Guide
Fit only or supply and fit: which is better value for a kitchen?
Fit only means you buy the kitchen and pay an installer for the labour, typically £1,500 to £4,500 including VAT to fit the units, doors, laminate worktops and panels. Supply and fit means one company designs, supplies and installs the whole kitchen, from about £8,000. Fit only can cost less overall; supply and fit puts design, ordering and every trade under one contract.
What does fit-only kitchen fitting cost?
Fit-only prices are for labour. You buy the units, doors, worktops and appliances from any retailer, trade counter or online supplier, and the installer fits them. The ranges below are national guides including VAT, confirmed after a survey visit, and they cover fitting units, doors, laminate worktops and panels.
Flat-pack kitchens cost more to fit because every carcass is built on site first. A flat-pack kitchen built and fitted is typically £1,800–£3,000 for a small kitchen, £2,800–£4,200 for a medium one and £4,000–£5,500 for a large one with tall units.
- Small kitchen, 5–10 units: £1,500–£2,500
- Medium kitchen, 10–15 units: £2,500–£3,500
- Large kitchen, 15+ units, an island or tall larders: £3,500–£4,500
- Fitter day rate: £180–£280 for one fitter, or usually £300–£450 for a two-person team
What does supply and fit cost?
With supply and fit, the price covers the kitchen itself as well as the installation, and design is included. National guide ranges including VAT are £8,000–£18,000 for a budget refit with standard units and laminate worktops, £18,000–£35,000 for a mid-range kitchen with rigid units, quartz or solid wood worktops and integrated appliances, and £35,000–£75,000 for a premium kitchen.
Most of the difference from fit only is the cost of the units, worktops and appliances, not extra labour. A supply-and-fit price also covers measuring, planning, ordering, checking deliveries and dealing with anything that arrives damaged, which on a fit-only job falls to you.
What is usually left out of a fit-only price?
Fit-only prices usually leave out the trades around the kitchen. Moving a sink, adding a cooker circuit, connecting a gas hob, tiling, flooring and plastering are priced as separate lines. So are stone worktops, which are templated, cut and fitted by the stone supplier's fabricator after the base units are fixed. Typical guide prices for common extras:
Ask every installer which of these are in their price, and whether removing the old kitchen is included. Two fit-only quotes can look far apart simply because one includes connections, waste removal and making good while the other does not, so line them up item by item before choosing.
- New cooker or induction circuit: £300–£700
- Extra sockets or spurs on existing circuits: £250–£500
- Sink moved to a new position: £400–£1,000
- Old kitchen removed and disposed of: £200–£500
- Tiled splashback: £150–£400
When does fit only make sense?
Fit only suits people who have already found the kitchen they want, often at a good price, and are happy to handle the order. It also suits like-for-like replacements, where the layout and service positions are not changing, and landlords who buy the same range for several properties and know exactly what to order.
The catch is responsibility. If a unit is missing, the wrong size or damaged, the supplier has to replace it and you have to chase it. We check deliveries against the plan before fitting and tell you straight away, but a missing corner unit or worktop can still hold a fit up by days.
When is supply and fit the better choice?
Supply and fit suits people changing the layout, adding an island, knocking through or choosing stone worktops and integrated appliances, because the design, the order and the fitting all have to line up. One contract means one point of contact, and if something is wrong with the kitchen it is ours to put right rather than yours to negotiate with a retailer.
It also takes the ordering risk off your hands. Fillers, end panels, plinths, cornice and appliance door kits are specified with the plan, so the small forgotten items that delay many fit-only jobs are far less likely to hold things up.
How do you compare quotes fairly?
Compare fit-only and supply-and-fit quotes only after adding the cost of the kitchen, delivery, waste removal and every trade to the fit-only figure. Check whether each quote includes strip-out, first and second fix electrics and plumbing, worktop joints and cut-outs, appliance installation, tiling and making good.
Compare who is responsible for what, too. On a supply-and-fit job, one company answers for the design, the products and the installation. On a fit-only job, the retailer answers for the products and the installer for the workmanship. Manufacturers' warranties on units and appliances stay with you and the retailer either way.
Who designs the kitchen on a fit-only job?
On a fit-only job the plan usually comes from the retailer, drawn from measurements taken by you or by their designer. It is worth having that plan checked against the real room before ordering. If you would like an independent plan, a measured survey and layout plan for a kitchen bought elsewhere is typically £300–£900 including VAT.
On a supply-and-fit job, design is included in the price. The survey, layout, specification and service positions are worked out together, so the plan, the order and the fitting all come from the same set of measurements, and any mistake in them is ours to put right.
Should you get a survey before you buy?
Yes. A survey before ordering checks the plan against real wall lengths, window and door positions, ceiling height, the floor, and where the gas, water, waste and electrics are. Retailer plans are often drawn from measurements taken by the customer, and a few centimetres out can mean a unit that will not fit or a missing filler.
Our survey visit is free and comes with an itemised written quote, whichever way you choose to buy. For fit-only jobs we also check what has been ordered against the plan, so any gaps can be filled before fitting day rather than discovered on it.
Questions
Is fit only always cheaper than supply and fit?
Not always. The fitting labour is broadly similar either way; the saving comes from what you pay for the kitchen itself. Once delivery, waste removal, the other trades and any reordered parts are added, the gap can narrow. Compare complete costs, not just the fitting line, before you decide which route suits you.
Can I buy the appliances myself on a supply-and-fit job?
Usually, yes. Many people buy their own appliances and have us supply the units and worktops. The models need to be chosen before the plan is finalised, so housings, door-fixing kits and ventilation gaps can be checked against them. Manufacturers' warranties on the appliances stay with you and the retailer.
Who replaces damaged units on a fit-only job?
The supplier who sold you the kitchen. Before fitting, units are checked against the plan and the delivery note. If anything is missing or damaged, we tell you straight away so you can claim a replacement, and we re-plan the fit around it. Keep the packaging and delivery notes until the fit is complete.
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- Can you move a kitchen sink, hob or extractor, and what does it cost?
- How do you plan a kitchen layout that works?
- Which kitchen worktop material should you choose?
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This guide is general information about kitchen fitting in the UK, not legal, tax, electrical or structural advice for your property. Rules differ between England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; check with your local authority or a qualified adviser before relying on it.