DIY vs Hire Bathroom Remodel: Cost Comparison Calculator

Is DIY cheaper for a bathroom remodel?

On the defaults — an 80 sq ft bathroom, $45.00 of materials per sq ft, $800 of supplies, 60 hours at $60 an hour, against a pro price of $175.00 per sq ft — remodeling it yourself costs $8,000.00 against a $14,000.00 pro quote: DIY wins by $6,000.00. A pro bathroom remodel is usually priced per square foot — and a typical small bathroom is 40–100 square feet. A pro bathroom remodel usually runs $100–$250 per square foot depending on the fixtures and finishes, so an 80 sq ft pro job commonly lands between $8,000 and $20,000. An 80 sq ft bathroom is a middle-of-the-road job — big enough to matter, small enough to remodel yourself. DIY is worth it when the remodel is a cosmetic refresh — new paint, new fixtures, new flooring, no walls moving — the bathroom is small and you have time; hire a pro when plumbing or drains move, the shower or tub is rebuilt, structural work is involved, the deadline is tight, or the warranty matters — most pro jobs carry a labour warranty the DIY route does not.

Three things about the model are worth stating plainly.

First, the DIY cost is 80 × $45.00 + $800 + 60 × $60 = $8,000.00. Second, the pro cost is 80 × $175.00 = $14,000.00. And third, DIY wins by $6,000.00; all listed in Accuracy & limitations.

The worked example, line by line

Setup: 80 sq ft bathroom, $45.00 of materials per sq ft, $800 of supplies, 60 hours at $60 an hour, pro price $175.00 per sq ft.

Line 1 — the DIY cost. The DIY cost is 80 × $45.00 = $3,600.00 of materials, + $800.00 of supplies, + 60 × $60.00 = $3,600.00 of labour = $8,000.00.

Line 2 — the pro cost. The pro cost is 80 × $175.00 = $14,000.00.

Line 3 — who wins. $14,000.00 − $8,000.00 = $6,000.00, so DIY wins by $6,000.00.

Line 4 — the check. $3,600.00 + $800.00 + $3,600.00 = $8,000.00, the DIY cost; and $14,000.00 − $8,000.00 = $6,000.00, the DIY win.

Every branch, checked

Hours 30: DIY $6,200.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $7,800.00 — With 30 hours instead of 60 the DIY cost falls to $6,200.00 and DIY wins by $7,800.00.

Hours 90: DIY $9,800.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,200.00 — With 90 hours the DIY cost rises to $9,800.00 and DIY wins by $4,200.00.

Materials $30.00: DIY $6,800.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $7,200.00 — With materials at $30.00 per sq ft the DIY cost falls to $6,800.00 and DIY wins by $7,200.00.

Materials $70.00: DIY $10,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,000.00 — With materials at $70.00 per sq ft the DIY cost rises to $10,000.00 and DIY wins by only $4,000.00.

Hours 160: DIY $14,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — exact tie — With 160 hours the DIY cost is $14,000.00, exactly the pro cost — a dead heat, a TIE.

Materials $120.00: DIY $14,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — exact tie — With materials at $120.00 per sq ft the DIY cost is $14,000.00, exactly the pro cost — a dead heat, a TIE.

Hours 80: DIY $9,200.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,800.00 — With 80 hours the DIY cost is $9,200.00 and DIY wins by $4,800.00.

The reverses, worked backwards

Smallest hourly value where hiring WINS: At the displayed $161 the figures are DIY $14,060.00; pro $14,000.00 — Hiring wins by $60.00. At the displayed $161 the DIY cost is $14,060.00 against a $14,000.00 pro quote, so hiring wins by $60.00. At $160 the DIY cost is $14,000.00, exactly the pro cost — a dead heat, a TIE — so $161 is the smallest hourly value where hiring wins.

Largest hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $1,000: At the displayed $143 the figures are DIY $12,980.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $1,020.00. At the displayed $143 the DIY cost is $12,980.00 and DIY wins by $1,020.00. At $144 the DIY cost is $13,040.00 and DIY wins by only $960.00 — under the $1,000 target — so $143 is the largest hourly value where DIY still wins by at least $1,000.

Smallest supplies where hiring WINS: At the displayed $6,801 the figures are DIY $14,001.00; pro $14,000.00 — Hiring wins by $1.00. At the displayed $6,801 the DIY cost is $14,001.00 against a $14,000.00 pro quote, so hiring wins by $1.00. At $6,800 the DIY cost is $14,000.00, exactly the pro cost — a dead heat, a TIE — so $6,801 is the smallest supplies where hiring wins.

Smallest whole-cent materials where hiring WINS: At the displayed $120.01 the figures are DIY $14,000.80; pro $14,000.00 — Hiring wins by $0.80. At the displayed $120.01 the DIY cost is $14,000.80 against a $14,000.00 pro quote, so hiring wins by $0.80. At $120.00 the DIY cost is $14,000.00, exactly the pro cost — a dead heat, a TIE — so $120.01 is the smallest whole-cent materials where hiring wins.

Smallest hours where hiring WINS: At the displayed 161 the figures are DIY $14,060.00; pro $14,000.00 — Hiring wins by $60.00. At the displayed 161 hours the DIY cost is $14,060.00 against a $14,000.00 pro quote, so hiring wins by $60.00. At 160 hours the DIY cost is $14,000.00, exactly the pro cost — a dead heat, a TIE — so 161 is the smallest hours where hiring wins.

Smallest pro price per sq ft where DIY wins at all: At the displayed $101 the figures are DIY $8,000.00; pro $8,080.00 — DIY wins by $80.00. At the displayed $101 per sq ft the pro cost is $8,080.00 against an $8,000.00 DIY cost, so DIY wins by $80.00. At $100 per sq ft the pro cost is $8,000.00 — a dead heat, a TIE, not a DIY win. At $99 per sq ft the pro cost is $7,920.00 and hiring wins by $80.00 — so $101 is the smallest pro price where DIY wins at all.

A warning about the neighbours: every neighbour above sits one step from the star — $1 of supplies, one cent of materials, one hour, one dollar of hourly value, one dollar of pro price. A pro quote that moves by a dollar changes the answer. The page prints the neighbour values in full so the rounding does not mislead you: at $160 the DIY cost is $14,000.00, a dead heat; at $144 DIY wins by only $960.00; at $6,800 the DIY cost is $14,000.00, a dead heat; at $120.00 the DIY cost is $14,000.00, a dead heat; at 160 hours the DIY cost is $14,000.00, a dead heat; at $100 per sq ft the pro cost is $8,000.00, a dead heat; at $99 per sq ft the pro cost is $7,920.00 and hiring wins by $80.00.

What the defaults assume

The defaults are an 80 sq ft bathroom, $45.00 of materials per sq ft, $800 of supplies, 60 hours at $60 an hour, and a pro price of $175.00 per sq ft — DIY $8,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $6,000.00. With Hours 30, DIY $6,200.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $7,800.00. With Hours 90, DIY $9,800.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,200.00. With Materials $30.00, DIY $6,800.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $7,200.00. With Materials $70.00, DIY $10,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,000.00. With Hours 160, DIY $14,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — exact tie. With Materials $120.00, DIY $14,000.00; pro $14,000.00 — exact tie. With Hours 80, DIY $9,200.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,800.00. With All zero, DIY $0.00; pro $0.00 — exact tie. With 50 sq ft, materials $40.00, supplies $500, hours 25, hourly $50, pro $160.00, DIY $3,750.00; pro $8,000.00 — DIY wins by $4,250.00. With 65 sq ft, materials $52.375, supplies $437.50, hours 18.5, hourly $75.50, pro $188.75, DIY $5,238.63; pro $12,268.75 — DIY wins by $7,030.13. With Materials $110.00, supplies $1,200, hours 80, hourly $85, pro $175.00, DIY $16,800.00; pro $14,000.00 — Hiring wins by $2,800.00. With Hours 0, DIY $4,400.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $9,600.00. With Hours 18.5, DIY $5,510.00; pro $14,000.00 — DIY wins by $8,490.00. With Win-by bars, hourly value for a $1,500.00 DIY win $135.00; pro price per square foot for a $2,000.00 DIY win $125.00; materials per square foot for a $3,000.00 DIY win $82.50.

A note on the rounding: with 65 sq ft, materials $52.375, supplies $437.50, 18.5 hours at $75.50 an hour and a pro price of $188.75 per sq ft, the unrounded DIY cost is 5238.625 — which rounds half-up to $5,238.63 — and the unrounded win is 7030.125 — which rounds half-up to $7,030.13. The page prints the unrounded values so the rounding does not mislead you.

Output · formula · meaning

Who uses this

• The homeowner with a small bathroom: they learn remodeling an 80 sq ft bathroom themselves costs $8,000.00 against a $14,000.00 pro quote — and they check the $161 reverse to see the hourly value where hiring wins.
• The DIYer pricing tile and fixtures: they learn a pro bathroom remodel usually runs $100–$250 per square foot — and they check the $120.01 reverse to see the materials price where hiring wins.
• The busy parent with no weekends free: they learn a pro crew finishes in one to two weeks while a DIYer takes two to three months — and they check the 161 reverse to see the hours where hiring wins.
• The buyer comparing quotes: they learn an 80 sq ft pro job commonly lands between $8,000 and $20,000 — and they check the $101 reverse to see the pro price where DIY wins at all.

Accuracy & limitations

The math is first-principles: the DIY cost is sq ft × materials per sq ft + supplies + hours × hourly value; the pro cost is sq ft × pro price per sq ft; the winner is the lower cost, and equal costs are a dead heat — all rounded to two decimals half-up. What the model cannot do is price your bathroom: pro prices vary by region and by fixture — a pro bathroom remodel usually runs $100–$250 per square foot depending on the fixtures and finishes; materials vary by grade; the hourly value is your own time, so price it honestly — an hour of your weekend is worth more than an hour you would spend idle. The model also cannot see the plumbing: a shower or tub surround that is not waterproofed properly leaks into the floor below, plumbing connections that are not sealed properly drip behind the wall, electrical work that does not meet code fails inspection, and a remodel without the right permits causes problems when the home is sold — all risks the calculator cannot price; and it does not include permits, inspections, or a pro’s labour warranty. Use it to see the money — then walk the bathroom before you decide.

Frequently asked questions