How much does a bathroom renovation cost in Metro Vancouver? (2026 guide)
What a bathroom renovation costs across Metro Vancouver in 2026, by scope and by city, what drives the price, and how to budget. From a Coquitlam tile contractor.
Nobody likes a cost guide that says “it depends”. So here are real brackets for the Lower Mainland in 2026, what pushes a project from one bracket to the next, and how we quote so the number does not move after you say yes.
Three brackets
| Scope | What it includes | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Refresh | Layout stays, tub stays. New tile, vanity, fixtures, glass, paint. | $[CONFIRM] to $[CONFIRM] |
| Full renovation, same layout | Everything replaced, plumbing stays put. Tub-to-shower conversion lands here. | $[CONFIRM] to $[CONFIRM] |
| Full renovation with layout change | Plumbing moves, walls open, curbless shower, heated floor, permits. | $[CONFIRM] to $[CONFIRM] |
Published Lower Mainland benchmarks from directories and competitors put a mid-range full renovation between roughly $15,000 and $35,000 and a basic refresh below that; our own brackets above are what we quote. [CONFIRM the brackets with the owner before publishing.]
What drives the price
- Moving plumbing. Shifting a toilet or shower drain opens the floor and adds plumbing and inspection. Expect several thousand dollars more than the same bathroom with the layout kept.
- Tile choice and size. Large-format porcelain looks the best and costs more to set flat. Natural stone needs sealing. Mosaics add labour per square foot.
- The shower. Curbless showers need a built-up floor and a linear drain. Body-jet systems and rain heads add plumbing.
- Glass. Frameless 10 mm glass is a line item on its own.
- What we find. Rot under the old tub, a subfloor that is not flat, old plumbing that should not be tiled over. We photograph it and quote the fix before continuing.
- Condo versus house. Strata rules, elevator bookings and work-hour limits add days.
By city
Labour rates do not change much from Coquitlam to Vancouver. What changes is parking, access, strata rules and travel time. Tri-Cities and Burnaby jobs are on our daily route; Vancouver, the North Shore and Richmond add travel that we price into the quote rather than hiding it.
How to budget
Pick the bracket, add 10 to 15 percent for what is behind the walls in a house built before 1990, and decide early on the three things that move the price most: layout, tile and glass. Then get an itemized quote. If a quote is a single number, you cannot compare it to anything.
How we quote
Free in-home estimate. Written, itemized quote within 48 hours [CONFIRM]. The number includes waterproofing, disposal, glass and finishing, and it does not change unless you change the scope or we find something behind a wall, which you see in a photo before we touch it.