Kitchen renovation costs in Spain: €13,700 to €16,200
Three quotes for a 12m² kitchen range from €13,700 to €16,200 excluding floors and tiles. Users compare this to a 2019 renovation that cost half as much.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
A 12m² kitchen now exceeds €20,000
A 12-square-meter kitchen. Three quotes requested from kitchen stores. The cheapest was €13,700; the most expensive, €16,200. None included flooring or tiling, which are separate items pushing the bill over €20,000. This scenario is described by someone comparing it to their parents' case: an 18m² kitchen renovated in 2019, including floors, walls, plumbing, electricity, lacquered MDF furniture, countertops, and appliances, for around €9,000. Less than half the price, and six square meters larger.
The difference between quotes isn't due to whims. The cheapest option offers melamine furniture; the other two, lacquered MDF. The rest of the discrepancy comes from appliances: some include Whirlpool, more economical brands, while others antiestéticature Balay, which are pricier. Nothing top-of-the-line, the client insists. Standard materials.
The carpenter who changed prices in two years
The price hike isn't exclusive to kitchen furniture. A business commissioned a wooden structure just before the war in Ukraine broke out: a quote of €12,000, accepted and executed. Upon completion, the self-employed worker confessed that he had practically broken even with that client because wood prices had jumped from €700 to €1,200 per cubic meter.
This episode affected how the sector operates. Quotes went from having a three-month validity period to only fifteen days. The trinc year, the same professional did another job for €8,000. When asked how much that same work would cost later, the answer was blunt: he wouldn't build it for less than €11,000. A 37% increase for the same task.
Why is the kitchen store more expensive than the builder?
The cost structure explains much of the markup. Those who delegate everything to a single company pay surcharges on every item: renovation, installation, and appliances. The recurring advice is to separate tasks: use a renovation firm or builder for floors, tiles, and installations; a kitchen furniture store for cabinetry; and buy appliances individually at specialized stores, since they all have standard dimensions.
The most optimistic calculation, attributed to one participant, argues that a kitchen of that size should cost €4,000 or €5,000 if hired through renovation professionals rather than a kitchen store. It's common to hear that kitchen modules are sold at DIY hypermarkets for €30 or €50 each, and assembly is comparable to putting together living room furniture. Only the artificial stone countertop requires on-site finishing.
The case of the carpenter who built the kitchen for €3,500
Contrasting with store quotes, there is a case that breaks all patterns: a 20m² L-shaped custom-made kitchen, with interior cabinets in wood tonalidad, exterior ones in Cambrian oak, and laminate countertops, for €3,500. No upper cabinets, due to the owners' age, but including an oven column, microwave, and storage, plus a battery of base units and drawers under the hob.
The breakdown of that work is revealing: boards bought and cut on site, an apprentice working for free in exchange for training, doors costing about €5 in materials, countertops at €50 each. Total material costs wouldn't reach €600. Labor and margins explain the difference. The conclusion drawn is uncomfortable: the same result can cost six times more depending on who signs off on it.
Full home renovation soaring to €35,000
The phenomenon isn't limited to kitchens. A full renovation of a 70-square-meter apartment, including a new kitchen, appliances, and windows, has reached €35,000. In another 100-square-meter apartment, with wall smoothing and painting, the figure exceeds €40,000. Windows, they note, are quite expensive today.
Comparison with new construction is inevitable. Buying an old house and renovating it entirely has become an unmanageable operation: a relative bought a house to renovate for around €500,000 plus €150,000 for works; today, the same house wouldn't be found for less than €800,000, also to demolish, and the renovation would go up to €300,000 or more. It almost makes more sense to buy new construction.
There remains the disorienting data point. Official inflation was announced at around 2% annually. Kitchen quotes, however, have doubled in six years. And wood prices rose 37% in two. Someone will have to explain what shopping basket measures that 2%.
A 12-square-meter kitchen. Three quotes requested from kitchen stores. The cheapest was €13,700; the most expensive, €16,200. None included flooring or tiling, which are separate items pushing the bill over €20,000. This scenario is described by someone comparing it to their parents' case: an 18m² kitchen renovated in 2019, including floors, walls, plumbing, electricity, lacquered MDF furniture, countertops, and appliances, for around €9,000. Less than half the price, and six square meters larger.
The difference between quotes isn't due to whims. The cheapest option offers melamine furniture; the other two, lacquered MDF. The rest of the discrepancy comes from appliances: some include Whirlpool, more economical brands, while others antiestéticature Balay, which are pricier. Nothing top-of-the-line, the client insists. Standard materials.
The carpenter who changed prices in two years
The price hike isn't exclusive to kitchen furniture. A business commissioned a wooden structure just before the war in Ukraine broke out: a quote of €12,000, accepted and executed. Upon completion, the self-employed worker confessed that he had practically broken even with that client because wood prices had jumped from €700 to €1,200 per cubic meter.
This episode affected how the sector operates. Quotes went from having a three-month validity period to only fifteen days. The trinc year, the same professional did another job for €8,000. When asked how much that same work would cost later, the answer was blunt: he wouldn't build it for less than €11,000. A 37% increase for the same task.
Why is the kitchen store more expensive than the builder?
The cost structure explains much of the markup. Those who delegate everything to a single company pay surcharges on every item: renovation, installation, and appliances. The recurring advice is to separate tasks: use a renovation firm or builder for floors, tiles, and installations; a kitchen furniture store for cabinetry; and buy appliances individually at specialized stores, since they all have standard dimensions.
The most optimistic calculation, attributed to one participant, argues that a kitchen of that size should cost €4,000 or €5,000 if hired through renovation professionals rather than a kitchen store. It's common to hear that kitchen modules are sold at DIY hypermarkets for €30 or €50 each, and assembly is comparable to putting together living room furniture. Only the artificial stone countertop requires on-site finishing.
The case of the carpenter who built the kitchen for €3,500
Contrasting with store quotes, there is a case that breaks all patterns: a 20m² L-shaped custom-made kitchen, with interior cabinets in wood tonalidad, exterior ones in Cambrian oak, and laminate countertops, for €3,500. No upper cabinets, due to the owners' age, but including an oven column, microwave, and storage, plus a battery of base units and drawers under the hob.
The breakdown of that work is revealing: boards bought and cut on site, an apprentice working for free in exchange for training, doors costing about €5 in materials, countertops at €50 each. Total material costs wouldn't reach €600. Labor and margins explain the difference. The conclusion drawn is uncomfortable: the same result can cost six times more depending on who signs off on it.
Full home renovation soaring to €35,000
The phenomenon isn't limited to kitchens. A full renovation of a 70-square-meter apartment, including a new kitchen, appliances, and windows, has reached €35,000. In another 100-square-meter apartment, with wall smoothing and painting, the figure exceeds €40,000. Windows, they note, are quite expensive today.
Comparison with new construction is inevitable. Buying an old house and renovating it entirely has become an unmanageable operation: a relative bought a house to renovate for around €500,000 plus €150,000 for works; today, the same house wouldn't be found for less than €800,000, also to demolish, and the renovation would go up to €300,000 or more. It almost makes more sense to buy new construction.
There remains the disorienting data point. Official inflation was announced at around 2% annually. Kitchen quotes, however, have doubled in six years. And wood prices rose 37% in two. Someone will have to explain what shopping basket measures that 2%.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (20 replies).
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