Kitchen fitting
Fit-only kitchen fitting
Fit-only kitchen fitting is a labour service for a kitchen you have bought yourself, from any retailer, trade counter or online supplier. The fitter checks the delivery, fixes and levels the units, hangs doors, cuts and joins laminate worktops, fits panels and plinths, and connects the sink and appliances to the existing water, waste and power points. Stone worktops, new circuits and moved services are priced separately.
When do you need fit-only kitchen fitting?
People choose fit only when they have already found a kitchen they like, often in a sale or from an online supplier, and simply need it fitted well. The fit is where a kitchen succeeds or fails. Walls that lean, floors that slope, pipes in awkward places and a window sill lower than the plan assumed all have to be dealt with on site, and none of them appear on a retailer's drawing.
It starts with a free survey visit. We read through the plan you were given, measure the room, check the walls, floor and the positions of water, waste, gas and power, and tell you about anything that will not fit or is missing from the order. The itemised written quote separates fitting labour from extras such as new circuits or moved plumbing. On the first fitting day the delivery is checked against the plan before a single unit goes up.
What is included?
- Free survey visit to check your plan, the room and the service positions
- Delivery checked against the plan and delivery note before fitting starts
- Base, wall and tall units positioned, levelled on their legs and fixed to the wall
- Doors and drawer fronts hung and adjusted, with handles drilled and fitted
- Laminate or wood worktops cut, jointed, sealed and fixed down
- End panels, filler panels, plinths, cornice and light rail scribed and fitted
- Sink, tap and appliances connected to the existing water, waste and power points
- Packaging and offcuts cleared, with removal of the old kitchen available as an extra
How much does fit-only kitchen fitting cost?
These are national guide prices including VAT at 20%. Prices are higher in London and the South East and lower in much of the North, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Choose your area below for a local range.
| Typical project | Guide price |
|---|---|
| Small kitchen (5–10 units)Labour to fit units, doors, laminate worktops and panels you have bought | £1,500–£2,500 |
| Medium kitchen (10–15 units)As above | £2,500–£3,500 |
| Large kitchen (15+ units, island or tall larders)As above | £3,500–£4,500 |
| Fitter day rateOne fitter; a two-person team is usually £300–£450 per day | £180–£280 per day |
Fit-only prices cover labour for units, doors, panels, plinths and laminate worktops with connections to existing points; stone worktops, new circuits, moved plumbing, gas connections, tiling, flooring and plastering are extra. Your price is confirmed after a free survey visit.
How long does it take?
Typical timescale: 3 to 5 days for a small kitchen; 8 to 12 days for a large one. The programme for your kitchen is set out in the quote, and depends on the size of the room, what is moving, lead times for units and worktops and, after plastering, drying time.
Do you need permission or building regulations approval?
The rules differ across the UK. Choose your nation:
Fitting kitchen units you have bought needs no planning permission in England, although a listed building may need listed building consent for work that affects its character. Adding sockets or spurs to an existing kitchen circuit is not notifiable but must meet BS 7671, while a new cooker circuit is notifiable under Part P and certified through a competent person scheme or building control. Gas hobs are connected only by Gas Safe registered engineers.
In Wales a fit-only kitchen needs no planning permission, though a listed building may need listed building consent. The electrics are where Wales differs: extending an existing circuit within a kitchen is notifiable under Part P, as are new circuits, so even an extra socket for an appliance is certified through a competent person scheme or building control. Gas hobs are connected by Gas Safe registered engineers only, and extraction should meet Approved Document F.
In Scotland, fitting kitchen units you have bought does not need a building warrant, and nor does most electrical work in a house, but the work must still meet the building standards and BS 7671. Ask the electrician for an Electrical Installation Certificate or Minor Works Certificate. Gas hobs and cookers must be connected by a Gas Safe registered engineer, and the kitchen should keep extract ventilation that meets standard 3.14.
In Northern Ireland, fitting a kitchen you have bought needs no planning permission or building control application when the services stay where they are. There is no notification scheme for domestic electrical work, but any new socket or circuit should be installed, tested and certified to BS 7671. Only a Gas Safe registered engineer may connect a gas hob, and Technical Booklet K sets out the ventilation guidance.
What should you think about before starting?
- Do not open or assemble anything before the survey; sealed boxes make it far easier to claim missing or damaged parts from the supplier.
- Check the order includes filler panels, end panels, plinths, cornice or light rail, and enough legs and plinth clips for every base unit.
- Worktop joint strips or connector bolts, appliance door-fixing kits and the sink, tap and waste are easy to leave off an order.
- If you chose stone worktops, the stone supplier templates and fits them after the base units are fixed, usually one to two weeks later.
- Measure integrated appliances against the housings on the plan, including ventilation gaps, before buying them separately from the kitchen.
- Store the boxes flat in a dry, heated room rather than a damp garage, so doors and carcasses do not swell or warp before fitting.
How does the project run?
- Guide price. Use the online guide-price tool or call us for a realistic range for your area
- Free survey visit. We measure the room, check walls, floors and service positions, and look at the plan or delivery
- Itemised written quote. Broken down by stage and trade, with any worktop templating, engineer or approval costs listed
- Fitting in the right order. Strip-out, first fix, units, worktops, second fix and finishing, with the trades booked in sequence
- Final check and handover. A walk-round together, certificates for electrics and gas, and the manufacturers' documents
Questions about fit-only kitchen fitting
How much does it cost to fit a kitchen I supply?
Labour to fit a small kitchen of five to ten units is typically £1,500 to £2,500 including VAT, a medium kitchen £2,500 to £3,500 and a large one with an island or tall larders £3,500 to £4,500. A single fitter on a day rate is usually £180 to £280 a day, or £300 to £450 for a two-person team. Stone worktops, new circuits and moved plumbing are extra, and your price is confirmed after the survey.
What does fit-only kitchen fitting not include?
It does not include stone worktops, new electrical circuits, moved plumbing, gas connections, tiling, flooring or plastering. Stone is templated and fitted by the stone supplier or fabricator once the base units are fixed. Fit only covers the labour for units, doors, panels, plinths and laminate worktops, with connections to the points already in place. Any of the extras can be added as separate lines on the same written quote.
What happens if parts of my kitchen are missing or damaged?
Missing or damaged parts are the supplier's to replace. We check the delivery against your plan and delivery note before fitting starts and tell you straight away if anything is short, broken or wrong, so you can raise it with the supplier while we re-plan the order of work. Units that do not depend on the missing part can often still go in, and sealed boxes make any claim simpler.
Should I unpack my kitchen before the fitter arrives?
No. Leave everything in its packaging until fitting day. Sealed boxes protect doors and panels from knocks and dust, keep small parts with the right unit, and show that any damage happened before delivery. We open and check the boxes against the plan as the fit begins. The one exception is anything your supplier asks you to inspect on delivery, which you should check and report within their deadline.
Do I need to order anything extra for a fit-only job?
Often, yes. Retail plans regularly leave out filler panels, end panels, plinths, cornice or light rail, legs and plinth clips, worktop joint strips or connector bolts, appliance door-fixing kits and the sink, tap and waste. On the survey we go through your order line by line and list anything missing, so it can be ordered before the fit rather than halting it halfway through.
Can you fit my kitchen on a day rate instead of a fixed price?
Yes, for smaller or less predictable jobs. A single fitter is typically £180 to £280 a day and a two-person team £300 to £450 a day, including VAT. For a full kitchen most people prefer one price for the whole fit, fixed in writing once the plan and scope are agreed, because it avoids open-ended costs if walls or floors need more preparation than expected.
Related guides
- How much does a new kitchen cost in the UK?
- Fit only or supply and fit: which is better value for a kitchen?
- How long does it take to fit a new kitchen?
- Flat-pack or rigid kitchen: what is the difference?
Related kitchen services
- Kitchen installation
- Flat-pack kitchen fitting
- Kitchen worktop fitting
- Integrated appliance installation
Where do we carry out fit-only kitchen fitting?
We take on fit-only kitchen fitting across England, Wales, mainland Scotland and Northern Ireland. Choose your area for local guide prices and the rules that apply there.
England
- Bedfordshire
- Berkshire
- Bristol
- Buckinghamshire
- Cambridgeshire
- Cheshire
- Cornwall
- Cumbria
- Derbyshire
- Devon
- Dorset
- County Durham
- the East Riding of Yorkshire
- East Sussex
- Essex
- Gloucestershire
- Greater London
- Greater Manchester
- Hampshire
- Herefordshire
- Hertfordshire
- the Isle of Wight
- Kent
- Lancashire
- Leicestershire
- Lincolnshire
- Merseyside
- Norfolk
- North Yorkshire
- Northamptonshire
- Northumberland
- Nottinghamshire
- Oxfordshire
- Rutland
- Shropshire
- Somerset
- South Yorkshire
- Staffordshire
- Suffolk
- Surrey
- Tyne and Wear
- Warwickshire
- the West Midlands
- West Sussex
- West Yorkshire
- Wiltshire
- Worcestershire