Home / Remodeling Costs in Seattle, Washington / Bathroom Remodel
Bathroom Remodel Cost in Seattle, Washington
The median declared cost of a bathroom remodel in Seattle, Washington is $28,000, based on 130 residential building permits issued in the last 24 months.
Updated November 2026 · next refresh December 2026 · computed from permits issued through November 2026.
| Median declared cost | $28,000 |
|---|---|
| Typical range (middle half) | $15,000 – $45,000 |
| Full spread (10th–90th percentile) | $7,500 – $62,750 |
| Permits in sample | 130 |
| Period covered | 2024-11-12 to 2026-11-12 |
| Source | City of Seattle building permits (open data) |
How to read this number
These are declared permit values — the job value the applicant reported to the City of Seattle when the permit was filed. Declared values are a real-world sample of what these projects get filed at, but they are not final invoices: applicants have no reason to inflate them, and final costs often run higher once the work is done. Use the median as a planning anchor and the range to see how far real projects spread.
One more caveat: a permit value covers the whole permitted job. When a bathroom remodel is filed together with other work, the single declared figure covers all of it — one reason the top of the range runs high.
For your own bathroom, the two numbers every quote is built on are the floor area — get yours from the square footage calculator before you price a single tile — and the paint for the walls and ceiling, which the paint calculator figures by the gallon.
How the costs spread
Half of all permits in the sample declared between $15,000 and $45,000. The full spread is wider: the cheapest 10% declared under $7,500, and the most expensive 10% declared over $62,750.
Median cost by ZIP code
Per-ZIP samples for this project type are thin, so this table uses a longer window than the headline figure: every permit in our Seattle archive, January 2023 to November 2026 (271 permits after the same outlier rules). A ZIP is listed only when at least 15 of its permits are in that sample, and each row shows its own count.
| ZIP code | Permits | Median declared cost |
|---|---|---|
| 98115 | 37 | $30,000 |
| 98117 | 20 | $27,500 |
| 98103 | 15 | $38,898 |
| 98105 | 15 | $30,000 |
How this project gets permitted in Seattle
Seattle permit descriptions name the review path each job actually took. Of the 125 permits in this sample whose descriptions name it, 100% went through subject-to-field-inspection (STFI) (125 STFI vs 0 full plan review). STFI is the city's faster track for work that does not need a full plan check; structural work goes through plan review.
The permit itself is a small line item. SDCI charges by declared value (Development Fee Index, Seattle Municipal Code 22.900D.010, Tables D-1 and D-2): at this project's median declared value of $28,000, the building permit and plan review on the subject-to-field-inspection (STFI) path come to about $1,117, including the 5% technology fee and the $6.50 state building-code fee. Across the middle half of declared values ($15,000–$45,000), the same fees run about $814–$1,504. Trade permits (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) are charged separately.
Trend
Median declared cost was $30,000 in 2025 (60 permits) and $28,000 in 2026 (62 permits) — down about 7% across the two years.
| Year issued | Permits | Median declared cost |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 60 | $30,000 |
| 2026 | 62 | $28,000 |
Recent bathroom remodel permits in Seattle
Anonymized examples from the sample — work description and declared value as filed, no addresses or names.
| Issued | Permit description | Declared cost |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 2026 | Construct non-structural alterations to bathroom in one family dwelling subject to field inspection STFI. | $65,000 |
| Nov 2026 | Convert existing walk-in closet in single-family dwelling to new 3/4 bathroom (shower toilet lavatory). Infill existing closet door and add… | $12,500 |
| Oct 2026 | Construct interior alterations to bathroom of one family dwelling subject to field inspection STFI. | $50,000 |
| Oct 2026 | Construct alterations to add bathroom at main level (Unit ?) of two-family dwelling subject to field inspection [STFI]. | $20,000 |
| Oct 2026 | Construct interior alterations to bathroom of one family dwelling subject to field inspection STFI. | $27,000 |
| Oct 2026 | Construct alterations to add basement level bathroom for one-family dwelling subject to field inspection [STFI]. | $98,527 |
Methodology
We pull every issued residential building permit the City of Seattle publishes through its open-data portal (Socrata), keep permits from the last 24 months with a declared value above zero, and classify each one by the project its description names. Records above $2,000,000 and statistical outliers (outside 1.5× the interquartile range) are excluded before the median is computed. Every classifier rule set is spot-checked by hand against 20 sampled permits before a project type is published. This page is refreshed monthly from the permit archive.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a bathroom remodel cost in Seattle, Washington?
Based on 130 Seattle, Washington building permits issued in the last 24 months that included a bathroom remodel, the median declared cost was $28,000. The middle half of permits declared between $15,000 and $45,000.
Where do these numbers come from?
They are computed from building permits published by the City of Seattle through its open-data portal. Each permit carries a declared job value reported by the applicant. We filter to residential permits, classify them by the project described, drop outliers, and publish the median and the middle-half range.
Why might my quote be higher than the permit median?
The declared value is what the applicant reported to the city when the permit was filed, and final project costs often run higher. Scope also varies widely: a permit value covers the whole permitted job, so a remodel combined with other work declares one combined figure. Treat the median as a planning anchor, not a bid.
What does the declared value on a bathroom remodel permit cover?
Whatever work the permit describes — for combined projects that can include rooms or work beyond the headline project. That is why we publish the range alongside the median: it shows how wide real declared costs spread for this project type in Seattle.
Does a bathroom remodel in Seattle need plan review?
Most take the subject-to-field-inspection (STFI) path: 100% of the 125 permits in our sample whose descriptions name the review path went that way (125 STFI, 0 full plan review). SDCI decides the path at intake — non-structural work usually qualifies for STFI, structural work does not.
How much is the permit fee for a bathroom remodel in Seattle?
SDCI charges by declared value. At this project's median declared value of $28,000, the building permit plus plan review on the subject-to-field-inspection (STFI) path comes to about $1,117, including the 5% technology fee and the $6.50 state fee (Seattle Municipal Code 22.900D.010). Trade permits are extra.
Plan the work
Tile Calculator
Tiles and boxes for floors and walls from your area and tile size, waste included.
CalculatorPaint Calculator
Gallons of paint and primer for any room, minus doors and windows, times your coats — with cost.
CalculatorFlooring Calculator
Boxes of vinyl, laminate or hardwood for your room, with the right waste factor for each material.
More Seattle remodeling costs
Kitchen Remodel
Median $50,000 across 140 permits.
Cost in SeattleDeck Build
Median $22,193 across 404 permits.
Cost in SeattleHouse Addition
Median $150,000 across 884 permits.
Cost in SeattleADU / DADU
Median $183,517 across 437 permits.
Cost in SeattleBasement Finish
Median $50,000 across 31 permits.
About the author
Harrison Alley is a web publisher and data enthusiast based in Dallas, Texas. He built Urbarama’s remodeling calculators and maintains them.
Harrison Alley on LinkedIn