walls contain and whether the room's electrical is adequate for what the client now wants, since older rooms commonly have too few circuits and outlets for current use.
What moves the number
- Whether any walls move, which brings structural and possibly permit questions.
- Electrical scope, since outlet count and circuit requirements have risen over time.
- Flooring, which can be the largest single material line.
- Whether the room is above or below others, affecting noise and access.
Where this one goes wrong
Check whether a wall is load-bearing before pricing its removal. The difference between taking out a partition and taking out a bearing wall is a beam, posts, a load path to the foundation and usually a permit, and it is not reliably visible from inside the room. On the electrical side, bringing a room's wiring up to current requirements can be more work than expected: receptacle spacing, dedicated circuits for certain uses and arc-fault or ground-fault protection are all code-driven, and an older room frequently has none of them. Those are worth establishing before quoting finishes.
Before you quote
- Determine whether any wall to be removed is load-bearing.
- Price the electrical to current requirements, not to what is there.
- Confirm what is in the walls before quoting a firm figure.
Questions
About this calculator
Can I remove a wall in a room remodel?
It depends whether it is load-bearing. A partition comes out easily. A bearing wall needs a beam sized for the load, posts, a path down to the foundation and usually a permit and inspection, which is a substantially larger job. It is not reliably identifiable from inside the room.
Does a room remodel need an electrical upgrade?
Often. Requirements for outlet spacing, dedicated circuits and fault protection have risen over the years, and an older room typically has fewer outlets and no modern protection. Bringing the room up to current requirements is normal scope in a remodel rather than an extra.
What is the most expensive part of a room remodel?
Usually flooring on materials and labour on everything else, unless walls are moving or the electrical needs rewiring, in which case those dominate. The finishes are what the client sees and discusses; the cost often sits in what is behind them.
The formula
total = hours x people x rate + parts + call-out, then sales tax
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How to use this calculator
- Hours on site (h). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 160 h.
- People needed. Enter your own figure; the page starts at 1.
- Labour rate charged ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $88.
- Parts and materials ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $11,000.
- Call-out or diagnostic fee ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $95.
- Sales tax (%). Leave at zero if you are quoting before tax.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to estimated total, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Hours on site | 160 h |
| People needed | 1 |
| Labour rate charged | $88 |
| Parts and materials | $11,000 |
| Call-out or diagnostic fee | $95 |
| Sales tax | 0% |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Estimated total main result | $25,175 |
| Labour | $14,080 |
| Before tax | $25,175 |
| Sales tax | $0 |
About $25,175: $14,080 of labour, $11,000 of parts and a $95 call-out.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only labour rate charged, this is what happens to estimated total. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Labour rate charged ($) | Estimated total |
|---|---|
| $44 | $18,135 |
| $66 | $21,655 |
| $88 example above | $25,175 |
| $132 | $32,215 |
| $176 | $39,255 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Hours on site (h)
- Measured in h, between 0 and 400, starting at 160 h.
- People needed
- A number, between 0 and 40, starting at 1.
- Labour rate charged ($)
- A money amount, starting at $88.
- Parts and materials ($)
- A money amount, starting at $11,000.
- Call-out or diagnostic fee ($)
- A money amount, starting at $95.
- Sales tax (%)
- Leave at zero if you are quoting before tax.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Estimated total | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Labour | A money figure. |
| Before tax | A money figure. |
| Sales tax | A money figure. |
Estimating is the easy part
The jobs you never hear about cost more than the ones you mis-measure. BDEVY builds the marketing, systems and automation that bring them in.