Budget & Costs
Updated September 2026
Built by Design kitchens have run $100,000 to $300,000. Here's what puts a kitchen at either end: cabinetry, trades, counters, and appliances, the three scope tiers, and the code items that show up on a real kitchen.
10 min read
Written by Mike Schwartz, Built by Design | Published May 4, 2026
Kitchens carry the widest cost swings in remodeling because the biggest lines (cabinetry, trades, counters, appliances) each range across a multiple of themselves, and because “remodel the kitchen” can mean new doors and counters in the same footprint or a wall coming down, a range moving, and the dining room floor coming with it. Two quotes for “the same kitchen” that differ by half are usually describing two different projects.
Built by Design's kitchen remodels have run $100,000 to $300,000. A number for your kitchen comes after the house has been walked and the selections made, but the range is real, and this guide explains what puts a kitchen at either end of it: the lines that decide the cost, the three scope tiers and what each includes, what moving walls and plumbing adds, the code items that show up on every real kitchen in Johnson County, the ways to control the number without regretting it, and how to compare quotes so the lower one isn't just the smaller kitchen. The examples are Built by Design kitchens in Leawood, Lenexa, and Olathe.
For the layout decisions that set the scope, read kitchen layout mistakes and the measurements that prevent them. For the cabinet decision, read cabinet refacing vs replacing.
Every kitchen budget has dozens of lines, and four of them carry most of the total. Knowing which lever each one is makes the rest of the conversation shorter.
| Line | What moves it | The lever |
|---|---|---|
| Cabinetry | Stock, semi-custom, or custom; box construction; door style; finish; interior fittings; linear feet | Reface sound boxes, mix stock with custom where it shows, choose drawers where they matter |
| Trades and labor | Demolition, framing, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, drywall, tile, paint, flooring, cabinet and counter installation | Keep the sink, range, and walls where they are; the trades line follows the scope tier |
| Countertops | Material (quartz, granite, marble, solid surface, laminate), slab count, edge profile, cutouts, waterfall ends | Quartz in a standard thickness; plan the island to fit a slab |
| Appliances | Package level, panel-ready or freestanding, pro range vs slide-in, built-in vs counter-depth refrigeration | Choose the package first and design the cabinets around it; a paneled fridge is a cabinet decision too |
After those four: lighting, plumbing fixtures, tile, hardware, windows and doors, and the permit. Each one matters; none of them swings the total the way the four above do.
Use these tiers to say what you want priced. They're planning categories, not packages, and most real kitchens sit in one clearly.
| Tier | What it includes | What joins the trades line |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Keep the layout | New or refaced cabinets in the same footprint, counters, backsplash, sink and faucet, appliances in the same spots, lighting, paint | Cabinet and counter installation, plumbing and electrical hookups, tile, paint; usually no permit-triggering changes beyond electrical updates |
| 2. Rework the room | New cabinet layout, an island, a moved sink or range, relocated lighting, new flooring in the kitchen | Plumbing and gas relocation, new circuits, ventilation, flooring patch or replacement, drywall, permit and inspections |
| 3. Connect the rooms | The kitchen plus the dining or living room: an opened wall, continuous flooring, coordinated trim and lighting | Structural beam and engineering, ceiling and floor continuity beyond the kitchen, HVAC changes, more drywall and paint, a longer schedule |
Built by Design's kitchen remodels have run from $100,000, which is the minimum for a kitchen BBD takes on, to roughly $300,000. The range is wide because the scope tiers are. What moves a kitchen from one end to the other isn't square footage; it's the tier, the cabinetry grade, the appliance package, the counter material, and how much of the house beyond the kitchen the project touches. The table below is the honest map. A project-specific number follows an in-home visit and selections, and a designed plan is priced with those selections in it, so the number holds.
| Where in the range | What that kitchen usually is |
|---|---|
| Bottom, from $100,000 | Tier 1: the layout stays, new semi-custom cabinetry or a refaced perimeter with a new island, quartz counters, tile backsplash, new fixtures, and a standard appliance package |
| Middle | Tier 2: a reworked room with an island, a moved sink or range, new circuits and ventilation, new flooring in the kitchen, semi-custom or custom cabinetry, and a mid-range appliance package |
| Top, toward $300,000 | Tier 3: the kitchen opened to the dining or living room with a structural beam, custom cabinetry to the ceiling, paneled and pro-grade appliances, stone or premium quartz with a showpiece island, continuous flooring and trim through the connected rooms, and a hood with makeup air |
Every kitchen on this site sits inside that range. The case studies below show what tier-3 kitchens look like when they are finished.
The finishes are what people budget for; the moves are what change the number. Moving the sink means a new drain and vent route, which is easy over an unfinished basement and expensive over a finished ceiling or a slab. Moving the range means a new gas line or a new 240-volt circuit, plus the hood and its duct to the outside. Adding an island with a sink or a cooktop means both, run under the floor. Taking down a wall between the kitchen and the dining room means finding out whether it's bearing; if it is, an engineer sizes a beam, and the beam needs posts and footings under it. Every one of those is a permit, a rough-in inspection, and a week or more on the schedule. None of them is a reason not to do it; the Leawood, Lenexa, and Olathe kitchens all opened up. They're the reason to decide them first.
See also: Johnson County remodeling permits: what a kitchen needs and where to apply
A few code items show up on every kitchen remodel in Johnson County and cost real money when the old kitchen didn't have them. The residential code requires at least two 20-amp small-appliance circuits for the countertop receptacles (IRC E3703.2), with receptacles so no point on the counter is more than 24 inches from one (E3901.4), all GFCI protected (E3902). The dishwasher, disposal, microwave, refrigerator, and range each usually get a dedicated circuit, which can push an older panel past capacity and trigger a panel upgrade. A range hood that exhausts more than 400 cubic feet per minute needs makeup air (IRC M1503.6), which is a damper and a duct most houses don't have. Under-cabinet and recessed lighting are new circuits and switches. Your city's inspector confirms which edition applies; these are the items to expect.
The construction number isn't the project number. Appliances are often owner-supplied, or an allowance. Design and drawings may be inside a design-build scope or separate. Permit fees, dumpsters, and protection are in the scope or the exclusions; find out which. Eating out for the weeks the kitchen is down is real money. New rooms that got opened up need paint and sometimes furniture. And the flooring that now runs into the dining room is part of the kitchen budget whether or not it's on the kitchen line.
| Item | Confirm |
|---|---|
| Appliances | Supplied by whom, and who receives and inspects them? |
| Design and drawings | Inside the scope, or separate? |
| Permit and plan review fees | Included, or billed at cost? |
| Dumpsters, protection, cleanup | Included, and how many pulls? |
| Adjacent rooms | Flooring, paint, and trim where new work meets old |
| Temporary kitchen | Yours; budget the weeks the kitchen is out |
| Contingency | Held for concealed conditions, and returned if unused |
See also: Fixed-bid remodeling contracts: allowances, exclusions, and change orders
There are cheap ways to cut a kitchen budget that you'll regret every morning (a too-narrow aisle, a fridge that opens into the island) and ways that cost nothing in daily life. These are the second kind.
See also: Cabinet refacing vs replacing: how to decide box by box
Give every remodeler the same brief and the same selections, then compare the written scopes, not the totals. A proposal with a lower number and a cabinet allowance in place of a specified cabinet line is describing a different kitchen. Check five things in each: whether the layout is the same (the same walls, the same sink and range locations), whether the cabinets are specified by maker and line or allowed, whether counters, tile, fixtures, and appliances are specified or allowed, what the exclusions say, and how changes get priced. Then ask each one how the number was built: from a designed plan with selections, or from square footage and a finish level. The first kind holds; the second kind grows.
The case studies on this site document scope and, where recorded, construction time, which is more useful for comparison than a number that belongs to another house. The Leawood kitchen opened the room for family gatherings, hid the refrigerator behind cabinet panels, added glass-front display storage, and brought in more light, in 9 recorded weeks. The Lenexa kitchen opened the upstairs kitchen to the dining and living areas with a blue-gray island, a pantry, a bar area with a wine fridge, open island shelving, new appliances, and brass pendants. The Olathe project refreshed the kitchen with an open layout, a gathering island, a copper-toned hood over a patterned tile range wall, and new appliances, alongside two bathrooms. All three are tier-3 kitchens by the table above and sit inside the published $100,000 to $300,000 range; the case studies don’t publish individual prices, because each one belonged to that house and those selections.
Built by Design is design-build, so the layout and every selection carry their real construction cost while they're still easy to change, and the number you approve is the kitchen you get. The sequence is an in-home visit, the scope tier and layout, selections with Kristen Schwartz, then a written scope with one price. Start with the contact form: the address, photos, what isn't working, the must-haves, and where in the $100,000 to $300,000 range you're planning. BBD responds within 24 hours to discuss fit and the next step.
See also: Kitchen remodeling with Built by Design
Built by Design meets homeowners at the home, writes one scope before finishes are chosen, and builds with the same trade partners named in the case studies above.
FAQAnswers, by design
The questions homeowners ask about kitchen remodel cost, answered with BBD’s published $100,000 to $300,000 range and what moves a kitchen within it. Your project team prices your kitchen after an in-home visit and selections.
Built by Design kitchens run $100,000 to $300,000. The bottom of the range keeps the layout with new cabinetry and counters; the top opens the kitchen to the rooms around it with structural work, custom cabinetry, and a full appliance package. Scope decides where yours lands more than size does, and a project-specific number follows an in-home visit and selections.
Because they describe different kitchens. One may keep the layout while the other moves the range; one may specify the cabinets while the other carries an allowance; one may include the dining room floor and the other may not. Compare the written scopes, the selections lists, and the exclusions before comparing totals.
Cabinetry is usually the largest single line, followed by the trades, countertops, and appliances. The trades line is the one that changes most with scope: keep the layout and it’s light; move plumbing, gas, or a wall and it grows, along with the permit and inspection sequence.
It adds plumbing, gas or electrical, and often ceiling or floor work, plus a permit and rough-in inspection. Over an unfinished basement it’s modest; over a finished ceiling or a slab it’s more. It’s worth it when the layout is the problem, and it’s the first thing to decide because everything else is priced around it.
Yes, whenever plumbing, electrical, gas, or walls change, which is almost every kitchen beyond a doors-and-counters refresh. The rough-in is inspected before drywall, and the inspection dates belong on the schedule. Overland Park, Leawood, Lenexa, Olathe, and Shawnee each issue their own permits.
BBD’s Leawood kitchen took 9 recorded weeks of construction, with the room opened up and new cabinetry throughout. Cabinets are the longest-lead item and are ordered before demolition; counters are templated after the cabinets are in and arrive a week or two later. A tier-1 kitchen is shorter; a tier-3 kitchen with structural work runs longer.
Keep planning with these related guides.
Kitchen Planning
Tight aisles, islands that fight the room, appliances with nowhere to land, and one switch for the whole kitchen. Here are the seven layout mistakes and the actual measurements that prevent each one, on three finished Johnson County kitchens.
9 min read
Kitchen Planning
Cabinets are usually the largest line in a kitchen remodel, so “do we have to replace them?” is the right question. The answer depends on the boxes, the layout, and the storage you want. Here's how to check each one.
9 min read
Budget & Costs
“Fixed price” fixes the price of the scope on paper, not of the wall nobody has opened yet. Here's what the number covers, what allowances and change orders do to it, and the clauses to read before signing.
9 min read
