How Much Does A Bathroom Refit Cost In The UK

The bathroom is small, but don’t let that fool you — per square metre, it’s the most expensive room to renovate in the house. Tiling, plumbing, waterproofing and a dozen trades in a space barely bigger than a parking spot. Whether you’re dreaming of a spa-like retreat or just replacing a 1980s avocado suite, here’s how much a bathroom refit costs in the UK.

How much does a bathroom refit cost in the UK?

• Budget refresh (new suite, keep layout, budget tiles): £3,000–£5,000
• Mid-range refit (quality suite, new tiles, new flooring): £5,000–£9,000
• High-end refit (walk-in shower, wall-hung sanitaryware, designer tiles): £9,000–£15,000
• Luxury (layout changes, underfloor heating, premium finishes): £15,000–£25,000+

A straightforward like-for-like suite replacement in the same positions is the cheapest route — moving the toilet, bath or shower means new waste runs and pipework, adding £1,000–£3,000 before you’ve chosen a tile.

Where the money goes (mid-range £7,000 refit)

• Sanitaryware (bath/shower, toilet, basin): £1,000–£2,000
• Tiles and tiling labour: £1,200–£2,500 (tiling labour alone is £40–£60/m²)
• Plumbing and installation: £1,500–£2,500
• Electrics (lighting, extractor fan, shaver socket): £300–£600
• Flooring, plastering, painting: £500–£1,000
• The “while we’re at it” extras: always budget 10–15% contingency

How to keep costs down

• Keep the layout. Moving waste pipes is the single biggest cost escalator. The existing positions are almost always fine.
• Choose standard-size everything. Bespoke sizes mean bespoke prices — for suites, screens and especially shower trays.
• Tile strategically. Fully tiling floor-to-ceiling looks luxurious and costs a fortune in labour. Tile the wet areas fully and paint the rest with proper bathroom paint.
• Ex-display suites: bathroom showrooms sell displays at 40–60% off — same quality, fraction of the price.
• Do the demolition and painting yourself: ripping out the old suite and painting at the end saves £500–£1,000 in labour.
• Don’t move the soil pipe. Just don’t. It’s never worth it.

Design decisions that matter in small bathrooms

Most UK bathrooms are compact, so design choices carry extra weight. Wall-hung toilets and basins free up floor space; large-format tiles reduce visual clutter; a frameless glass shower screen keeps sightlines open; and good lighting transforms the room. Our small bathroom design guide covers the full visual toolkit — worth reading before you finalise the layout.

Ventilation and waterproofing: the unglamorous essentials

Two things separate a bathroom that lasts 20 years from one that fails in 5:

1. Waterproofing (“tanking”): shower areas must be properly tanked behind tiles — not just tiled onto plasterboard and hoped for the best. Specify it explicitly; cowboys skip it.
2. Extraction: a humidistat extractor fan (≥15 l/s) is non-negotiable. Without it, you’ll be fighting mould within a year. If condensation plagues the rest of the house too, see our condensation guide.

Timeline and finding a fitter

A standard refit takes 2–3 weeks; complex jobs with layout changes take 4+. You’ll be without a bathroom for most of it — plan accordingly (friendly neighbours, gym membership, or sheer determination). Get 3 quotes from bathroom specialists, check recent work, and never pay more than 25% upfront. Our tradesperson vetting guide walks through the process, and Which?’s bathroom reviews rate suppliers and installers.

The suite: where to spend vs where to save

Not all sanitaryware is created equal, but the price-quality curve has a sweet spot:

• Spend on: the shower valve/controls (cheap ones fail and they’re buried in the wall — a £200 quality valve outlives three £60 ones), the toilet’s flush mechanism (a good dual-flush saves water and never runs constantly), and taps (daily-touch items where quality is tangible).
• Save on: the bath itself (a £300 acrylic bath and a £900 one feel identical once filled — spend the difference on the tap), the basin (it’s a bowl; shape matters more than brand), and accessories (toilet roll holders and towel rings are jewellery, not engineering).
• The middle path on: the shower enclosure — frameless looks premium but costs double and shows every watermark; a good framed enclosure at half the price is easier to live with.
• Warranties tell the truth: a 25-year guarantee on brassware vs 1 year on the cheap alternative is the manufacturer telling you what they think of their own product.

Wet rooms: worth it?

The fully tanked, level-access wet room is the aspirational choice — and the expensive one. A proper wet room (tanked floor and walls, linear drain, correct falls) adds £2,000–£4,000 over a standard shower installation, and the waterproofing must be perfect — a failed wet room is a downstairs-ceiling disaster. Worth it when: someone in the household has mobility needs (level access is genuinely life-changing), the bathroom is tiny (removing the tray/enclosure frees remarkable space), or you’re building your “forever” bathroom. Not worth it when: it’s purely aesthetic in a family bathroom that’ll take a beating, or the installer can’t show you previous wet rooms they’ve done (this is specialist work — a general bathroom fitter learning on your floor is a risk). For most households, a low-profile shower tray with a frameless screen delivers 90% of the look at 50% of the cost and 10% of the risk.

The order of work: why sequence matters

Bathroom refits go wrong when trades trip over each other. The correct sequence:

1. Strip-out: old suite, tiles, flooring out. Check what’s underneath — this is when hidden problems (rotten floors, leaking pipes) reveal themselves.
2. First fix plumbing and electrics: pipework and cables run to new positions, before any surfaces go on.
3. Plastering and boarding: walls made good; tile backer boards in wet areas.
4. Tanking: waterproofing in shower/wet areas — before a single tile goes up.
5. Tiling: walls first, then floor. The tiler’s work sets the visual standard for everything after.
6. Second fix: suite fitted, taps and shower connected, electrics finished.
7. Sealing and finishing: silicone sealant (the right product, neatly applied), painting, final clean.

Where it goes wrong: tiling before tanking (waterproofing behind tiles is useless), second-fix before tiling (the plumber damages fresh tiles), and decorating before plumbing is finished (dust and damage). If your fitter can’t describe this sequence, they haven’t done enough bathrooms.

The takeaway

Budget £5,000–£9,000 for a quality mid-range refit. Keep the layout, tile the wet zones and paint the rest, insist on proper tanking and extraction, and get three quotes from specialists. The cheapest refit is the one you only do once.