When Megan and I decided to tackle a diy kitchen remodel in our 1994 Salt Lake City house, we had no idea what we were signing up for. I'm Jesse — a product manager by day, a spreadsheet nerd by nature — and this is the honest record of our mid-budget kitchen renovation. We kept every receipt and made every classic mistake. Our final cost: $28,412. This article is everything I wish someone told me before we pulled the trigger.
The Budget Breakdown We Tracked in Google Sheets
The first thing I did was build a spreadsheet. We set aside $30,000 total and came in under at $28,412. Here's where the money went:
- Cabinets (RTA from The RTA Store): $5,800
- Quartz countertops (installed by a local fabricator): $4,200
- Flooring (LVP from a big-box store): $2,100
- Backsplash tile and supplies: $650
- Sink, faucet, and plumbing parts: $900
- Appliances (stove, fridge, dishwasher): $5,300
- Lighting, paint, and permits: $1,900
Don't forget permits. Salt Lake City charged us $350 for the electrical and plumbing permits, and the inspections caught two issues we would have missed. Totally worth it.
The biggest savings came from doing the demo, drywall, painting, and floor installation ourselves. We saved about $6,000 in labor, but it cost us roughly 340 hours over four months. I compared quotes from three local cabinet shops before landing on RTA; the custom bid was $9,200, so choosing RTA saved $3,400 right there.
Our DIY Kitchen Remodel Timeline: From Chaos to Cookable
Here's a rough timeline for our "four-month diy kitchen remodel":
Week 1–2: Demolition. Demo is the most fun part and also the most dangerous. Don't skip the breaker check.
Week 3–5: Rough-in electrical and plumbing. We hired a licensed electrician for $1,200 — a bargain.
Week 6–10: Drywall, then cabinet assembly and hanging. Drywall is an art, and I am not an artist. We used RTA cabinets from The RTA Store, which cost about 40% less than custom.
Week 11–14: Countertops, flooring, backsplash, and sink hookup. Our local quartz fabricator handled the counters. Installing LVP flooring is strangely satisfying. Grouting the backsplash on your hands and knees is not. Schedule the countertop template early; the fabrication wait was two weeks.
Week 15–16: Touch-ups, hardware, and the deep clean. Also the week we discovered the fridge was 3/4 of an inch too tall and had to raise the cabinet soffit.
Three Mistakes That Cost Us Time and Money
Every diy kitchen remodel has its "I can't believe we did that" moments.
Mistake one: We ordered the kitchen island before the floor was installed and paid a delivery crew to move it twice. That's $300 wasted.
Mistake two: We bought a clearance faucet without checking the water line location and had to return it for one that cost $140 more. We also patched the drywall behind the sink base, which added a weekend.
Mistake three: We trusted the 3D rendering instead of measuring the fridge. Real-world clearances don't lie. Fixing it meant redoing the crown molding around the soffit, which added three days.
The lesson from all three: measure twice, cook once.
Tools and Materials We'd Buy Again (and What We'd Skip)
We bought a ton of gear for the diy kitchen remodel, so here's the short list of things that earned their place in the garage:
- The Milwaukee cordless reciprocating saw — a gift from my brother. Worth every penny for demo.
- A laser level, $80 on Amazon — you'll never level cabinets by eye again.
- A wet tile saw, rented from Home Depot for $75/day — cheaper than buying.
- An oscillating multi-tool, about $60 — it made cutting drywall and trim so much easier.
What I'd skip: the heavy-duty drywall lift. For this scale, a helper and stubbornness work just as well. And skip the cheap contractor grade brushes; spend $40 on quality angled brushes from Benjamin Moore or Sherwin-Williams.
How We Decided Between DIY and Hiring a Pro
People always ask whether a diy kitchen remodel was worth the risk. My answer: it depends on your margin for error. We matched skills to tasks. I can demo and paint and install floors after a weekend of videos. But I cannot fabricate quartz, and I shouldn't wire a subpanel without supervision.
Factor in your real hourly rate. Our 340 hours saved roughly $6,000, or about $17.65 per hour. If your side gig pays more, it might not be worth your weekends. But the pride of cooking in a kitchen you built yourself is hard to price — that part you can't outsource.
If you're on the fence, try one low-risk project first — replace a bathroom vanity or tile a backsplash. See if the process annoys or energizes you.
Our Final Spreadsheet Numbers
If you're going to do your own diy kitchen remodel, track every detail from day one. Record material costs, hours per task, and mistakes. Knowing our real numbers gave us confidence to tackle a bathroom remodel next — and to hire pros for it.
Our total: $28,412, under budget by $1,600, with a kitchen we actually love. If you're starting your own diy kitchen remodel, stack the receipts, measure twice, and remember the cook once.
