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Why there’s no price range yet
We only show price ranges when they’re backed by real LokalMatch quote data or reliable, cited sources. Until then, here’s what usually changes the price — and the quickest way to a real number is to compare quotes.
What affects the price
- Whether the sink, stove and dishwasher stay in place — moving them means opening the floor for drain and vent
- Removing a load-bearing wall, which adds an engineer's drawing, a beam and a permit
- Cabinet construction: plywood boxes and dovetailed drawers against particle board and stapled boxes
- Counter material and the number of cut-outs, seams and finished edges
- Bringing kitchen electrical up to current code, which a licensed electrical contractor must do and permit
- Appliance choices, especially a gas range or a panel-ready fridge that changes the cabinetry
- Asbestos testing and removal in homes built before 1990, if the old flooring or wallboard is disturbed
- Whether the floor is replaced through the whole open-plan level or stops at the kitchen
- Access: a third-floor condo with an elevator booking is not a walk-in back door
- Lead times on cabinets and countertop templating, which set the length of the job more than the trades do
What you are actually paying for
Cabinets and counters are the visible spend, and they are usually the biggest single line. But a kitchen quote is really four jobs stacked on each other: demolition and disposal, the trades that work inside the open walls, the cabinet order, and the finishing that hides all of it.
That is why a quote that looks high can be the honest one. A contractor who has priced the electrical to current code, the drywall repair after the plumber, and a bin for the old cabinets will land above the one who has priced cabinets and a day of labour.
The four decisions that move the number most
Does the plumbing move? Leaving the sink where it is keeps the job above the floor. Moving it to an island means opening the floor, running drain and vent, and — in most of the country — an inspection before it gets closed up.
Does a wall come down? If it carries load, you need a beam, and a beam needs an engineer's drawing, a permit and often temporary support while it goes in. Contractors price this as its own project, because it is one.
What are the cabinet boxes made of? Doors are what you look at; boxes are what you pay for. Plywood boxes, solid drawer construction and soft-close hardware cost more than thermofused particle board and will still be square in fifteen years.
Is the house old enough to need a test? Health Canada notes that before 1990 the housing industry used asbestos in wallboard, compounds and vinyl floor tiles, and that the risk comes when those materials are disturbed. Ripping up a 1970s tile floor without testing first is the kind of decision that turns a kitchen into an abatement job.
Electrical is not optional and not a handyman job
A kitchen renovation almost always triggers electrical work: counter receptacles, a dedicated circuit for the microwave, an updated range circuit. In Ontario, the Electrical Safety Authority is explicit that only a Licensed Electrical Contractor may do electrical work for hire, that their ECRA/ESA licence number should appear on their estimate, and that the electrical work needs its own permit separate from the building permit. Other provinces run the same idea through their own authority. If a quote covers electrical without naming who holds the licence, ask.
How long you will not have a kitchen
Six to eight weeks of no kitchen is normal for a full renovation, and the long pole is almost never the trades — it is the cabinet order. Custom and semi-custom cabinets are built after you sign, and countertops are templated after the cabinets are installed, which adds another one to two weeks at the end. Plan the microwave-and-kettle corner before demolition day, not during it.
Reading three quotes that do not match
Ontario's consumer guidance is the clearest in the country and worth borrowing wherever you live: a home renovation contract worth more than 50 dollars must be in writing, and if the contract includes an estimate the final price cannot come in more than 10 per cent over it unless you have agreed in writing to the extra work. Ontario also recommends keeping a deposit to no more than 10 per cent, and gives you 10 days to cancel a contract you signed at home.
The Canada Revenue Agency's advice is shorter: get the contractor's GST/HST number on the paperwork. A cash price with no invoice removes your warranty, your proof of payment and your recourse, all at once.
Frequently asked questions
Why will nobody quote a kitchen over the phone?
Because the price sits behind the walls and under the floor. Until someone has seen where the drain stack is, what the floor is built on and what the panel can carry, any number is a guess — and a guess given over the phone is the one you will be arguing about later.
Is a cash price ever a good deal?
No. The Canada Revenue Agency's point is a tax one, but the consumer version is simpler: no invoice means no warranty claim, no proof of payment and no lien protection. The discount is the price of giving all of that up.
Do I need a permit to renovate a kitchen?
It depends on what you touch. Toronto, as one example, requires a building permit when the work involves structural or material alterations or installing or modifying heating and plumbing systems. A cosmetic refresh usually does not; moving the sink or taking out a wall usually does. Ask your municipality before demolition, not after.
How much of the quote is labour?
It varies too much to publish a split. What you can check is the underlying rate: Job Bank puts carpenters in Canada between 22.00 and 44.23 CAD an hour as of 19 November 2025, and that is the employee's wage, not the shop rate you are billed — insurance, overhead, warranty and profit sit on top of it.
Sources
Where the facts on this page come from.
Your rights when starting home renovations or repairs — Government of Ontario (accessed September 21, 2026)
Underground economy — Canada Revenue Agency (accessed September 21, 2026)
When do I need a building permit? — City of Toronto (accessed September 21, 2026)
Asbestos and your health — Health Canada (accessed September 21, 2026)
About Licensed Electrical Contractors — Electrical Safety Authority (Ontario) (accessed September 21, 2026)
Carpenter in Canada — wages — Job Bank, Government of Canada (accessed September 21, 2026)
Who wrote and reviewed this
Written by
LokalMatch EditorialReviewed by
LokalMatch Editorial
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