How Long Does It Take to Remodel a Kitchen?

Kitchen renos are an extremely popular home improvement endeavor but can take time to plan and build properly. So, whether you’re considering a floor-to-ceiling overhaul or simple cosmetic changes for your home’s hub — the kitchen — it’s good to prep with realistic expectations.

This brings us to the age-old question: “How long does a kitchen remodel take?” We’ll break it down so you can better assess your situation and determine an appropriate or probable project duration.

Factors Affecting Kitchen Remodel Timelines

Before we nail down specific numbers, let’s examine some — but certainly not all — variables that often influence the duration of kitchen renovations.

We recommend that you peruse this list with your project in mind. That will really bring the weight of each factor home, so to speak.

Size of the Kitchen

Kitchen size is an obvious place to start the discussion of how long a kitchen remodel takes. The amount of time is directly related to how much territory needs to be addressed.

If the kitchen is small, it may take less time to complete the remodel because there’s less  space, and therefore less work to do. On the other hand, a spacious kitchen may take more time because there’s more area to cover, hence more work.

The size of the kitchen can also affect the types of materials and fixtures that can be used, as well as the layout and design of the kitchen. These aspects can influence project length in their own rights, too.

Scope of the Project

Scope isn’t just about the square footage of your kitchen. It’s also about the complexity or difficulty of the project.

The more expansive or elaborate the project is, the longer it will take to complete. In fact, projects that require extensive or complicated changes may take several months or more to wrap up.

This isn’t just because it simply takes more time to do more work. It’s possible that more contractors, vendors, and suppliers must be involved. Additionally, your project may require more permits and inspections. Each of these people and processes has different timelines and schedules, which can further extend the duration of the project.

Supply Chain Readiness

When planning a kitchen renovation project, it’s important to think about the end-to-end supply chain of all necessary materials, supplies, and craftspeople.

Without these resources readily available, the duration of the renovation project can be significantly prolonged. After all, you can’t put in that backsplash tomorrow if the subway tiles are on backorder and the tiler’s booked solid for the next month!

Ensuring a reliable supply chain before starting your project is a best practice. Having contingencies in place is a smart move, too. Doing so can help avoid delays and facilitate as efficient a timeline as possible.

That’s why it’s important to work with a good remodeler who understands the supply chain and can deftly manage vendors, ordering, and deliveries. Having a pro handle all the details can help to avoid delays and facilitate as efficient a timeline as possible.

Human Engagement

Undertaking a home improvement project, such as a kitchen remodel, is as much a “people project” as it is a “construction project.” Everyone has a role and responsibilities to fulfill in order to keep the reno moving forward at a reasonable pace.

Timely and responsive participation from the homeowner is essential to the project’s successful completion. This is because the homeowner’s input regarding design and style choices, decisions on materials, review of progress, and sign-off on changes and completed tasks all play a part in determining how long it will take for the kitchen renovation to be finished.

Similarly, contractors are on the hook for being communicative and organized. As the experts on the job, it’s their duty to perform their work with integrity and professionalism. It’s on them to be proactive when they need answers or approvals from the homeowner.

Budget — Amount & Availability

Yes, sometimes money manipulates time. In certain scenarios, increasing a budget or hastening the cashflow can speed up the rate of progress and compress the project timeline. Inversely, reducing the spend or slowing the availability of funds can extend the time it takes to finish a kitchen remodel.

However, if your remodel is being done under a set-price contract (like we do), this may be less of a concern. We make sure all budgeting and financing is figured out long before the project starts.

This underscores the importance of:

• Identifying the budget
• Determining and prioritizing must-haves vs nice-to-haves for the project
• Engaging a knowledgable remodeler who can help you through the budgeting process

Doing so will ultimately save you time and money.

How Long Does a Kitchen Renovation Take?

Depending on project size and complexity, many projects last between 3-8 months. However, an “average” kitchen remodel takes around 6-16 weeks to complete. If you’re looking for a more precise estimate of your project timeline, you’ll have to discuss the details with your contractor or designer.

Basic Updates

If your kitchen just needs some touching up, you could be looking at only a few days to a few weeks for renovation. Professional tradespeople are generally able to work quickly, especially with more straightforward projects that have fewer moving pieces.

Full Renovations

Want to rip out your existing space and replace pretty much everything? You’re in for a longer haul. Full remodels tend to take anywhere from 6 weeks to 5 months.

We specialize in extensive kitchen renos. In our experince, though, most project of this scale take 2-3 months of planning and design and 8-10 weeks of actual construction (which includes demolition, design, installation, clean up, and so on). But, of course, it depends on complexity, size, and other factors.

Mid-Range Remodels

The Goldilocks of kitchen redos, these projects fall somewhere in between a refresh and a gut job. As such, the duration will likely be somewhere in that “average” zone — 2-4 weeks for the design phase plus 6-12 weeks build-out.