Kitchen fitting cost in the UK (2026 guide)

Kitchen fitting cost is the part of the bill you pay a person for: stripping out, fitting units and worktops, connecting appliances, and the plumbing and electrics around them. Which? says labour makes up roughly 20 to 30% of the final spend when you do none of the installation yourself (Which?, how much does a new kitchen cost in 2026?, published 27 April 2026, read 12 October 2026). The other 70 to 80% is units, worktops, appliances and materials. That ratio is the most useful number on this page, because it tells you where the money goes before any one quote arrives.

If you want the wider hiring picture first, see kitchen and bathroom fitters. This guide stays on cost and on the rules that change it. Looking at a bathroom instead? Read our bathroom renovation cost guide.

What does it cost to fit a kitchen in 2026?

We cannot give you an honest fitting price for your house, and we will not invent one. Which? publishes tables for fitting, worktops, islands, splashbacks and flooring, but at the time we read the page those tables showed "Sign up to reveal" and sit behind its paywall. Which? says it consults the Building Cost Information Service (BCIS) each year on renovation prices, and credits its figures as BCIS data from 2025. If you are a Which? member, those tables are the best public-facing benchmark. If you are not, the three figures below are free to read and still useful.

What the public page does show is what the cabinets alone cost. For a 12-unit kitchen, with VAT included and prices collected in May 2025 and any sale discount running at the time, Which? listed:

These prices are for cabinets, not for worktops, appliances, plumbing or fitting. They are also over a year old as we write, and retailers discount heavily, so treat them as a shape of the market and not a shopping list. Which? notes the discount applied in each case, ranging from none to roughly three-quarters off at Magnet, which is why a headline price tells you little.

What drives the price of a kitchen fit?

Units against labour

A cheap flat-pack range with a good fitter can cost less overall than a mid-priced range fitted badly, but the units are only part of it. The 20 to 30% labour share from Which? is an average. A small galley with no changes sits at the low end. A room where walls, floors and services all change sits higher. Ask each fitter for the labour as its own line, so you can compare labour with labour.

Worktops and splashbacks

Laminate, solid wood, stone and quartz differ widely in price, and heavy materials mean extra labour for cutting and lifting. Stone and quartz are usually templated after the units are in, which adds a gap of days or weeks before the worktop arrives. Which? lists costs for plastic laminate, solid oak and granite worktops, and for splashbacks, in its members' tables, so we do not quote them.

Appliances

Appliances are often a separate purchase, and the range is enormous. Which? lists starting prices for the models it rates as Great Value, including a single oven from £160, a hob from £100 and a cooker hood from £140, as listed on the Which? site in November 2025. Which? also says that replacing working appliances could save "the best part of £1,000". Decide early whether you are keeping any, because the cabinet sizes depend on them.

Moving services

A like-for-like swap is the cheapest case. Moving the sink, the hob or the washing machine to a new wall means new pipework, waste runs and often new electrical circuits, plus the plastering and flooring to make good. Magnet Kitchens, a retailer quoted by Which?, says to expect around 30% of the budget to go on plumbing, flooring, electrics and other expenses. That is the retailer's own rule of thumb, not a survey result, but it is a fair prompt to ask each fitter what is in and out of the price.

Rules that affect the quote

Not every cost is visible on a quote. Four rules shape what a competent fitter should be pricing in.

Electrics. The Planning Portal explains that electrical work in England and Wales falls under the building regulations. In England it describes the special locations as the spaces around baths and showers, and in Wales it says special locations include kitchens. Notifiable jobs include a new consumer unit, a complete new circuit and some alterations to circuits in special locations. It recommends an installer registered with a competent person scheme, who can certify their own work (Planning Portal, electrics, read 12 October 2026). If the electrician is not registered, the work has to be inspected and certificated by building control or, in England only, a registered third-party certifier, which can add cost and delay. Part P is the label for this rule; see our guide to building regulations for home improvements for the wider picture.

Gas. Moving a gas hob or a gas pipe is work for a Gas Safe registered engineer. The HSE explains you can check registration by entering the licence number from the engineer's ID card on the Gas Safe Register (HSE, check an engineer, read 12 October 2026). Ask to see the card and write the number down before the work starts.

Ventilation. The Planning Portal says a new kitchen should have extract ventilation, and that when you refurbish a kitchen any existing extract ventilation must be kept or replaced. If there is none, you do not have to add one, though you can (Planning Portal, ventilation, read 12 October 2026). It points to Approved Document F for what an installed system must meet. A cooker hood that recirculates air is not the same as a duct to outside, so ask which is being priced.

Building regulations. The same Planning Portal guidance says work to refit a kitchen with new units and fittings does not generally need building regulations approval, though drainage or electrical work that forms part of the refit may. A kitchen put into a room that had none is likely to need it (Planning Portal, kitchens and bathrooms, read 12 October 2026). This is the position for England. Wales has its own devolved building regulations, and in Scotland a building warrant from the council works in a different way, so check with your local authority before you assume anything.

Waste removal and making good

Old units, worktops, flooring and packaging have to go somewhere. Some fitters include skip hire or a tip run, some charge it separately and some leave it to you. Making good also gets missed: plastering where units came off the wall, floor levelling, and decorating. Put both on your comparison list.

VAT on a kitchen fit

GOV.UK says the standard rate of VAT is 20% (GOV.UK, VAT rates, read 12 October 2026). A fitter who is not VAT-registered will not add it, so a quote that looks cheaper can be a quote that is simply not registered. Ask each firm whether prices include VAT. Reduced rates do exist for some home work, but GOV.UK describes them for specific cases such as certain energy-saving installations and work for disabled people, not for an ordinary kitchen refit. If you think you might qualify for something, read the relevant HMRC notice before you accept a price on that basis.

How to compare kitchen quotes

1. Ask for at least three written quotes and the same list of rooms, units and appliances in each.
2. Check what is supplied by whom. A quote that excludes the units is not comparable with one that includes them.
3. Mark which quotes include electrics, plumbing, plastering, tiling, flooring and decorating.
4. Ask who does the gas and electrical work, and for the certificates.
5. Ask what happens if the delivery is late or an item arrives damaged.
6. Ask how much is due up front and when. Citizens Advice advises against paying everything up front, and against a deposit of more than 25%.

Keep a contingency sum aside as well: opening up a wall behind old units is where surprises usually appear. For how to find and vet a firm in the first place, see how to hire a builder.

Is it worth it?

Magnet Kitchens, a retailer quoted by Which?, says a renovation should only cost 5 to 10% of the value of your home. That is the retailer's own guideline, not a rule, but it is a useful ceiling when quotes start to climb. Spending more on the parts that last, such as the units and the plumbing, usually serves you better than spending on the parts that date quickly.

When you are ready to talk to a local firm, search for a fitter near you. The directory is still being filled town by town, so check insurance and any scheme membership on the scheme's own site before you pay a deposit.