How much does a kitchen renovation cost in Belgium?

A new kitchen in Belgium costs €10,500 for a basic model, €14,500 for a standard one and around €19,000 fully equipped, according to the bank KBC, which uses data from the renovation platform Setle. A full renovation of a 12 to 15 m² kitchen, with fitting, new pipework and a new floor, adds up to roughly €17,000 to €24,000.

If you are new to Belgium, a few things will shape that budget more than the brand of the cabinets: the reduced VAT rate on renovation, the fact that fitting is often quoted separately, and how little is left of the regional grants. This guide covers each, with sector prices, IKEA's published installation rates and a worked example for a Ghent kitchen.

What does a kitchen cost in Belgium?

There is no official price list. The most useful public figures come from KBC and from Bouwinfo, a Belgian building platform that collected quotes and invoices from its forum members. Both are commercial sources, and neither says whether VAT is included.

Half of the Bouwinfo kitchens came in under €18,000. Delivery, pre-assembly and fitting, where quoted separately, ran from roughly €1,650 to almost €4,900. A laminate worktop instead of composite or natural stone saved members €3,000 to €5,000, and appliances were discounted by up to 60 per cent off the list price.

What does a full kitchen renovation add?

A new kitchen is one part of the bill. Take the old one out and you see the pipes, the sockets, the floor and the wall behind. Those decide whether the job stays a kitchen swap or becomes a small building project.

The pipework and flooring prices come from an article about bathrooms, but the work is the same. Removing the old kitchen, wall tiles, lighting and knocking through a wall are not covered by any of these sources; ask for them as separate lines on the quote.

Worked example: a Ghent kitchen of twelve to fifteen square metres

Take a kitchen of 12 to 15 m² at the back of a Ghent terraced house. The old kitchen goes, the new one is U-shaped, the sink moves a metre and the floor is replaced.

Choose a composite worktop instead of laminate and the kitchen alone rises to €17,500 to €19,500, close to KBC's fully equipped figure. For a first indication with your own measurements, use the cost calculator. A real price follows a measuring visit.

IKEA or a custom kitchen?

Many expats start at IKEA, and in a new build with straight walls that is often a sound choice. IKEA Belgium publishes its installation rates:

For 12 cabinets and 4 appliances, installation comes to €1,945. The service connects an IKEA sink, tap and trap; other work is charged at the installer's hourly rate, and moving pipes, rewiring or a new floor is a separate job. IKEA gives a 25 years guarantee on its kitchens.

A custom kitchen follows the room: cabinets into an alcove, up to the ceiling, under a sloping wall. In an older Belgian house with uneven walls and a chimney breast in the corner, that difference is real. A member of Bouwinfo who fitted a chain-store kitchen himself saved €4,000, but self-fitting has a cost that is not on the quote: the VAT.

How does VAT work on a kitchen?

A kitchen made up of storage cabinets, a sink and an extractor hood is charged at 6% VAT, according to the official list of the Federal Public Service Finance, when it is part of the renovation of a home that is older than 10 years. The conditions:

• The same company supplies, installs and invoices the kitchen, directly to you as the end user. That can be the owner, a tenant or a usufructuary.
• After the works the home is used as a private home for more than 50 per cent.
• Cabinets you buy and fit yourself are charged at 21%, as is a kitchen in an ordinary new build.
• Replacing a single faulty appliance, such as a built-in oven, is charged at 21%.

On a kitchen of €10,000 excluding VAT, the difference between the two rates is €1,500.

Are there grants for a kitchen in Flanders?

Not for the kitchen itself. The Flemish renovation grant, Mijn VerbouwPremie, dropped interior renovation on 1 July 2025, and since 1 January 2026 the Flemish renovation loan no longer finances interior renovation or sanitary appliances either.

What remains: owner-occupiers in income categories 3 and 4 can claim 35 per cent, up to €2,100 in category 3 or 50 per cent, up to €3,000 in category 4 of the invoice excluding VAT for new pipes, drains and electrics. The invoice must be at least €1,000, and the home must have been connected to the grid before 1 January 2006. Households in income categories 1 and 2 get nothing for this work since 1 March 2026.

Does knocking through a wall need a permit?

An interior renovation without a change of use is exempt from planning permission in Flanders. If it involves structural work, such as removing a load-bearing wall, the exemption only applies with an architect since 5 September 2026.

Useful Dutch terms on a kitchen quote

How long does it take?

SN Group plans 6 to 10 weeks from measuring to installation. Most of that is design and the production of the cabinets, while you keep cooking in the old kitchen. The installation itself takes 3 to 5 working days.

What is the next step?

Get a first indication from the cost calculator, then book a no-obligation measuring visit through the kitchen page. Renovating the bathroom too? Read the guide to bathroom renovation costs in Belgium.