RenovatingRenovation checklist: planning, budget and sequence
Set out the work, the order and the budget before you confirm delivery dates and sign anything.
Renovating · 5 min read
New kitchen costs: what belongs in the quote
Compare the complete job, including installation, connections and making the room good again.
RenovatingFinances
The cost of a new kitchen is more than the units and the appliances. The worktop, the installation, the pipework, the electrics and the repair of walls and floor all count.
Take the same wishes and the same details to every kitchen showroom. Then ask what the quote includes. Only once the work matches can you compare the totals properly.
Take the same list of wishes everywhere
Describe the layout, the worktop, the appliances and who does the demolition, the installation, the pipework and the finishing. Take the measurements and photographs with you, using the preparation for the kitchen conversation.
Have the room measured up before you order. A guide price helps you orient yourself, but it is not yet the price of your complete job.
Ask for make, model and the work included
Ask for the make and the model number of every appliance. Two combination ovens need not be the same machine. The model number is what lets you compare the version you chose. Record what happens if that model is no longer available.
Have "installation" written out as well. Fitting units is not the same as running new cables and connecting pipework. The division is in connecting kitchen appliances.
For each excluded item, note who carries out the work, what it costs and when it has to be finished. If pipework is being moved, ask who repairs the wall or the floor afterwards.
| Item | Why it can fall outside the quote |
|---|---|
| Removing and disposing of the old kitchen | Taking it out and taking it away are often a separate service |
| Moving water, waste and gas | Installation then assumes connections are already in the right place |
| Consumer unit, extra circuits and cabling | That needs an electrician and sits outside fitting the units |
| Plastering and making good the walls | Damage and old tiled areas appear once the old kitchen is out |
| Tiles, splashback and painting | These are regularly done after the units go in |
| Repairing the floor | Under old units the floor is sometimes missing or uneven |
| Extraction ducting or an outside vent | The hood can be included while the ducting is not |
| Parking, upper floors and awkward access | These can come back as a surcharge or as extra work |
| Connecting appliances bought elsewhere | The fitter or supplier can exclude this |
| Making good after pipework | Moving a pipe does not automatically include plastering, tiling and painting |
Agree in advance how changes are priced
Before you sign, ask how the showroom handles differences in measurements, extra pipework and later changes. Agree any additional work before it is carried out, and record the amount and what it does to the schedule.
The technical preparation is in moving kitchen pipework and extraction. Also match delivery and installation to the floor and the plastering.
Keep the rest of your budget in view
Take the quote home to assess it. A discount that expires is no reason to skip an item you do not understand.
Put the work you already know is missing into your budget separately. And keep a reserve for what only becomes visible after the demolition. The kitchen is part of your renovation, so a more expensive choice has consequences for other rooms and for the rest of your furnishing.
What to do now
- take the same list to every showroom, so your quotes are comparable
- ask for the make and the model number of every appliance, not just a category
- ask what "installation" covers in this particular quote
- put the additional work you expect into your budget separately
Sources3 sources, 1 of them official
Checked on September 14, 2026. Livio provides information, not personal advice. Ask your adviser, notary or estate agent what applies to you.
Official
- 1ACM ConsuWijzer, Paying for extra and reduced work (September 14, 2026)
Trade press
- 2IKEA, Included and additional installation work (September 14, 2026)
- 3Bruynzeel Keukens, Preparation and pipework advice (September 14, 2026)
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