A bathroom renovation in London costs between £5,000 and £30,000 or more in 2026. A small en-suite or a straightforward refit starts at £5,000-£8,000. A full standard family bathroom, with new sanitaryware, tiling and a fitted vanity, typically runs £8,000-£15,000. A high-end or luxury bathroom with bespoke joinery, stone surfaces and underfloor heating is £15,000-£30,000+. A cloakroom or WC is usually £3,000-£6,000. London prices sit roughly 20% to 40% above the UK average.
In This Guide
- Bathroom Renovation Cost at a Glance
- Cost Breakdown: Where Your Money Goes
- Small Bathroom and En-Suite Cost
- Luxury Bathroom Renovation Cost
- What Drives the Cost
- How Bespoke Joinery Changes a Bathroom
- When a Bathroom Becomes Building Work
- How Long a Bathroom Renovation Takes
- How Noba and Stod Approaches Bathrooms
- Frequently Asked Questions
Bathroom Renovation Cost at a Glance (2026 London Prices)
The figures below are typical all-in costs for a London bathroom renovation in 2026, covering labour, materials and finishes. They exclude VAT and assume the room stays in roughly the same place, with no major structural work. Prices rise once you move the layout, dig out a new en-suite, or specify fully bespoke joinery and stone.
| Bathroom Type | Typical Cost (London) | What It Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Cloakroom / WC | £3,000-£6,000 | WC, basin, part-tiling, new flooring, decoration. Compact and quick. |
| Small bathroom / en-suite | £5,000-£8,000 | Full refit: shower or bath, WC, basin, standard tiling, extractor, lighting. Off-the-shelf units. |
| Standard family bathroom | £8,000-£15,000 | Full refit with a fitted vanity, quality sanitaryware and brassware, full tiling, improved lighting. |
| High-end / luxury bathroom | £15,000-£30,000+ | Bespoke joinery vanity and storage, stone or large-format tiling, walk-in shower, underfloor heating, premium brassware. |
As a per-square-metre guide, a standard London bathroom fit-out works out at roughly £2,500-£5,000 per square metre, with luxury specifications reaching £5,000-£7,000 per square metre once bespoke cabinetry and natural stone are involved. For how a bathroom sits inside a whole-property budget, see our house renovation costs guide, where kitchens and bathrooms together usually take 20% to 30% of a full renovation budget.
Cost Breakdown: Where Your Money Goes
In a typical £8,000-£15,000 standard bathroom, labour is the single largest line, followed by tiling and sanitaryware. The table below shows how a mid-range refit tends to split.
| Element | Typical Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Labour (plumber, tiler, electrician, decorator) | £3,500-£7,000 | Usually 40% to 50% of the job. London day rates are the main reason costs sit above the UK average. |
| Tiling and surfaces | £1,200-£3,500 | Ceramic from the lower end; porcelain, large-format and natural stone toward the top. |
| Sanitaryware (WC, basin, bath, shower) | £1,000-£3,000 | Off-the-shelf suites at the lower end; designer brassware and a freestanding bath at the top. |
| Fitted vanity and storage joinery | £800-£4,000+ | Off-the-shelf vanity at the lower end; a bespoke, water-resistant vanity and tall storage at the top. |
| Waterproofing, extractor, lighting | £500-£1,500 | Tanking to wet areas, a quiet extractor, and layered lighting on separate circuits. |
| Underfloor heating (optional) | £600-£1,500 | Electric mat under tiles; a popular upgrade in London bathrooms. |
Small Bathroom and En-Suite Cost
A small bathroom or en-suite in London usually costs £5,000-£8,000 for a full refit. The room is compact, so materials are a smaller part of the bill, but the labour does not shrink in proportion: the plumber, tiler and electrician still need the same number of visits, and tight spaces can be slower to work in. The biggest savings on a small bathroom come from keeping the layout where it is, choosing a shower over a bath where space is limited, and specifying fewer tiled surfaces.
Clever storage is where a small bathroom feels expensive or cheap. A shallow, wall-hung vanity, a mirrored cabinet recessed between studs, and a tall unit in a dead corner add function without crowding the floor. This is the same fitted-furniture thinking we apply to under-stairs storage and compact joinery elsewhere in the home.
Luxury Bathroom Renovation Cost
A high-end or luxury bathroom in London runs £15,000-£30,000 or more. At this level the room is built around bespoke joinery and natural materials: a made-to-measure vanity in a moisture-stable material, a fitted dressing or storage wall, book-matched stone or large-format porcelain, a walk-in shower with a concealed drain, underfloor heating, and designer brassware. Prime central London period flats push toward and beyond the top of this range, in line with the prime renovation rates we set out in our whole-house guide.
Where a luxury bathroom earns its budget is in the joinery and the detailing: a vanity shaped to fit the contours of the wall, concealed cisterns and services, soft-close drawers on high-quality hardware, and panelling that carries a scheme from the bedroom into the en-suite. See our wall panelling ideas and cost guide for how panelled walls work in wet and splash zones.
What Drives the Cost
- Moving the layout. Relocating the WC, bath or shower means new drainage and pipework, which adds cost and time. Keeping fittings where they are is the single biggest saving.
- Specification. Ceramic tiles and an off-the-shelf suite sit at the lower end; natural stone, large-format porcelain, a freestanding bath and designer brassware move you up quickly.
- Joinery. A fitted, water-resistant vanity and storage wall cost more than a flat-pack unit but transform how the room works and looks.
- Condition behind the tiles. Rotten subfloors, old pipework and damp add cost once the room is stripped out. A survey before quoting reduces surprises.
- Access. Upper-floor flats, period buildings and tight London streets affect delivery and labour.
How Bespoke Joinery Changes a Bathroom
Most bathroom budgets are spent on tiles and sanitaryware, and the storage is an afterthought. We work the other way round. As a bespoke joinery and furniture studio, we design the vanity, the mirrored cabinets and the tall storage first, so every item is sized to the room and built from premium, moisture-stable carcass materials with high-quality soft-close hardware. Panels are shaped to follow the contours of walls in older London properties, concealed cisterns are boxed neatly, and finishes are chosen to live with humidity.
If you are planning bathrooms as part of a wider project, our interior fit-out service coordinates the joinery, tiling and finishes, and our bespoke joinery team builds the cabinetry in our own workshop.
When a Bathroom Becomes Building Work
A like-for-like refit is a finishing and joinery job. Adding a new bathroom where there was not one, carving an en-suite out of a bedroom, moving soil stacks, or forming a bathroom in a loft or basement is building work, with its own structural, drainage and, sometimes, planning considerations. For that side of a project, our sister company houseUP handles the structure, services and build, and we deliver the joinery, cabinetry and finishes inside it. One owner, two teams, so the structural and the bespoke sides stay joined up.
How Long a Bathroom Renovation Takes
A straightforward London bathroom refit takes about 2 to 3 weeks on site once materials are in. A standard family bathroom runs 3 to 4 weeks, and a high-end bathroom with bespoke joinery and stone can take 4 to 6 weeks, plus lead time for made-to-measure cabinetry and specialist materials. Allow extra design and ordering time at the start: joinery and natural stone are made or cut to order, not pulled off a shelf.
How Noba and Stod Approaches Bathrooms
Noba and Stod is a London bespoke joinery and furniture studio. For bathrooms, that means we lead with the cabinetry and the layout, coordinate one dedicated team of qualified trades through the tiling, plumbing and electrics, and build the vanity and storage in our own workshop. You get a single point of contact from design to handover, honest pricing after a survey, and furniture made to last in a humid room. Browse our guide to choosing a London joinery company if you are still comparing studios.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a bathroom renovation cost in London in 2026?
A bathroom renovation in London costs between £5,000 and £30,000 or more in 2026, excluding VAT. A small en-suite or straightforward refit is £5,000-£8,000, a standard family bathroom is £8,000-£15,000, and a high-end bathroom with bespoke joinery and stone is £15,000-£30,000+. A cloakroom or WC is usually £3,000-£6,000. London prices sit roughly 20% to 40% above the UK average, mainly because of labour rates.
How much does a small bathroom cost to renovate?
A small bathroom or en-suite in London typically costs £5,000-£8,000 for a full refit. The room is compact, so materials are a smaller part of the bill, but labour stays broadly the same because the plumber, tiler and electrician still need the same number of visits. Keeping the layout in place and choosing a shower over a bath are the biggest savings.
Why are London bathrooms more expensive than the UK average?
London bathrooms cost roughly 20% to 40% more than the UK average, driven mainly by higher trade day rates, plus access and logistics in flats and period buildings, and a tendency toward higher specifications such as stone, bespoke vanities and underfloor heating.
Does a fitted vanity cost more than an off-the-shelf unit?
Yes. An off-the-shelf vanity can start under £1,000, while a bespoke, water-resistant fitted vanity and matching storage typically run £2,000-£4,000 or more. The bespoke route is sized exactly to the room, built from premium moisture-stable materials with soft-close hardware, and shaped to fit the contours of older walls, which is why it is a popular choice in London bathrooms.
What adds the most cost to a bathroom renovation?
Moving the layout is the biggest cost driver, because relocating the WC, bath or shower means new drainage and pipework. After that it is specification (natural stone, large-format tiling, a freestanding bath and designer brassware), bespoke joinery, and any hidden problems found behind the tiles once the room is stripped out.
Who handles the building work if I am adding a new bathroom?
A like-for-like refit is a finishing and joinery job. Creating a new bathroom, forming an en-suite, moving soil stacks, or adding a bathroom in a loft or basement is building work. Our sister company houseUP handles the structure, services and build, and Noba and Stod delivers the joinery, cabinetry and finishes inside it, so both sides of the project stay coordinated under one owner.
Last reviewed October 2026. Prices are a London market guide for planning and exclude VAT; we quote each bathroom after a survey.
