How much does it cost to renovate a bathroom in 2024?

Your bathroom renovation project will need to start with clearing out all your old fixtures to make room for the new ones. In most cases, this will involve removing your shower and/or tub, as well as any current flooring. Depending on how extensive your renovation is, you may also have to remove your vanity, toilet, and even some walls.

The good news is that if you hire out your bathroom strip-out, you’ll only have to pay for labour. In general, you can expect to pay somewhere around $50 per square metre, although some factors can drive that up. For instance, if you have tile on your walls, you may have to pay more for that demolition.

Once the old fixtures are gone, you’ll get to start the exciting part of the process – picking out your new fixtures! You’ll have to buy new furnishings for your upgraded bathroom design. While this can be a very fun process, you’ll need to balance your decorating tastes with your budget needs.

In general, shower enclosures cost somewhere between $800 and $1,400, while tiles can cost anywhere from $30 per square metre to more than $150 per square metre. Buying toilets will run you anywhere between $120 and $1,200 and vanities cost between $700 and $1,500. And don’t forget to account for any extra upgrades you’re adding, such as skylights or new mirrors.

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Unfortunately, once you have your new furnishings, the job is only half done. Unless you want to install them yourself, you’ll have to pay for labour costs to put in your beautiful new fixtures. This can represent as much as half your bathroom renovation costs, depending on how much you’re having done.

Most plumbers charge a call-out fee between $60 and $100 in addition to an hourly rate of $100 to $150. Tilers charge between $45 and $150 an hour, electricians charge between $70 and $130 and carpenters charge fees from $50 an hour. Overall, most Australians pay between $5,000 and $30,000 overall for their bathroom renovations.

Depending on your budget and your tastes, you may want to consider hiring an interior designer to create the bathroom of your dreams. For one thing, a good designer can help you create a bathroom layout that flows easily with your daily routine. But they can also make sure your bathroom has all the right touches and works well with the design in the rest of your house.

Most interior designers charge between $25 and $50 per hour for their services, depending on where you live and how experienced they are. Designers with a lot of expertise could charge as much as $65 for their hourly rate. Your interior design costs will depend on how involved your design is and how much you know you want going in.

With all these ranges, how do you know which end of the price scale your renovation will land on? It should come as no surprise that, in general, larger bathrooms cost more to renovate. More space means more demolition costs, more tile costs and higher design costs.

A huge amount of your renovation cost will depend on how extensive – and expensive – you want to go with your renovations. A full strip-out and renovation will run on the higher end of the scale, while you won’t pay as much for a simple shower swap. And having finer tastes will drive up your costs faster than almost anything else we’ve discussed.

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If you’re working on a budget, there are a few things you can do to keep your costs down. The first thing you can do is to do as much of the work yourself as you feel comfortable with. For instance, you may be able to handle removing some of your old fixtures, painting your new bathroom, or installing the new vanity or toilet.

It’s also a good idea to prioritise your projects and your fixture choices when planning your bathroom redo. If your proposed design is over budget, decide which elements could stay or which fixtures you could swap out for more affordable models. Depending on the size of your bathroom, swapping to a tile that’s just $5 less per square metre could save you a lot of money.

There isn’t one answer to the question, “How much does it cost to renovate a bathroom?” Your costs will depend on the size of your bathroom, the extent of your renovations, and the quality of your new fixtures. When planning your budget, keep in mind that as much as half of your renovation cost will go to paying for labour so the choice of building professionals will make a huge difference. But, the more planning and research you do the better chance you’ll end up with the bathroom of your dreams at the price you can afford.

Related article: How much does it cost to tile a bathroom in Australia?