concentrate on your cabinets and appliances..... counters and flooring are pretty easy to calculate based on price per sq foot and those things are all price labelled when you shop. You will need hardware/sink/faucet/lighting..yes...but those costs are not the things that bulk up your budget. Your labor group will provide you, in their price, all the stuff that goes into the gutting and redoing subfloor/drywall/electrical/plumbing/etc.......why do you want to figure that all out?? So they need an extra sheet of drywall or backer board...your payment to them is to provide all this so you don't have to line item and do it yourself...are you worried about the cost of your "gut " remodel"? Get quotes for what you want and in this process you should find a group/crew that you "click" with enough to give yourself permission to trust so you don't have to do their work of itemization of construction supplies. Focus on your kitchen and how you want it to look/function.

Well, we are not pricing this kitchen out as usual. My father is a contractor so he will be doing the extension, moving windows etc. We will just sub out labor as needed. We've estimated labor and basic supplies like sheetrock and 2x4s. It's a little hard to get a feel for how much this is actually going to cost and I don't want to overestimate what we can spend on cabinets or get blindsided by late addition costs.

There are addl items that add up if small (and can be very big depending upon your job requirements):

Demolition (to include disposal fees if applicable)

Temporary Kitchen set up (may not be zero)

Extra meals out (if kitchen cannot be used)

Windows/doors (could be tens of thousands)

Paint

Watchme's list isn't specific to kitchens, and therefore leaves out appliances and cabinets - basically you have to combine all of the above lists - and when making your appliance list, don't forget the cost of panels if you decide to panel either the fridge or dishwasher, and a proper vent hood.

This was our list:

• Samples (tile, doors, paint, handles)
• Cabinet Boxes/Drawers
• Cabinet Lighting
• Cabinet Door and Drawer
• FrontsDoor
• Pulls/Handles
• Refrigerator
• Oven/Microwave
• Cooktop
• Hood
• Dishwasher
• Countertop
• Sink
• Faucet
• Reverse
• Osmosis
• Lighting (sink, pendants, ceiling)
• Backsplash
• Construction Supplies

We did not change the flooring, but that might need to be added as well. We are DIY. We did Ikea with custom fronts which is why those are two separate lines.

You can find calculators at different cabinet manufacturers to help you figure out that cost. It depends on what type of cabinets you are looking for. You have to spend a little bit of time estimating how much cabinetry you will need before you can get a decent estimate on cabinets.

We ended up spending approximately 1/3 on cabinets, 1/3 on appliances, and 1/3 on the rest. I don't think that would be normal for everyone though. We found a cheaper granite that we really liked (keeping the last 1/3 total down), and we ended up spending more on appliances than we thought we would.

Also, to properly estimate costs, don't forget to add in sales taxes. That can be a big surprise if you have not considered them in your budget.

Don't forget the cost of permits/inspections! And always have a "cushion" for the things that you add or are unexpected.

Construction costs vary by location.

Whenever you go into a wall you may have a problem-you might find termites or other damage and have to re-build some or all of the wall. For my cushion, I doubled the anticipated demo and construction costs.

If you intend to remove load-bearing walls or change the size or location of your windows or doors you will probably have to get an engineering report to advise you on the new header beam size in order to get your permits.

If you are in an older house where you may have asbestos or lead paint issues you should add in the cost of testing and remediation.

If your electric panel has not been upgraded and there is no space for new circuits on it, you may have to upgrade it as well.

If you are on a raised foundation, changing your plumbing is not going to be that costly but adding a tile floor may be. You will need to determine whether the existing floor has to be reinforced for the weight of the tile. If you're on a slab you can put on the tile relatively easily but you moving the plumbing will cost more.

If you are adding square footage to the house, you may also need a new roof and a new HVAC system.

If for some reason you have a hard deadline, you will have to pay more and even then they won't guarantee their schedule.

I thought that this link to an older GW thread was really helpful Steps to planning a kitchen remodel

Labor is the lion's share of any job, so you need to get a handle on which jobs will be subbed out, and their scope. LOTS of electrical is needed in a modern kitchen, meaning new home run circuits in addition to the required small appliance circuits etc. It adds up. The last kitchen project that we did, the electrical portion was 12K because a new panel had to be done in order to provide all of the circuits and capacity. 3-5K is common if you are addressing those needed new circuits and under cabinet lighting etc. and have enough panel capacity.

Pkumbing is similar if you have older pipes. They may need upgrading. Moving them around obviously costs more, depending on foundation type and how far you are moving them. Plumbing can be anywhere from $500-$6000. That is why it is important to develop the overall design and scope of work in conjunction with a local knowledgable designer or GC who understands the trade offs of changing things vs your budget.

I've found Homewyse's cost estimators to be a good source of information. I can't speak to how accurate they are, but often seem to get me in the right ballpark.

Homewyse cost estimators