The three levels of kitchen renovation
Almost every kitchen quote falls into one of three bands, and knowing which one you are asking for is the single most useful thing you can do before speaking to a contractor. The bands are not about quality — a well-executed facelift beats a badly executed refit — they are about how much of the kitchen you are actually replacing.
| Level | What it covers | Typical 2026 cost |
|---|---|---|
| Facelift | New doors and drawer fronts on sound carcasses, new countertop, new splashback, paint. Layout unchanged. | R30,000 – R70,000 |
| Mid-range refit | All-new cabinetry, new tops, new sink and taps, new appliances, new lighting. Layout largely unchanged. | R80,000 – R180,000 |
| High-end / re-plan | Custom joinery, stone tops, moved plumbing and electrics, walls altered, integrated appliances. | R200,000+ |
The jump between the first two bands is mostly cabinetry. The jump to the third is mostly movement — the moment the sink, stove or fridge changes position, you are paying a plumber and an electrician to re-route services, and a tiler and plasterer to make good afterwards.
Where the money actually goes
For a typical mid-range refit in the R80,000–R180,000 band, the split looks roughly like this. The percentages matter more than the rands, because they tell you which decision will move your total.
| Component | Share of budget | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Cabinetry | 35–45% | R30,000 – R90,000 |
| Countertops | 15–25% | R12,000 – R45,000 |
| Appliances | 10–20% | R10,000 – R60,000 |
| Plumbing & electrical | 8–15% | R8,000 – R25,000 |
| Tiling & splashback | 5–10% | R4,000 – R15,000 |
| Strip-out, making good, paint | 5–10% | R5,000 – R15,000 |
Two things follow from that table. First, if a quote is far cheaper than another, the difference is almost always in cabinetry or tops — ask what board and what stone, not why it is cheaper. Second, appliances are the easiest line to control: they are the one component you can buy separately, on sale, without affecting the build.
Cabinetry: the biggest single cost
Kitchen cabinetry is priced per linear metre of run — measure along the wall, ignore the corners. Most Western Cape kitchens are between 4 and 8 linear metres.
| Material | What it is | Per linear metre, installed |
|---|---|---|
| Melamine | Chipboard core with a bonded melamine face. The standard budget option. | R3,000 – R5,000 |
| Supawood / MDF, sprayed | Denser board with a sprayed paint finish. Takes detail; the mid-market default. | R5,000 – R8,000 |
| Solid timber / custom joinery | Made to measure by a cabinetmaker, usually for non-standard spaces. | R8,000 – R15,000 |
A word on the carcasses, because it is where corners get cut invisibly. The carcass is the box; the door is what you see. A cheap kitchen often pairs decent-looking doors with 16mm chipboard carcasses and stapled backs, which sag under a stone top within a few years. Ask for the carcass board thickness — 16mm is standard, 18mm is better — and whether the backs are grooved in or stapled on.
Hinges and runners are the other silent variable. Soft-close hinges and full-extension drawer runners from a known brand add perhaps R3,000–R6,000 to a kitchen and are the parts you touch every single day. It is a small percentage of the total and the first thing people regret saving on.
Countertops compared
Countertops are priced per square metre of surface, and the material choice can swing a kitchen budget by R30,000 on its own.
| Material | Per m², installed | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Laminate | R700 – R1,400 | Cheapest by far. Cannot take heat; chips at the edges; swells if water gets into a cut. |
| Solid surface (acrylic) | R1,800 – R3,000 | Seamless joins, repairable if scratched. Less heat-tolerant than stone. |
| Engineered quartz | R2,500 – R4,000 | The best all-round value. No sealing, very stain-resistant, consistent colour. |
| Granite | R2,200 – R4,500 | Natural stone, every slab different. Needs sealing periodically. |
| Marble | R3,500 – R7,000 | Beautiful and porous. Stains from wine, lemon and oil. Not a practical family kitchen top. |
The costs that catch people out
These rarely appear on a first quote and regularly appear on the final invoice.
- Moving the sink or stove. Re-routing water, waste and power typically adds R6,000–R18,000 once making good is included. Waste pipes have to fall, which sometimes makes a "small" move structurally awkward.
- Wall condition behind the old units. Old kitchens hide damp, crumbling plaster and dead wiring. Budget R3,000–R8,000 as a contingency for what is found on strip-out day.
- Floor level and finish. If the old units sat on unfinished slab, the floor under them needs tiling or levelling once they come out.
- Extraction. Ducting an extractor to an outside wall costs more than a recirculating unit and is the better result. Confirm which one is quoted.
- Electrical compliance. A kitchen with new circuits needs an electrician's sign-off. See our electrical COC guide for what that involves.
- Living without a kitchen. Two to four weeks of takeaways is a real cost that no quote contains.
How long it takes
The on-site work is short; the waiting is long. Cabinetry is manufactured to your measurements, and that manufacturing happens before anyone arrives at your house.
| Stage | Typical duration |
|---|---|
| Design, quoting and final measure | 1 – 2 weeks |
| Cabinetry manufacturing | 3 – 6 weeks |
| Strip-out and services | 2 – 4 days |
| Cabinet installation | 2 – 4 days |
| Stone template, cut and fit | 5 – 10 days after install |
| Tiling, plumbing connection, paint, snags | 3 – 5 days |
Plan for six to ten weeks from signing to a finished kitchen, of which two to four weeks are disruptive. The stone gap in the middle is unavoidable: the tops cannot be templated until the cabinets are physically in place.
What should be in a kitchen quote
A quote you can actually compare names the materials. If two quotes differ by R50,000, this list will tell you why.
- Carcass board type and thickness, and door material and finish
- Linear metres of cabinetry, split between base and wall units
- Hinge and runner brand, and whether soft-close is included
- Countertop material, thickness, edge profile, and square metres
- Which appliances are supplied by the contractor and which by you
- Whether plumbing and electrical re-routing is included, and how much
- Splashback material and area
- Strip-out, rubble removal and making good
- Payment schedule tied to milestones, and the snag-list holdback
Red flags
- A single-line quote. "Kitchen renovation as discussed — R145,000" is not a quote; it is a number. You cannot compare it or hold anyone to it.
- No final measure before manufacturing. Cabinetry cut from a rough measurement will need packing strips and filler panels to fit.
- Stone ordered before cabinets are installed. See above — it is a gamble with your money.
- More than 50% up front. A deposit covering materials is normal. Half the contract value before work starts is not.
- No mention of who connects the gas or signs off the electrics. These are separate certified trades, not incidental extras.
Frequently asked questions
Get a kitchen quote you can actually compare
Tell us what you have and what you want, and we will put you in front of renovation contractors who quote line by line — cabinetry, tops, appliances and services separately, so you can see exactly what you are paying for.