Compare kitchen quotes, line by line

A cabinet schedule is not necessarily a quote for a finished kitchen. A supplier might include units and delivery but no installation. A fitter may assume walls, floors, wiring and plumbing are already ready. Both documents can be accurate while leaving you to organise substantial work between them.

Begin with one dated layout and a product list. Give every trader the same cabinet arrangement, appliance models, worktop choice and finish requirements. Where a trader proposes a different material or layout, label it as an alternative rather than comparing it as though nothing changed.

Trade handovers deserve particular attention. Someone must check deliveries, manage missing parts, prepare services and return after the worktop is measured. The quote should assign those tasks clearly. Otherwise the apparent saving may become extra appointments, disruption or unpriced work you discover during installation.

What a complete kitchen quote should include

• Layout revision — Use the same dated plan for every quote, including cabinet sizes, appliance positions, clearances and any island or breakfast bar.
• Cabinet specification — Record carcass construction, door finish, drawer systems, hinges, end panels and internal fittings rather than relying on a range name.
• Supply and installation — Separate goods from fitting. Identify homeowner-purchased items and check who is responsible for compatibility and missing installation accessories.
• Worktops — Include material, thickness, edges, joints, cut-outs, upstands, templating and installation. Clarify return visits and any required supports.
• Appliances — List chosen model references, delivery, installation, connections and disposal of old equipment. Confirm whether connection materials are supplied.
• Old kitchen removal — Specify removal of units, worktops and agreed finishes, including waste disposal and protection for items you intend to keep.
• Plumbing — Identify sink and appliance connections, service relocations, isolation valves and the making good around altered pipe routes.
• Electrics — Describe sockets, lighting and appliance circuits. Allocate testing, certification and any likely notifiable work to the appropriate professional.
• Extraction — Include the hood, duct route, external outlet and making good. Supplying an extractor is not the same as installing suitable ducting.
• Room preparation — State plaster repairs, floor preparation, tiling, splashbacks and decorating. Agree what standard the room must reach before fitting starts.
• Delivery and storage — Allocate unloading, checking damaged goods, storage and replacement orders so delays do not become an unexplained dispute between supplier and fitter.
• Programme and snagging — Set out sequencing, loss of cooking facilities, return visits and responsibility for resolving supplier faults versus installation defects.

What's often left out — and what it can cost

A budget flat-pack kitchen and a bespoke kitchen are not identical projects. The references below distinguish broad specifications and example room sizes. Use the category closest to the actual units and worktops, not the most attractive marketing label.

These figures describe supply-and-fit kitchen refits. They do not provide individual prices for a worktop cut-out, plaster repair, appliance connection or skip. Where those items are excluded, obtain a project-specific price from whoever will carry them out.

Whole-job and per-area references are alternative ways to describe a kitchen, not costs to add together. Floor area alone cannot capture cabinet count, appliance choices or complicated worktop joints. Check the proposed finished room before treating a range as comparable.

An illustrative kitchen comparison

A disposal-inclusive quote is not automatically the most complete. Compare the service connections and wall preparation too. Resolve the handovers between the supplier, installer and other trades against the finished kitchen you actually want.

Questions to ask each trader

• Are you quoting from this exact plan and product list, with any substitutions shown separately?
• Who arranges worktop templating, supports, installation and any return visits?
• Which plumbing, electrical and extraction alterations are included, with testing and making good?
• Does the total include VAT on supply, fitting and separately arranged services?
• What does the deposit fund, and how are later payments linked to delivery or completed work?
• Who resolves damaged goods, missing parts and installation snagging?

Your kitchen questions

Ask all suppliers and fitters to price one kitchen specification. Confirm exclusions and unresolved selections in writing before ordering, so the installation plan has no unnoticed gaps between trades.