I spent over $750 to do a chair and from what I remember that did not cover the cost of the fabric. And if there is anything wrong with frame or repairs to be done, that adds to the cost. You will be spending at least $1500 or more and the fabric could add more cost. Some of the better upholstery fabrics are quite expensive. Look into the sale prices of a new sofa and loveseat and compare them to upholstery cost. You should be able to have a good upholsterer out to the house to give you a free estimate.

I think prices vary somewhat regionally. You also have to consider what kind of fabric you want to use. You can try to find something for 10-15/yd (pretty tough) or upwards. My guess is that 30/yd is realistic, but the sky's the limit, of course.

In FL, where I used to live, it would have been 500-700 in labor alone to reupholster my grandmother's sofa, something I fantasized about for a few years. It had clean lines and needed about 20 yards of fabric. Depending on the style of the sofa and pattern repeats, you're probably looking at 20-25 yards.

My experience is that unless you have an heirloom on your hands, it is cheaper to buy new...if you can find what you want. I usually reupholster things because I can't find what I want. That, and I often "find" things at yard sales or on the side of the road. ;-)

I recently had an estimate .. small sheraton sofa (70")
Labor: 750 if you used their materials.... so add the cost of fabric....

if you brought your own material they charged a cutting fee of 20/yd... since he basically came right out and said, they make their margin on the material.

so instead I had a slipcover made with my own fabric for $350.00 (not including fabric)

About a grand for my simple sofa, without material. I just paid $450 for a simple chair, without material. Yes, it usually is cheaper to buy new. I usually think, however, that holding onto well-made old stuff has benefits. It means less stuff going to the landfills, fewer trees to chop down, and (often) much better made furniture.

Most of the stuff in my LR (lamps, chairs, tables, etc) is at least 15 years old. It is amazing how you can change the look of things and update them, without throwing them away. That said, sometimes the best thing you can do to old furniture is to sell it on CL. If you are really sick of the item, make somebody ELSE happy and sell or donate it.

You might ask around at fabric shops for a small home upholsterer. I do upholstery out of my garage and usually start at about $300-350 for a basic sofa that just needs to be recovered. A sofa without skirt is usually 12-15 yards of fabric (unless it has a large repeat or pattern). I have several upholstery friends that charge about the same. We really only advertise by word of mouth or business cards on bulletin boards, so if you hunt around you can probably find a skilled person to do it more economically than a large shop. And of course we don't charge extra for using a customer's own fabric (since we don't sell our own) so you might be able to find fabric at an outlet or mill much cheaper than $25+.

Sarah