Guide · Seattle, 2026
What a kitchen remodel actually costs in Seattle.
Kitchen remodeling costs in Seattle vary enormously, and almost all of the variation comes from one question: are you moving anything.
2026 ranges by scope
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01
$18,000 to $35,000
A cosmetic update. Same layout, same plumbing. New fronts, counters, backsplash, paint and lighting.
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02
$45,000 to $85,000
A full mid-range remodel: new cabinetry, countertops, appliances, flooring and lighting, with the layout kept.
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03
$85,000 to $150,000
Wall removal, relocated plumbing, electrical work or a new layout. This is where the beam, the permit and the engineering come in.
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04
Above $300,000
Custom kitchens can and do exceed this. Slab, bespoke cabinetmaking and specified appliances move quickly once you are here.
Then there is the part that is not in anybody's quote.
Seattle homeowners should also budget for the city's 10.55% sales tax, permit fees, design services, and a 10 to 15 percent contingency for what is behind the walls: outdated wiring, galvanized pipes, damaged subfloor, asbestos. On a $90,000 kitchen that is real money, and a quote that does not mention it is not a cheaper quote, it is a less complete one.
Where the money actually goes.
Cabinetry and labor usually account for more than half the total budget. That is why early planning and a detailed scope matter more than shopping for a cheaper faucet, and why keeping the existing layout is the single most effective way to control cost while still completely transforming the room.
What the contingency is actually for
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01
Wiring that predates the code
Knob-and-tube and early aluminum are common in Seattle houses of a certain age. You find it the day the plaster comes off, and you cannot leave it once you have seen it.
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02
Galvanized supply pipe
It silts up from the inside and drops the pressure at every fitting. If it is there, the kitchen is the cheapest moment in the next thirty years to replace it.
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03
Subfloor
A slow leak under a dishwasher does not announce itself. It shows up as a soft patch when the old floor lifts.
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04
Asbestos
Old sheet flooring and some adhesives. Testing is cheap, abatement is not, and it is not optional.
Two quotes for the same kitchen can differ by $30,000 and both be honest.
They are usually not quoting the same job. Before you compare them, check that both include the same things, because the gap is almost always in what one of them left out rather than in the price of the work itself.
What to check in any quote, ours included
Is the design in the number, or extra?
Plans, elevations and selections take real hours. If a quote has no design line, either it is coming later as an invoice or nobody has drawn the kitchen yet.
Are the appliances in it?
They change the cabinet openings, so they have to be chosen early. A quote that says "appliances by owner" is not wrong, it is just a number you have to add yourself.
Is the stone templated or estimated?
Slab is priced by the slab, not the square foot, and a long island can force a second one. An estimate made before templating can move.
Who is pulling the permit?
Move a wall, a gas line or a circuit and Seattle wants a permit. It is the contractor's job to pull it, and the fee belongs in the quote.
Is the 10.55% sales tax included?
On a $90,000 kitchen that is roughly $9,500. It is the single most common reason a final invoice surprises people.
What is the allowance, and what happens if you go over it?
Tile "at $12 a square foot" is an allowance, not a selection. If the tile you fall in love with is $30, the difference is yours. Ask what the allowances assume.
The single biggest lever is the one nobody wants to hear.
Keeping the existing layout is the most effective way to control cost while still completely transforming the room. Moving the sink twelve feet is not a cabinet decision, it is a plumbing decision, and it usually pulls the electrical and the permit along behind it. Sometimes it is worth every dollar, as it was in University District where a wall came out. Often the room just needed better cabinetry and more light.
The honest way to find out which band you are in is twenty minutes at the studio with the plan of your house.
Bring the floor plan if you have one, photographs if you do not, and a rough idea of whether you want to move anything. That is enough to place you in one of the four bands above with reasonable confidence, and it costs nothing.