Bathroom remodel cost

A full bathroom remodel costs $9,000 to $45,000, with the national average around $16,500. A small bathroom or powder room is $4,000 to $15,000. A gut renovation back to the studs is $15,000 to $50,000.

The spread is wide because "remodel" covers three genuinely different jobs, and the first thing to work out is which one you are buying.

Three tiers, and the line between them

A refresh replaces what you can see: vanity, mirror, light fixture, toilet, tap, paint, maybe the floor. Nothing moves and no walls open. On a small bathroom, $4,000 to $7,500.

A pull-and-replace takes out the fixtures, retiles, and puts new fixtures back in the same places. The plumbing rough-in stays where it is. This is what most people mean by a bathroom remodel, and it is $9,000 to $25,000 for a full bath.

A gut strips to the studs, reworks the plumbing rough-in, and often moves fixtures. $15,000 to $50,000.

The step from pull-and-replace to gut is where the price jumps, and moving the toilet is usually what causes it. A toilet drain is a three or four inch pipe with a required fall; relocating it means opening the floor and often the ceiling below.

Where the money goes

On a $16,500 midrange full bathroom:

Labour dominates because a bathroom is a small room where six trades work in sequence, each waiting for the last. A demolition crew, a plumber, an electrician, a tiler, a painter and a fitter cannot compress into fewer days by adding people. That is why a bathroom costs more per square foot than any other room in the house.

Cost by square foot

A 40 square foot bathroom at midrange is $7,200 to $11,200 by this measure, which sits below the $16,500 average because the average includes larger bathrooms and higher scopes. Use the per-foot figure as a sanity check, not a quote.

The costs nobody quotes for

Bathrooms hide water. In a January 2026 survey of homeowners doing tub-to-shower conversions, about 70% hit at least one surprise, most often structural repair or water damage found behind the tub.

Budget 10% to 20% on top of the quote as a contingency, and treat it as likely to be spent rather than as a cushion. The common finds:

• Rotten subfloor around the toilet flange: $500 to $2,500
• Water damage in the wall behind a tub or shower: $800 to $4,000
• Galvanised or polybutylene supply pipe that has to be replaced while open: $500 to $2,000
• No vent, or an improper one, that code now requires: $400 to $1,500
• Knob-and-tube or ungrounded wiring found in the wall: $600 to $2,500

A good contractor writes an allowance for the first two into the contract rather than pretending they will not happen.

Getting a comparable quote

Bathroom quotes are the hardest in residential work to compare, because two contractors can bid the same room with wildly different assumptions. Insist that each quote states:

• Whether fixtures move or stay
• Who supplies the fixtures, tile and vanity, and at what allowance
• What waterproofing system is used behind the tile, by name
• Whether the floor will be opened, and the per-square-foot rate if rot is found
• Whether the permit is included and who pulls it
• The number of working days and what happens if it runs over

That waterproofing line matters more than it sounds. Tile is not waterproof and grout is not waterproof. Behind them there is either a proper membrane system or there is a leak waiting several years to appear. Ask which system, and be suspicious of a quote that cannot answer.

What returns money at sale

A midrange bathroom remodel recovers roughly 60% to 70% of its cost at resale, which is better than a kitchen at the same tier. Adding a second bathroom to a one-bathroom house returns more than that, sometimes more than it costs, because it changes which buyers will consider the house at all.

Nothing about a bathroom returns money if the work is not permitted, so the permit is not the place to save $400.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a bathroom remodel take?

Two to three weeks for a pull-and-replace, three to six for a gut. Most of that is sequencing rather than work: tile needs to cure, paint needs to dry, and the plumber has to come back after the tiler.

Can I use the bathroom during the work?

Not the one being remodelled. If it is the only bathroom in the house, plan for that: it is the single most common reason a project becomes unbearable rather than merely inconvenient.

Do I need a permit?

For anything touching plumbing, electrical, or the structure, yes in nearly every jurisdiction. A cosmetic refresh with no plumbing or wiring changes usually does not. Unpermitted bathroom work is a routine finding at sale and it is expensive to resolve retroactively.

Is it cheaper to keep the same layout?

Substantially. Keeping the plumbing where it is can be the difference between a $14,000 job and a $28,000 one. If you are considering moving the toilet, price both versions before deciding.

Should I buy my own fixtures?

For visible things such as the vanity, taps and lighting, often yes, and contractors are usually happy to fit owner-supplied items. For the tub, the shower valve and anything inside the wall, let the contractor supply it: they warrant it, and a valve failure behind finished tile is not a place to save $80.