How Much Does a Kitchen Renovation Cost in the GTA? (2026)

9 October 2026 · 7 min read · Elm Kitchen, St. Thomas

Short answer: HomeStars' 2026 Toronto guide puts a counters-and-backsplash refresh at $15,000 to $20,000, a mid-range kitchen at $25,000 to $75,000, and a high-end custom kitchen at $100,000 and up. Here is where those numbers come from, what moves a GTA kitchen up the range, and the costs that rarely make it onto a first quote.

Ask three people in Toronto what their kitchen cost and you will hear three very different numbers. Some of that is the kitchen itself: a small galley and a big family kitchen with an island are not the same job. Some of it is the GTA: condo rules, labour rates and older housing all add their own costs. A single average hides all of that, so this guide breaks the price down instead.

The figures below come from HomeStars, the home-services directory, plus two price guides published by GTA renovators, the City of Toronto's own 2026 permit fee schedule, and Ontario's Condominium Act. All were read on 9 October 2026.

The 2026 price ranges

HomeStars' Toronto renovation cost guide, updated 21 August 2026, says kitchens are the most expensive single room in most Toronto renovations, and breaks them down by scope:

Price guides from GTA renovators land in the same zone. Castle Kitchens, a design-build firm in Markham, says most full mid-range renovations fall between $40,000 and $75,000 before HST in its 2026 Toronto guide. The Renovators of Canada, writing on RenovationFind, give $25,000 to $65,000 for most standard projects in their 2026 price guide. Both are contractors pricing their own work, so read them as a cross-check, not a quote.

Why the mid-range is so wide

$25,000 to $75,000 is a big spread, and most of it comes down to cabinets. HomeStars lists semi-custom cabinetry at $200 to $400 per linear foot and custom cabinetry at $500 to $1,200 per linear foot. On a 20-foot run of cabinets, that works out to roughly $4,000 to $8,000 for semi-custom and $10,000 to $24,000 for custom, before a single countertop, appliance or tile goes in.

Labour is the other half of the story. HomeStars puts labour at 40% to 50% of a Toronto renovation budget, with 2026 hourly rates of $80 to $150 for a plumber, $90 to $140 for an electrician, $70 to $110 for a carpenter and $65 to $100 for a tile installer. A kitchen that needs all four trades, in the right order, is where a well-run schedule saves real money.

For comparison, our own cost guide for St. Thomas and London puts a cosmetic refresh at $15,000 to $25,000, a full custom remodel at $25,000 to $50,000, and a structural overhaul at $50,000 and up. The GTA mid-range runs on to $75,000, where ours tops out at $50,000.

What pushes a GTA kitchen up the range

• Moving the sink or the range. HomeStars lists plumbing relocation at $2,500 to $5,000, and moving plumbing brings permits into the picture (below).
• The cabinet line. Custom versus semi-custom can be a five-figure difference on its own, as the numbers above show. Our cabinet range shows what a good shaker line looks like.
• Taking out a wall. An open-concept kitchen means drawings, a building permit, and sometimes an engineer before any demolition starts.
• Living in a condo. Building rules add deposits, fees and time (see the condo section).
• What's behind the walls. Older houses can hide wiring or plumbing that has to be brought up to code once the walls are open. Hold back a contingency of 10% to 15% for it.

Permits: what Toronto charges in 2026

The City of Toronto's building permit fee schedule, effective 1 January 2026, charges $11.53 per square metre of floor area for interior alterations in residential buildings. It also sets a minimum fee of $214.79 for all work. Plumbing fixtures in a single-family dwelling are $23.20 each.

For a typical 150 sq ft kitchen (about 14 m²), 14 × $11.53 comes to $161.42, so the $214.79 minimum is what you would pay for the building permit. The fee is a small line in a kitchen budget. Time matters more: work that needs a permit cannot start until the permit is issued, so build that wait into your timeline.

Toronto's when do I need a building permit page is clear on the kitchen basics: installing cabinetry and millwork, and repairing or replacing plumbing fixtures, don't need a permit; adding or removing walls, and installing or modifying plumbing, do. Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Markham, Oakville and every other GTA municipality set their own fees, so check with your own city's building department, or see our GTA page for each city's building department. Toronto suggests calling 311 or a district Building Permit office to confirm whether your project needs a permit, as its interior alterations page notes.

Electrical work is separate everywhere in Ontario. The Electrical Safety Authority says almost all electrical work must be reported through a notification of work before it starts. New circuits for counters, a range or pot lights all count.

Condos: the costs that aren't on the first quote

Condo kitchens come with costs that a house doesn't have. HomeStars lists them:

• A refundable damage deposit of $1,000 to $5,000.
• Elevator booking fees of $200 to $500 per day.
• Contractor insurance certificates, typically $2 million or more in general liability, plus WSIB clearance.
• Noise-hour limits that can stretch a typical schedule by one to two weeks.

Altogether, HomeStars estimates board-related costs at $2,000 to $10,000 before construction starts.

The bigger question is what you are allowed to touch. Under section 98 of Ontario's Condominium Act, 1998, a change to the common elements needs the board's approval by resolution and a written agreement with the corporation. That agreement covers who pays, and who is responsible for repair, maintenance and insurance. What counts as a common element depends on your building's declaration. Ask management for the renovation rules before you collect quotes, so every contractor prices the same conditions.

HST and the deposit

Ontario's HST is 13%, so a $50,000 kitchen quoted before tax is $56,500 with it. Price guides often quote before tax (Castle's mid-range figure is "before HST"), so line them up the same way before you compare.

Expect to pay a deposit when you sign. Estiquik, a quoting app for renovation contractors, has a plain-English guide called How Much Deposit Should a Contractor Ask For?. It covers what is typical, what Ontario's consumer guidance recommends, and what to do if someone asks for half up front.

Set your own budget in five steps

1. Pick your scope honestly. Same layout with new surfaces is a refresh. New cabinets and appliances is mid-range. Moving walls or the sink pushes you to the top of mid-range or beyond.
2. Measure your cabinet run in linear feet and multiply by the cabinet range that fits your taste.
3. Add 13% HST unless the figure already includes it.
4. In a condo, add the building's costs: deposit, elevator bookings and any engineer or agreement fees the board requires.
5. Hold back 10% to 15% for what the walls reveal.

Getting a real number

A range is a planning tool; a quote is a price. Elm Kitchen is based in St. Thomas and works across the GTA, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Woodstock and London. We give every kitchen a fixed, itemized quote, so you can see exactly where the money goes.

Our kitchen cost calculator shows how your choices move the price. It is priced for the London and St. Thomas area, so for a GTA kitchen we confirm the number after a visit. Book a free consultation to get yours.

Questions homeowners ask