Cost database

Two sources: City of Chicago permit records (reported costs) and real projects with line items.

Read this first: The figures come from 190 City of Chicago renovation/alteration permits issued 2025-10-16 to 2026-10-14, picked because the work description mentions a kitchen or bath and residential use. Reported cost is what the applicant wrote on the permit, which may not be what the job cost. These permits lean toward large or structural jobs: many small kitchen and bath updates use express permits or need none, so they are under-represented. Treat the numbers as context, not a quote.

By project type

Group	Permits	Median days to issue	Middle 50% (days)	Median reported cost	Middle 50% (cost)
Kitchen or bath (all)	190	69 days	34 days–125 days	$100,000	$50,000–$180,000
Kitchen mentioned	129	62 days	34 days–108 days	$110,000	$60,000–$192,706
Bath mentioned	133	70 days	36 days–135 days	$100,000	$60,000–$183,000

By community area (3+ permits)

Group	Permits	Median days to issue	Middle 50% (days)	Median reported cost	Middle 50% (cost)
Ashburn	6	128 days	62 days–147 days	$109,800	$67,877–$150,000
Auburn Gresham	3	69 days	too few	$75,180	too few
Austin	4	60 days	24 days–104 days	$115,000	$35,000–$165,000
East Garfield Park	3	66 days	too few	$65,000	too few
Edgewater	8	80 days	52 days–101 days	$160,896	$50,000–$374,059
Forest Glen	3	33 days	too few	$20,000	too few
Hyde Park	3	22 days	too few	$150,000	too few
Irving Park	7	72 days	54 days–285 days	$125,000	$64,250–$200,000
Kenwood	3	54 days	too few	$450,000	too few
Lake View	6	96 days	50 days–166 days	$227,500	$48,975–$1,520,000
Lincoln Park	8	54 days	8 days–128 days	$187,500	$63,750–$279,250
Lincoln Square	7	41 days	23 days–446 days	$98,198	$60,000–$150,000
Logan Square	11	89 days	44 days–295 days	$150,000	$100,000–$250,000
Morgan Park	3	4 days	too few	$50,000	too few
Near North Side	15	39 days	19 days–73 days	$147,000	$85,000–$300,000
New City	4	68 days	24 days–88 days	$60,000	$46,250–$130,000
North Center	4	94 days	30 days–158 days	$62,500	$33,750–$166,559
North Lawndale	3	29 days	too few	$67,000	too few
Norwood Park	6	62 days	42 days–71 days	$120,000	$59,824–$180,500
Portage Park	5	53 days	27 days–166 days	$125,000	$91,000–$264,357
Rogers Park	3	15 days	too few	$28,550	too few
South Lawndale	5	86 days	12 days–298 days	$55,000	$31,000–$155,000
South Shore	6	103 days	62 days–372 days	$87,500	$50,000–$120,000
Uptown	3	71 days	too few	$175,000	too few
Washington Heights	3	775 days	too few	$120,000	too few
West Englewood	3	94 days	too few	$95,000	too few
West Lawn	3	171 days	too few	$60,000	too few
West Ridge	5	100 days	72 days–112 days	$90,000	$60,000–$150,000
West Town	9	44 days	22 days–59 days	$100,000	$60,000–$287,500
Woodlawn	3	58 days	too few	$85,000	too few

Areas with fewer than 3 matching permits are left out. Small samples swing a lot, so read the permit count next to each median.

Real projects

Labor and install only. These are labor and install prices only. Finish materials the homeowner bought (cabinets, countertops, tile, fixtures, flooring, appliances) are not included, and they often add as much as or more than the labor.

Label: contractor-sold prices from one Chicago-area GC, 2025-2026. Totals are rounded to the nearest $500, locations are generalized, and identifying details are removed. Final = original contract + change orders.

Real projects (contractor-sold prices from one Chicago-area GC, 2025-2026): 7 kitchen jobs, final sold price median $23,000, range $18,500–$49,000. These are labor/install prices sold to homeowners (including the GC's overhead and profit), not subcontractor costs, from mostly north-suburban jobs. See every project.

Typical finish materials (client-paid)

These are the contractor's typical averages across recent projects, not per-job receipts. Homeowners usually buy these directly, so they are on top of the labor/install prices shown here.

Kitchen: about $55,000 (cabinetry, appliances, countertops, light fixtures, cabinet pulls).
Bathroom: about $12,000 per bathroom (tile, vanity, mirrors, light fixtures, plumbing fixtures, accessories).

All-in estimate, kitchen: about $78,000 (labor/install median $23,000 + typical finishes $55,000). Bath: no bath-only labor median is published, so only the typical $12,000 per bath finish figure is shown. All-in figures are estimates, not quotes.

Kitchen + bath combined jobs (n=2): $53,000, $75,500. Approximate all-in estimates (labor/install + typical finishes, estimate only): KB-09 $53,000 + $55,000 + 2 × $12,000 ≈ $132,000; KB-10 $75,500 + $55,000 + 1 × $12,000 ≈ $142,500. A bath-only figure isn't shown because the only bath-only job was mostly a repipe (see KB-02). Line items by trade.

KB-01 · Kitchen · North suburb · 2026

Kitchen relayout: pantry and soffits removed, sink relocated, new lighting, new hardwood floor in adjoining rooms. Change orders: drain repair, more lighting and drywall.

Final: $29,000 (original contract $23,000 + change orders $6,000). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $84,000.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

flooring $7,500, plumbing $5,100, drywall $5,000, electrical $3,100, demolition $3,000, carpentry $2,700, painting $2,500

KB-02 · Bath · North suburb · 2026

Two bathroom remodels PLUS a whole-home repipe with wall and ceiling restoration. Mostly repipe work, so it's left out of the medians.

Final: $55,000 (original contract $50,500 + change orders $4,000). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): Not applicable (mostly a whole-home repipe; a typical per-bath figure would mislead here).
Known job amounts (partial floor, from invoices): shower glass $2,000 (allowance, already in the final above); shower glass $550 (change order, already in the final above). Total known: $2,550.

Excluded from kitchen/bath medians: mostly a whole-home repipe.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

plumbing $19,500, tile $9,200, carpentry $6,500, demolition $5,000, drywall $4,500, painting $4,500, electrical $3,000, shower glass $2,600

KB-03 · Kitchen · North suburb · 2026

Kitchen layout change: plumbing, electrical and hood duct rerouted, drywall, adjoining laundry tile, wallpaper. Cabinets and paint by others.

Final: $24,500 (original contract $23,000 + change orders $1,500). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $79,500.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

electrical $6,500, drywall $4,800, tile $3,000, plumbing $2,300, carpentry $2,200, wallpaper $1,800, hvac mechanical $1,200, flooring $1,200, other $800, appliance install $800

KB-04 · Kitchen · Chicago, North Side · 2026

Condo kitchen relayout: soffit removed, sink plumbing and electrical rerouted, hood vented to the exterior, flooring patched. Cabinets and paint by others.

Final: $21,500 (original contract $19,500 + change orders $2,000). Home type: condo.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $76,500.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

carpentry $6,000, electrical $5,800, plumbing $2,800, flooring $2,200, hvac mechanical $2,000, other $1,800, demolition $600, exterior $200

KB-05 · Kitchen · West suburb · 2025

Kitchen tear-out with new hardwood flooring, backsplash, paint and baseboard. Change orders: stair refinishing.

Final: $18,500 (original contract $17,500 + change orders $1,000). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $73,500.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

flooring $12,000, demolition $3,800, painting $1,500, tile $800, other $200

KB-06 · Kitchen · North suburb · 2025

Kitchen relayout: sink relocated, electrical rerouted, hood vent rerouted, drywall repairs. Paint by others.

Final: $22,000 (original contract $20,000 + change orders $2,000). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $77,000.

Line items include options and credits not in the final contract and sum higher than the total. The total is authoritative.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

electrical $7,500, plumbing $6,800, drywall $4,200, hvac mechanical $3,500, other $1,800

KB-07 · Kitchen · North suburb · 2025

Condo kitchen gut with wall removal, rerouted plumbing, gas, electrical and vent, drywall and paint, plus a small powder room refresh.

Final: $23,000 (original contract $22,000 + change orders $1,000). Home type: condo.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $78,000.

Line items include options and credits not in the final contract and sum higher than the total. The total is authoritative.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

electrical $5,600, plumbing $3,800, tile $3,500, demolition $3,400, drywall $2,500, painting $2,500, hvac mechanical $800, carpentry $800, flooring $600

KB-08 · Kitchen · North suburb · 2025

Kitchen and dining layout change with wall removal, rerouted gas, plumbing, electrical and HVAC, tile and wood flooring, trim and paint.

Final: $49,000 (original contract $45,000 + change orders $3,500). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $55,000 (typical, not job-specific). Approx. all-in estimate: about $104,000.

Line items include options and credits not in the final contract and sum higher than the total. The total is authoritative.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

carpentry $12,000, flooring $8,400, demolition $6,500, electrical $6,500, painting $4,500, tile $4,200, plumbing $3,800, windows doors $2,500, hvac mechanical $1,500

KB-09 · Kitchen + Bath · Chicago, North Side · 2025

Kitchen island relocation plus a primary bath remodel (tile shower, freestanding tub, heated floor) and a guest bath refresh.

Final: $53,000 (original contract $51,500 + change orders $1,500). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $79,000 (typical, not job-specific: kitchen $55,000 + 2 baths × $12,000). Approx. all-in estimate: about $132,000.
Known job amounts (partial floor, from invoices): doors millwork $1,800 (allowance (within labor line), already in the final above). Total known: $1,800.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

plumbing $11,000, tile $8,700, demolition $7,000, carpentry $6,000, electrical $5,600, heated floor $4,500, other $3,600, windows doors $2,500, bath refresh $2,000, flooring $1,800, appliance install $500

KB-10 · Kitchen + Bath · North suburb · 2025

Whole-floor flooring, new kitchen and bath cabinetry install, primary bath plumbing, tile, heated floor and shower glass. An optional add-on (~$10,500) is excluded from comparisons.

Final: $75,500 (original contract $73,000 + change orders $2,000). Home type: house/unspecified.

Finish materials (client-paid): about $67,000 (typical, not job-specific: kitchen $55,000 + 1 bath × $12,000). Approx. all-in estimate: about $142,500.
Known job amounts (partial floor, from invoices): shower glass $2,000 (allowance, already in the final above); cabinets $6,000 (pass-through deposit, already in the final above); windows $987.80 (material cost (stated), already in the final above). Total known: $8,987.80.

Optional add-on excluded from the total and comparisons.

Line items by trade (rounded to $100)

flooring $24,500, cabinet install $8,500, carpentry $8,000, plumbing $6,000, cabinet deposit $6,000, demolition $5,000, painting $4,500, tile $4,000, electrical $2,500, heated floor $2,200, windows doors $2,100, shower glass $2,000

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