How Much Does It Cost To Add a Bathroom in 2024?
EA
Summary:
Adding a bathroom can be a worthwhile investment for increased livability and home value. The average bathroom addition cost ranges from $13,000 to $53,000, though prices will vary widely based on the types of additions you make, the size and style of your bathroom, and the location of your home.
Taking on any home renovation project without a budget in mind is always a bad idea. Even adding a room as little as a bathroom is no small undertaking. That said, it can ultimately pay off: you can expect to make back an estimated 70% of the total cost of a bathroom remodel when you sell your home. But how much does it cost to add a bathroom in the first place?
In this article, we’ll go over how much you can expect to pay for a bathroom addition, as well as how much you can earn back in property value when you sell your home.
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Average bathroom addition cost breakdown
Adding a bathroom is a complex process, but the renovation can make your home more functional and livable — not to mention it can increase your home’s market value.
When adding a new bathroom, there are dozens of decisions along the way that will influence the cost and outcome of the renovation. To help you get an idea of what the average bathroom installation costs, we’ve put together the following table with the estimated average costs for the most common components of a bathroom addition.
| Component | Cost |
|---|---|
| Plumbing | $2,000 – $10,000 |
| Electrical | $500 – $3,500 |
| Permits | $400 – $2,000 |
| Shower | $4,000 – $15,000 |
| Shower door | $500 – $1,500 |
| Bathtub | $3,000 – $10,000 |
| Toilet | $200 – $550 |
| Faucet | $50 – $350 |
| Drywall | $1,000 – $2,500 |
| Tiling | $1,000 – $3,000 |
| Vanity | $500 – $4,000 |
| Light fixtures | $150 – $1,000 |
| Towel racks | $20 – $200 |
| Total | $13,320 – $53,600 |
Of course, not many of us have that kind of cash lying around. If you need a little help financing your new bathroom addition, consider one of the personal loans below.
Type of bathroom addition
The type of bathroom you add to your home will usually depend on your vision, budget, and available space. Here are a few of the most common types of bathrooms and how much they typically cost to add to a home:
| Type of bathroom | Cost |
|---|---|
| Primary | $10,000 – $100,000 |
| Upstairs | $8,000 – $35,000 |
| Basement | $8,000 – $15,000 |
| Extension | $20,000 – $70,000 |
| Splitting one into two | $10,000 – $30,000 |
| Bedroom conversion | $15,000 – $50,000 |
| Closet conversion | $5,000 – $20,000 |
| Laundry conversion | $5,000 – $12,000 |
| Attic conversion | $8,000 – $35,000 |
| Garage conversion | $8,000 – $25,000+ |
Primary bathroom
Because the largest bathroom in a home usually comes with the most amenities, a primary bathroom is the most expensive type of bathroom you can add to your home. Depending on the usable space available, you can expect the renovation to cost between $10,000 and $100,000.
Upstairs bathroom
Adding a bathroom upstairs comes with unique challenges, which can increase installation costs. There are two main reasons that upstairs bathrooms are more expensive to install than downstairs bathrooms:
- The more complex construction logistics of moving materials and laborers upstairs.
- The challenges of installing new plumbing pipes or connecting to existing plumbing lines on an upper floor.
Depending on the type of upstairs bathroom you add to your home, the project will likely cost between $8,000 and $35,000.
Basement bathroom
You might choose to add a bathroom in the basement for accessibility, hospitality, and convenience. Like with an upstairs bathroom, plumbing labor and logistics can increase the cost of adding a bathroom in your basement. The typical basement bathroom addition costs between $8,000 and $15,000.
Pro Tip
Remodeling existing space (like a closet) instead of adding new space can save you money when adding a basement bathroom. It may also be cheaper to add a bathroom to an unfinished basement, as the excavation and construction costs of adding new bathroom space to a finished basement can skyrocket the total expense.
Bathroom extension
Is your bathroom feeling cramped? A bathroom extension can add some elbow room (and value) to your home. Extending a bathroom often costs about as much as adding a brand-new one, between $20,000 and $70,000.
Splitting one bathroom into two bathrooms
Turning one bathroom into two can come with a few benefits, like increasing the home’s resale value and creating an en suite for hosting guests. Completing a bathroom split project will typically cost you between $10,000 and $30,000.
Bedroom conversion
The size of your space, the quality of finishes, and the distance to drains and plumbing will all affect the feasibility and cost of converting your bedroom into a bathroom. Turning a bedroom into a bathroom typically costs anywhere from $15,000 to $50,000.
Closet conversion
Converting a closet into a bathroom is one of the best ways to maximize existing space and add value to your home. Most closet conversions cost between $5,000 and $20,000.
Laundry room conversion
A laundry room is a convenient space to convert into a bathroom because it already comes with plumbing hookups. The average cost of a laundry room conversion ranges from $5,000 to $12,000.
Attic conversion
A great way to utilize attic space is to convert all or part of it into a bathroom. The cost of converting an attic into a bathroom is typically between $8,000 and $35,000.
Garage conversion
If it’s feasible for you to give up some garage storage space, a garage conversion could be a low-maintenance and high-potential option for a bathroom addition. You can expect a garage conversion to cost anywhere from $5,000 to $25,000, though it may be more depending on the space and amenities.
Features of a bathroom addition
Every bathroom is different, which means no bathroom addition project will be exactly the same as the last. The complexity of your project and the extravagance of the finished bathroom will greatly impact the overall cost of the renovation.
Cost of adding a basic bathroom
Basic doesn’t have to mean low-quality or ugly; you can design a simple yet elegant and effective bathroom that won’t break the bank. Basic bathrooms cost an average of $200 to $300 per square foot. Accordingly, a basic 60-square-foot bathroom would cost an average of $12,000 to $18,000 to install.
Cost of adding a luxury bathroom
Adding luxury bathrooms — that is, bathrooms with costly materials, high-end fixtures, and fancy amenities — can be more than twice as expensive as adding basic bathrooms. However, going all out may be worth the cost to dramatically increase the value of your home.
Luxury bathrooms cost an average of $450 to $600, so adding a 60-square-foot luxury bathroom to your home could cost you around $27,000 to $36,000.
Bathroom features that skyrocket cost
Premium features can double the price of your bathroom renovation; even a single luxury design choice can drastically increase the overall cost of the project. That said, adding luxury features to your basic bathroom can elevate the space and even increase your home’s value.
The following are some examples of luxury bathroom features and how much they typically cost:
- Whirlpool tub: $10,000
- Rain shower: $4,000
- Smart toilet: $2,000
- Luxury mirror: $2,000
- Custom high-end fixtures: $12,000
Size of a bathroom addition
When you’re planning to add a bathroom to your home, it’s important to strike a careful balance between your desired bathroom size and your budget. Here are some of the costs you can expect for a bathroom addition based on the size of the new bathroom:
Cost of adding a bathroom by square footage
Many bathroom addition contractors charge for their services by square foot. Therefore, increasing or decreasing your bathroom’s square footage will affect the overall cost of the renovation.
For example, imagine you’re planning to turn your 90-square-foot laundry room into a bathroom. You have two options for this project:
- You can convert all 90 square feet into a bathroom.
- You can use only 50 square feet for the bathroom and keep the other 40 square feet as a laundry room.
Assuming a standard renovation cost of $250 per square foot, the first option would cost you $22,500, but the second option would only cost you $12,500. That’s a difference of $10,000!
Half bath vs. full bath
Half baths characteristically have a sink and toilet but no shower or bathtub. They’re often used as guest bathrooms, so if all you need is a conveniently located extra bathroom in your home, a small half bathroom should be enough. Adding a half bath to your home typically costs between $5,000 and $30,000, depending on the project’s complexity.
Using existing space vs. adding a bathroom space
It should come as no surprise that adding new space to your home will be costly. On average, adding a full bathroom space to a home costs twice as much as converting an existing space into a bathroom.
Location of your home
Location is another major factor that will determine the cost of your bathroom addition. Materials, contractors, permitting, and installation costs will vary significantly depending on where you live. In general, renovation costs increase linearly with cost of living — in other words, adding a bathroom will cost more wherever the overall cost of living is higher.
For example, a mid-range bathroom addition in the Bay Area of California costs almost $70,000, while the same type of project would cost less than $45,000 in Bozeman, Montana.
Pro Tip
Good contractors can be hard to come by in any area. Tap into your network of friends and family for recommendations of good contractors for your bathroom addition project.
How much does adding a bathroom increase your home’s value?
A major motivator for adding a bathroom is increasing a home’s value. If you’re looking to sell your home sometime in the future, adding an extra bathroom now can increase the home’s value by 10% to 25%!
We asked three real estate experts from across the country for their insight on how bathrooms add value to homes. All three agreed that bathrooms can make or break a home sale! Here are some exclusive tips from these experts to help you decide whether adding a bathroom to your home is worth the investment:
- Jon Sanborn, licensed realtor, experienced real estate investor, and co-founder of SD House Guys, says that a minimum of one bathroom per two bedrooms is a safe bet. However, he suggests that “if you’re looking to maximize your profit margin when selling a home, it can be beneficial to try to offer more bathrooms than necessary.” He recommends converting a large closet into a half bath for a minimal-cost increase in value.
- Shaun Martin, real estate professional, land developer, investment advisor, and CEO of We Buy Houses In Denver, emphasized that an attractive and well-maintained bathroom can help you sell your home. From his experience, Shaun suggests that “modern touches like heated floors, multi-head showers, or smart toilets can make a big difference in terms of how appealing a bathroom is to buyers.”
- Alex Capozzolo, real estate expert and co-founder of Brotherly Love Real Estate, provides a fresh and creative take on bathroom additions that might just spark your interest: “Homeowners should try to be open to considering additions to the bathroom if possible. If you have space in the garden for a guest room with an en suite, go ahead with it (pending municipal approval). It will increase the value of your property and also help you gain extra income if you decide to rent the space.”
FAQ
How long does it take to add another bathroom to a house?
The time it takes to add a bathroom to your home will depend on your budget and the amount of work you plan to hire out, as well as the bathroom’s type, style, size, and location. Expect a full bathroom addition project to take anywhere from six weeks to three months to complete.
Can you install a toilet without plumbing?
No, a toilet requires plumbing. If you want to go completely off-grid, look into composting toilets for plumbing-free installation.
Is it worth it to add a bathroom?
Adding a bathroom can certainly be worth the investment. Functionally, a new bathroom can add convenience and hospitality to your home. Financially, adding a bathroom can increase your home’s value by 10% to 25%, so you can make back your investment (and then some) when you eventually sell your home.
Can you put a toilet where a shower was?
Yes, you can install a toilet in place of a shower. The existing piping will eliminate the need for extra plumbing work for water. However, you’ll still need to connect the toilet to the sewage system.
Key Takeaways
- The average bathroom addition costs between $13,000 and $53,000, including mid-range features, installment, and permitting.
- The type and size of the new bathroom will determine the cost of the project. Converting existing downstairs space (like a garage) tends to be relatively cheap while adding new space for a large bathroom upstairs (like a primary bathroom) will be the most expensive option.
- Extravagance also plays a significant role in the overall cost of bathroom additions, as luxury features and finishes can raise the price of a renovation significantly. On average, adding a luxury bathroom costs twice as much as adding a basic bathroom.
- The location of your home will determine the average cost you can expect to pay for a bathroom addition. Generally, higher living costs in an area translate to higher prices for bathroom additions.
- Adding a bathroom to your home can be a lucrative investment: a single additional bathroom can increase your home’s resale value by up to 25%!
While adding a bathroom is an excellent way to increase your home’s value, it’s not your only option. If you have the space (and the budget) to spare, you can also improve your home by adding a patio, a pergola, a hot tub, an outdoor kitchen, an outdoor riding arena, or an outdoor basketball court.
Need help financing your next big renovation project? SuperMoney can help! Start by reading our guide on how to finance a home renovation, then use our comparison tool to find the best personal loans to fund your home improvement project!
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