What a kitchen remodel costs in Williamson County
Cosmetic refresh: $8,000–$20,000. Paint, hardware, countertops, backsplash, lighting, appliances. Cabinets stay.
Full remodel, same layout: $25,000–$45,000. New cabinets, counters, flooring, lighting, appliances. Sink and range stay put.
Full remodel with layout changes: $45,000–$75,000. Moving plumbing, gas, or electrical. Removing or opening a wall.
High-end or whole-floor projects: $75,000–$150,000+. Custom cabinetry, structural work, high-end appliance packages.
These are Central Texas ranges for a typical 150–250 square foot kitchen. Nobody can quote your kitchen without seeing it — but if a number lands far outside these bands in either direction, that’s worth asking about.
The one decision that moves the number most
Whether the layout changes. Not the cabinets, not the countertops — the layout.
Keeping the sink, range, and refrigerator in their existing positions means no plumbing relocation, no gas line work, no new circuits, and usually a much lighter permit and inspection load. Moving them means all of it.
Two kitchens can look nearly identical when finished and differ by $15,000 or more purely because one moved the sink eight feet. If your budget is tight, this is the first place to give ground — not on cabinet quality, where you’ll notice the compromise every day for fifteen years.
Where the money actually goes
| Line item | Typical share | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cabinets | 25–35% | Almost always the largest single item. Stock, semi-custom, and custom can differ 3–4× for the same footprint. |
| Labor | 20–30% | Demolition, install, finish work, and coordination. Higher when trades have to be sequenced around each other. |
| Countertops | 10–15% | Material plus fabrication. Large islands and waterfall edges consume more than the per-square-foot price suggests. |
| Appliances | 10–20% | Enormous range. Also affects cabinetry — panel-ready and oversized units change the millwork. |
| Flooring | 5–10% | Often extends beyond the kitchen for continuity, which surprises people at quote time. |
| Plumbing & electrical | 5–15% | Small if nothing moves. Significant if anything does. Must be performed by separately licensed trades. |
| Permits, design, contingency | 5–10% | Budget 10% contingency on any pre-2010 home. Opening walls in older construction reliably finds something. |
What’s different about kitchens in this county
Sun City and other late-1990s homes
Sun City has thousands of homes built from 1996 onward, and those original kitchens are now 20–30 years old. They typically have builder-grade cabinets in decent structural condition, dated counters, and layouts that reflect 1990s design conventions rather than how people cook now.
Two practical notes. First, the cabinet boxes are often still sound — refacing or replacing doors and drawer fronts can deliver most of the visual change at a fraction of replacement cost. Worth pricing both ways before you commit. Second, homes of this era commonly have fewer electrical circuits in the kitchen than modern code and modern appliance loads call for, so a full remodel often includes electrical upgrades that weren’t in the original mental budget.
2010s and newer builds
Wolf Ranch, Teravista, Paloma Lake, and the newer sections of Round Rock and Cedar Park are full of homes under fifteen years old with builder-grade kitchens. The construction is sound and the layouts are generally current — what people want is better finishes.
These projects land at the low end of the ranges above, run on shorter timelines, and rarely need permits because nothing structural or mechanical moves. If you’re in this category, be skeptical of any quote that looks like a gut-remodel number.
A note on quotes that come in very low
In a market where contractors are busy, an unusually cheap bid usually means one of three things: the scope is thinner than you think, the finishes are lower grade than you discussed, or subcontractors and permits weren’t priced in and will arrive later as change orders.
Ask for the scope in writing with materials specified by brand and line. A quote you can’t compare line-for-line against another quote isn’t really a quote.
Timeline
- Cosmetic refresh: 1–3 weeks
- Full remodel, same layout: 4–8 weeks
- Layout change with permits: 8–16 weeks
Add lead time for cabinets, which is usually the long pole — semi-custom and custom orders are frequently quoted in months, not weeks, and the demolition shouldn’t start until they’re confirmed.
Get real numbers for your kitchen
Send us the size, what you want changed, and your rough budget. We’ll pass it to independent remodelers covering your city and you’ll get quotes to compare. Free, no obligation, and you contract directly with whoever you choose.
Cost ranges reflect typical Central Texas pricing as of 2026 and are provided for planning purposes. Actual pricing depends on your kitchen, your finish selections, and current material and labor costs. Last reviewed July 2026.