Renovating a whole 1,500 sq ft house to a mid-range standard costs about $100,500 at US-average prices, with a range of $63,000 to $175,500, permits and a 10% contingency included. Most homeowners spend less because they redo a few rooms, not everything: Angi and This Old House both put the average home remodel near $52,000, and a kitchen, two bathrooms and a living room come to about $66,500.
How the home remodel cost is calculated
There are two ways to price it, and the calculator does both.
Whole house, per square foot. This Old House gives three levels: about $15 per sq ft for basic updates such as paint and appliances, $60 for a comprehensive renovation with moderate-quality materials, and $150 for premium materials, high-end finishes and possible structural changes. Angi gives the same $15 to $150 range. The calculator treats $15, $60 and $150 as low, typical and high, and your renovation level picks a band: cosmetic $15 to $37.50, mid-range $37.50 to $105, premium $60 to $150 per sq ft, with the middle of each band as its typical price.
Whole-house cost = area to renovate (sq ft) × price per sq ft for your level + permits + 10% contingency
Room by room. Each room uses Angi's national average and range for remodeling that room, so the estimate follows what you are actually changing.
Either way, half of each price is taken as labor (Angi: 40% to 60% of a remodel budget goes to labor), then labor is scaled by your state's construction wages (BLS, May 2025) and materials by its goods prices (BEA, 2024).
Worked example: 1,500 sq ft, mid-range
1,500 sq ft × $60 = $90,000 for the work, plus $1,500 for permits and inspections (This Old House, citing Angi: $500 to $2,500) and a $9,000 contingency: $100,500, or about $67 per sq ft. The same house at the cosmetic level is about $63,000.
| Level | Price per sq ft (band) | 1,500 sq ft, typical |
|---|---|---|
| Cosmetic | $15 to $37.50 | $63,000 |
| Mid-range | $37.50 to $105 | $100,500 |
| Premium | $60 to $150 | $175,500 |
Measure the rooms you are changing with the room square footage calculator; the whole-house figure should be the finished floor area being redone, not the lot or the garage.
Cost to remodel by room
| Room | Average | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | $27,000 | $15,000 to $42,000 |
| Bathroom | $12,000 | $6,600 to $18,000 |
| Bedroom | $20,000 | $12,000 to $28,000 |
| Living room | $8,000 | $2,500 to $15,000 |
| Dining room | $20,000 | $7,000 to $25,000 |
| Basement | $22,000 | $12,000 to $35,000 |
| Laundry room | $11,000 | $6,000 to $17,000 |
| Attic | $20,000 | $7,500 to $35,000 |
| Garage | $18,000 | $7,000 to $30,000 |
| Exterior | $10,500 | $5,000 to $30,000 |
Source: Angi, updated July 2026. The room-by-room default (one kitchen, two bathrooms, one living room) comes to $66,500, with a range of $50,500 to $85,500 once permits and contingency are added.
For the two most expensive rooms, the dedicated estimates are more precise: the kitchen remodel cost calculator prices cabinets by the foot and counters by the square foot, and the bathroom remodel cost calculator prices the tub, tile and fixtures. A basement has its own basement finishing cost calculator.
Problems to budget for
Opening walls in an older house often turns up work nobody planned. Angi lists what it costs, and the calculator adds any of them over their full range:
| Problem | Cost |
|---|---|
| Electrical panel upgrade | $1,200 to $2,000 |
| Replacing old plumbing | $1,500 to $15,000 |
| Water damage repair | $1,400 to $6,400 |
| Mold remediation | $1,200 to $3,800 |
| Asbestos removal | $1,200 to $3,200 |
| Lead paint removal | $1,500 to $5,500 |
| Structural repair | $2,200 to $8,100 |
HomeAdvisor advises testing for asbestos before remodeling a home built before 1980; older paint can contain lead, so test that too before sanding or demolition. If you are adding circuits, check the panel's capacity with the electrical load calculator.
How to cut the cost
Labor is about half of a remodel, so painting, demolition, trim and flooring done yourself save the most; the painting cost calculator shows what a painter would charge for the same rooms. Keep kitchens and baths in their current layout, reuse what works, and do the project in phases so each room is paid for before the next starts. Adding space rather than reworking it is a different project: see the home addition cost calculator. All remodeling estimates are listed under project costs.
These are dated estimates from published national data adjusted for your state, not quotes. A general contractor's written bid for your exact scope is the number to plan around.