Cabinets and countertops take most of a kitchen budget. Moving plumbing adds the surprises. Illustrative photo.
Short answer: a plain 9 sqm kitchen with a 3-metre straight run of HPL base cabinets and 2.1 m of wall cabinets, a granite top, ceramic floor and backsplash tiles, a basic sink, one new circuit, two added outlets, a basic hood and demolition of the old kitchen comes out around ₱120,000 to ₱220,000 with contingency. Cabinets are about 40 to 50 percent of that. The line that surprises people isn't the stone, it's moving the sink, because a new drain has to slope all the way back to the old stack.
Our house renovation cost guide gives whole-house per-sqm tiers, with mid-range (new kitchen and bath) at ₱8,000 to ₱18,000 per sqm of house. Don't use those per-sqm figures on a kitchen alone. In our experience, a kitchen is usually the most expensive room per square metre, and a 9 sqm kitchen at ₱180,000 is ₱20,000 per sqm of kitchen floor. That's not a contradiction. The whole-house average is pulled down by bedrooms that only get paint. So price a kitchen by the metre of cabinet, not by the square metre of floor.
Pick your layout and wall lengths. The same room can need twice the cabinet run depending on the shape, and cabinets are priced per linear metre.
Here's where each number in the calculator comes from. Where we found a published Philippine price we used it and named it. Where there isn't one (running a new circuit, moving a drain) the figure is ours and it says so.
| Line | Low – high | Where the number comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Cabinets, marine plywood + PVC laminate | ₱8,000–₱12,000 / lm | CabinetMakerPH 2026 guide (Metro Manila prices), installed with standard hinges |
| Cabinets, marine plywood + HPL | ₱12,000–₱18,000 / lm | CabinetMakerPH 2026 guide (Metro Manila prices) |
| Cabinets, acrylic or automotive Duco, handleless | ₱18,000–₱25,000 / lm | CabinetMakerPH 2026 guide (Metro Manila prices; the "+" end is open) |
| Granite top, 600 mm deep | ₱4,100–₱8,700 / lm | Wilcon's September 2026 special (sale) prices: 60×220 cm granite at ₱6,890 and ₱16,980 (₱3,130–₱7,720/lm), plus ₱1,000/lm installation (Stone Depot's quartz install rate, used as a proxy) |
| Quartz top, 600 mm deep | ₱4,400–₱8,100 / lm | Stone Depot ₱5,700/sqm (₱3,420/lm) up to Wilcon Stellar Quartz 60×220 cm at ₱15,540 (₱7,060/lm; Wilcon's plain P.Tech Quartz is ₱13,720), plus ₱1,000/lm installation (Stone Depot's quartz install rate, used as a proxy) |
| Stone cut-outs (sink + hob) | ₱1,000 | Stone Depot, cut-outs from ₱500 per set; two sets |
| Tiled top on existing concrete counter | ₱480–₱840 / lm | Ceramic at ₱800–₱1,400/m² installed × 0.6 m, from our tile cost guide |
| Stainless steel top | ₱5,000–₱10,000 / lm | AEDO market estimate, fabricator-dependent |
| Floor / backsplash tile, ceramic | ₱800–₱1,400 / m² | AEDO tile cost guide (tile, adhesive, grout, labour) |
| Floor / backsplash tile, porcelain | ₱1,100–₱1,900 / m² | AEDO tile cost guide |
| Basic sink + faucet | ₱5,058–₱5,898 | Wilcon: Hamden SG-4444AR1 304 stainless single bowl ₱4,320 + Sefa Kitchen Faucet ₱738, up to Hamden SG-5444AR1 ₱4,980 + Sefa Cold Line Kitchen Faucet ₱918 (Sefa at sale prices) |
| Mid sink + faucet | ₱10,937–₱15,720 | Wilcon: Franke Felix FEX 210-40 ₱6,720 + Lina CT902S-CWO tap ₱4,217, up to Franke Bell BCX 611-86 ₱9,303 + Lina XL CT9020C tap ₱6,417 |
| Granite-composite sink + faucet | ₱27,637–₱36,341 | Wilcon: Franke Maris MRG 110-52 ₱21,220 + Lina XL CT9020C tap ₱6,417, up to Franke Urban UBG 610-50 ₱23,957 + Eos Neo CT108S tap ₱12,384 |
| Sink hook-up labour | ₱700–₱1,200 | One plumber-day wage; a contractor bills more. From our 2026 labor rates (₱700–₱1,000 provincial, ₱850–₱1,200 Metro Manila) |
| Range hood, basic 60 cm | ₱3,995–₱5,490 | Wilcon: Tecnogas Traditional TRH6011BL (60 cm, per model code; ₱3,995 sale price) to Hamden 3030-600 (60 cm per its listing name). The Tecnogas Traditional TRH9002SS (90 cm, per model code) is ₱7,895 |
| Range hood, chimney / built-in | ₱6,990–₱8,985 | Wilcon: Hamden Elite and Canopy |
| Range hood, premium | ₱11,515–₱18,843 | Wilcon: Franke under-cabinet to Arno wall-mounted |
| Hood install + duct to outside | ₱2,000–₱5,000 | AEDO market estimate |
| Move the sink (up to ~3 m) | ₱10,000–₱25,000 | AEDO market estimate: chipping, new sloped drain, supply lines, patching |
| New dedicated circuit | ₱4,000–₱8,000 each | AEDO market estimate: wire, conduit, breaker, labour, run of about 10 m |
| Added convenience outlet | ₱1,500–₱3,000 each | AEDO market estimate |
| Demolition + hauling | ₱600–₱1,200 / m² + ₱3,000–₱5,000 | AEDO market estimate: strip old cabinets, top and tiles, haul debris |
| Contingency | 10%–20% | Same band as our renovation cost guide. You're inheriting someone else's pipes |
Two things to know about the stone numbers. Wilcon lists its countertops as 60×220 or 60×240 cm, granite sold per piece and quartz per set, so we took the 60 cm as the depth and divided the price by length to get a per-metre figure. And quartz isn't automatically the expensive option. Entry quartz from Stone Depot sits right next to mid-grade granite. The cheapest stone top is still basic granite.
Every row is priced from the table above. The total is the exact sum of the rows you see, contingency included. Appliances, permits and design fees are not in it.
Water supply is easy to move. It's pressurised, so a 20 mm line can go up, over and around. The drain can't. It runs on gravity, so it needs a steady fall all the way back to the existing stack or floor drain, and in most Philippine houses that means chipping a trench in the slab or a chase in a CHB wall, laying new pipe, then patching and re-tiling over it. The further you move the sink from the old drain, the deeper that trench gets. Keep the sink on its current wall and you skip the whole line. A moved sink also still needs a proper trap and vent under the National Plumbing Code, so the new drain isn't just a pipe with a slope. Your master plumber lays that out.
PD 1096 Section 301 is blunt: nobody may "alter, repair, move, convert or demolish" a building without a permit. The Revised IRR then carves out the small stuff. Section 301.3 lists repair works that don't need a building permit, and several are exactly what a kitchen refresh involves:
The catch is the word "alteration". The IRR defines it as work involving changes in the materials used, partitioning, location or size of openings, structural parts, and existing utilities and equipment. Re-tiling the floor and replacing plumbing fixtures in the same spot in a detached house are listed exemptions (Section 301.3.b.v and b.vii). New cabinets or a different countertop material aren't named in that list, and "materials used" is part of the alteration definition, so they may read as alteration. Ask your Office of the Building Official. Moving the sink, adding circuits for an oven or aircon, or opening up a wall changes the existing utilities or the structure. That is likely treated as alteration under the Revised IRR, so plan for a building permit and confirm with your OBO. Under Section 301.2 that permit comes with its ancillary permits, the electrical and plumbing ones included, signed and sealed by the right professionals.
Two cautions. The plumbing-fixture exemption is written for single detached houses and duplexes, so townhouse and condo owners shouldn't assume it covers them (your condo admin will have its own rules anyway). And your local Office of the Building Official has the final say on how it reads your scope. A short call before demolition is cheaper than a stop-work notice. Our building permit guide covers the process.
GFCI near the sink. The Philippine Electrical Code 2017 requires ground-fault circuit-interrupter protection for dwelling-unit receptacles serving kitchen countertop surfaces and those within 1.8 m of a sink, as reported by Filipino Engineer's summary of PEC 2017 Section 2.10.1.8(A). We couldn't read the printed PEC text ourselves for this article, so treat that as a flag to raise, and confirm the exact requirement with your licensed electrical engineer or master electrician.
Dedicated circuits. An induction range, built-in oven, water heater or aircon each wants its own circuit back to the panel. That's good practice, and it's what your electrical designer will size. Check that your main breaker and service can take the extra load first. Our service sizing guide explains how.
LPG. Don't put the cylinder inside a closed base cabinet. Keep it where a leak can air out, use a proper regulator and clamped hose, and never run the hood duct into the ceiling space instead of outside. These are good practice, not quoted code clauses. The Fire Code (RA 9514) covers flammable and combustible gases generally, and commercial kitchens have separate clearance rules covered in our commercial kitchen fit-out guide.
This is the one scope item that can turn a cabinet job into a structural job. Plenty of Philippine houses carry roof framing or a second-floor slab on interior CHB walls, and the wall between kitchen and dining is a common one. Don't let the carpenter decide by knocking on it. Read our load-bearing wall removal guide first, and get an engineer to look before anyone swings a sledgehammer. If it's carrying load, the opening needs a designed beam, temporary shoring and a permit, and none of that is in the calculator above.
How much does a kitchen renovation cost in the Philippines?
For a typical 9 sqm kitchen with a 3-metre straight run of HPL base cabinets plus 2.1 m of wall cabinets, a granite top, ceramic floor and backsplash tiles, a basic stainless sink, one new circuit, two added outlets, a basic hood and demolition of the old kitchen, the calculator on this page lands at roughly ₱120,000 to ₱220,000 including a 10 to 20 percent contingency. Cabinets are about 40 to 50 percent of that. Appliances, permits and design fees are not included.
How much are kitchen cabinets per linear metre in the Philippines?
CabinetMakerPH's 2026 guide puts custom cabinets in Metro Manila at ₱8,000 to ₱12,000 per linear metre for marine plywood with PVC laminate, ₱12,000 to ₱18,000 for marine plywood with HPL, and ₱18,000 to ₱25,000 or more for marine plywood with acrylic or automotive Duco, handleless. Those prices include standard hinges and installation but exclude the stone countertop, sink and appliances, and the same guide says prices may be 10 to 15 percent lower in cities like Cebu and Davao.
Is granite or quartz cheaper for a kitchen countertop?
They overlap. At Wilcon's September 2026 special (sale) prices a 60 by 220 cm granite countertop runs ₱6,890 to ₱16,980 depending on the stone, and a 60 by 220 cm quartz top is ₱13,720 to ₱15,540. Stone Depot lists quartz from ₱5,700 to ₱9,500 per square metre, with full installation at ₱1,000 per linear metre and sink or hob cut-outs from ₱500 per set. Entry-level granite is the cheapest stone; premium granite and quartz land in the same band.
Do I need a building permit to renovate my kitchen?
It depends on what you touch. Section 301.3 of the Revised IRR of PD 1096 exempts repair works such as replacing flooring, doors and windows, non load-bearing partitions, any interior portion not involving addition or alteration, and plumbing fixtures like sinks and faucets in single detached dwellings and duplexes. The IRR defines alteration as works involving changes in the materials used, partitioning, location/size of openings, structural parts, existing utilities and equipment. Moving the sink, adding circuits or opening a wall is likely treated as alteration under the Revised IRR, so plan for a building permit with its ancillary electrical and plumbing permits and confirm with your local Office of the Building Official.
Can I remove the wall between my kitchen and dining area?
Only after someone confirms it is not load-bearing. Many Philippine houses carry roof or second-floor load on interior CHB walls, and removing one without a beam and temporary shoring can crack slabs or worse. Have a licensed civil or structural engineer check it first; if it is load-bearing, the opening needs a designed beam and a building permit.
Statutes, published prices and references used in this article. Primary sources first. External links open in a new tab.
Retail prices were read from the listings in September 2026 and move with promos and stock. Wilcon's countertop, Sefa faucet and Tecnogas hood prices were special (sale) prices at the time. Tile and labour rates come from AEDO's own tile cost and labor rates guides. Stainless tops, plumbing relocation, new circuits and outlets, hood duct work and demolition are AEDO market figures as of September 2026, not sourced to a published price list.
A calculator gets you a budget. A layout with rough-in points, an electrical load check and an itemised BOQ gets you quotes you can actually compare. Where we build matters, so here it is plainly: in Negros Oriental, AEDO designs and builds your kitchen renovation under one contract. Everywhere else in the Philippines, AEDO provides the complete design (architectural, structural, electrical and plumbing) and remote construction oversight of a contractor you hire locally.
