Cost guides
5x7 bathroom remodel cost: the labor, trade by trade and hour by hour
A full redo of a 5x7 bathroom runs about $25,000. Labor is 40% to 65% of it: here are the hours by task, what each trade bills, and what pushes labor up.
By Zack Wais11 min read
Labor is usually 40% to 65% of a bathroom remodel (Fixr). On the standard full redo of a 5x7 bathroom, which cost $24,920 in the Mountain region in 2025 (Cost vs Value), that's about $10,000 to $16,200 of labor (our arithmetic). A simpler 5x7 remodel takes about 70 hours of work, by Homewyse's estimate.
I'm Zack, a licensed contractor with 15 years on the tools across the west Denver metro, and in a 5x7 I do the demolition, plumbing, electrical, drywall and tile myself. This is the small-bathroom chapter of my bathroom remodel cost guide, and it's all about the labor: who does what, how long it takes, and why quotes for the same tiny room run from $5,000 to over $30,000.
Midrange full redo, national
Typical cost
$26,138
Cost vs Value’s test bath: a 5x7 with a 30x60 tub, tile surround, toilet, vanity top, tile floor (2025)
Same job, Mountain region
Typical cost
$24,920
Cost vs Value, 2025
Same job, Denver
Typical cost
$25,162
Cost vs Value, 2024
Labor in the Mountain job
Typical cost
$9,968 – $16,198
40% to 65% of $24,920 (our arithmetic from Fixr’s labor share)
Homewyse, 35 sq ft at a Lakewood ZIP
Typical cost
$12,021 – $15,402
Labor $5,816 to $8,171 over 70.5 hours (our arithmetic from its calculator)
Homewyse plus a general contractor
Typical cost
$13,600 – $18,800
Homewyse says to add 13% to 22% (our arithmetic)
| Item | Typical cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Midrange full redo, national | $26,138 | Cost vs Value’s test bath: a 5x7 with a 30x60 tub, tile surround, toilet, vanity top, tile floor (2025) |
| Same job, Mountain region | $24,920 | Cost vs Value, 2025 |
| Same job, Denver | $25,162 | Cost vs Value, 2024 |
| Labor in the Mountain job | $9,968 – $16,198 | 40% to 65% of $24,920 (our arithmetic from Fixr’s labor share) |
| Homewyse, 35 sq ft at a Lakewood ZIP | $12,021 – $15,402 | Labor $5,816 to $8,171 over 70.5 hours (our arithmetic from its calculator) |
| Homewyse plus a general contractor | $13,600 – $18,800 | Homewyse says to add 13% to 22% (our arithmetic) |
Sources: Cost vs Value 2025, Cost vs Value Denver 2024, Fixr, Homewyse.
On this page
- Is a 5x7 bathroom small?
- What a 5x7 remodel costs
- How much of it is labor
- Hours, task by task
- What Denver trades earn and bill
- Tile labor
- Moving plumbing and tub-to-shower
- What pushes labor up in an older house
- Permits and rules
- How labor gets quoted
- How I handle the labor in a 5x7
- FAQ
Is a 5x7 bathroom small?
Yes. A 5x7 bathroom is 35 square feet, and Sweeten counts anything from 30 to 50 square feet as small (Sweeten). It's still a full bath: Cost vs Value's standard test bathroom is a 5x7 with a 30 by 60 inch tub across the short wall, a toilet, a vanity and a tile floor (Cost vs Value).
Fixr calls a 5x7 a half bath (Fixr), which helps explain why its 5x7 prices start so low. A half bath has no tub, and no tub means no tile surround to set.
If you've ever stood in a 5x7 and touched the towel bar, the sink and the shower curtain without moving your feet, congratulations. You've measured it, and you didn't even need a tape.
What a 5x7 bathroom remodel costs
Published prices for a 5x7 remodel run from about $5,000 to over $30,000. Most of the spread is scope. The low end is a cosmetic update; the high end is a full gut with tile, priced by a remodeling firm or a national study.
Badeloft, typical remodel
Typical cost
$5,000 – $15,000
No source given
Block Renovation, mid-range
Typical cost
$7,500 – $15,000
No source given
Homewyse, 35 sq ft at a Lakewood ZIP
Typical cost
$12,021 – $15,402
Before a contractor’s 13% to 22% (our arithmetic from its calculator)
USA Cabinet Store, mid-range
Typical cost
$14,000 – $24,000
A Virginia showroom’s own estimates
JSB Home Solutions, full gut
Typical cost
$21,000 – $30,000
An Ohio remodeler’s average, 2024; it says “and up”
Cost vs Value, midrange redo
Typical cost
$24,920
Mountain region, 2025
| Item | Typical cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Badeloft, typical remodel | $5,000 – $15,000 | No source given |
| Block Renovation, mid-range | $7,500 – $15,000 | No source given |
| Homewyse, 35 sq ft at a Lakewood ZIP | $12,021 – $15,402 | Before a contractor’s 13% to 22% (our arithmetic from its calculator) |
| USA Cabinet Store, mid-range | $14,000 – $24,000 | A Virginia showroom’s own estimates |
| JSB Home Solutions, full gut | $21,000 – $30,000 | An Ohio remodeler’s average, 2024; it says “and up” |
| Cost vs Value, midrange redo | $24,920 | Mountain region, 2025 |
Sources: Badeloft, Block Renovation, Homewyse, USA Cabinet Store, JSB Home Solutions, Cost vs Value.
Real quotes land in the same range. In March 2026, a homeowner with a 5x7 or 6x8 bathroom said quotes for basic updates (a shower, tile and fixtures) ran from $15,000 to over $30,000 (r/HomeImprovement).
If you asked an AI and it said a 5x7 costs about $6,500, that's Angi's average for every small bathroom, half baths included (Angi). Somewhere along the way it got relabeled as a 5x7 price.
It's a game of telephone played with bathroom prices, and the number got a little cheaper every time somebody passed it along.
How much of a 5x7 bathroom remodel is labor?
Labor averages about 50% of a bathroom remodel and ranges from 40% to 65% (Fixr), and Angi puts small bathrooms at 40% to 60% (Angi). In Homewyse's estimate for a 35 square foot bathroom, labor is 48% to 53% of the total (our arithmetic from its calculator).
Some guides go lower: Sweeten says 30% to 50% (Sweeten). Block Renovation's 10% to 20% (Block Renovation) is the same range Angi gives for a general contractor's fee (Angi), so it looks like a fee wearing a labor badge. A contractor's fee and the labor are two separate lines, and only one of them installs the toilet.
A small room doesn't shrink the labor much, because a toilet, a vanity, a shower valve and a permit cost the same in 35 square feet as in 80 (USA Cabinet Store). The plumber doesn't get a discount for working in a smaller room. If anything, he'd like to discuss a surcharge for the part where he's lying on his back between the toilet and the tub.
How many hours a 5x7 bathroom remodel takes
A 5x7 remodel takes about 70 hours of work, by Homewyse's estimate for a 35 square foot bathroom with a new tub, tile and fixtures (our arithmetic from its calculator). One contractor in an online trade forum put about 70 hours on a bathroom remodel too, demolition and paint included (ContractorTalk).
Tile: floor and tub surround
Hours
16.9
The biggest single block
Plumbing: tub, shower valve, sink, faucet, toilet
Hours
16.4
Fixtures set and connected
Demolition
Hours
13.6
Old tub, surround and toilet out
Carpentry and installs
Hours
11.5
Vanity, top, glass door, medicine cabinet, trim
Electrical: fan and light
Hours
6.4
Exhaust fan and ceiling light
Paint
Hours
5.6
Walls, ceiling, trim
Total
Hours
70.5
Homewyse’s defaults keep the old floor and move no plumbing
| Item | Hours | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tile: floor and tub surround | 16.9 | The biggest single block |
| Plumbing: tub, shower valve, sink, faucet, toilet | 16.4 | Fixtures set and connected |
| Demolition | 13.6 | Old tub, surround and toilet out |
| Carpentry and installs | 11.5 | Vanity, top, glass door, medicine cabinet, trim |
| Electrical: fan and light | 6.4 | Exhaust fan and ceiling light |
| Paint | 5.6 | Walls, ceiling, trim |
| Total | 70.5 | Homewyse’s defaults keep the old floor and move no plumbing |
Source: Homewyse's small bathroom calculator, grouped by task (our arithmetic from its per-task hours and its 1.132 factor for a complex room).
Hours aren't calendar days, though. Another contractor in the same forum thread described a full gut of a 5x7 as about five days of work, spread out over three weeks from demolition to the final touch-ups (ContractorTalk).
The other two and a half weeks belong to thinset, grout, joint compound and the city inspector. None of them can be rushed, and only one of them keeps a calendar.
A bigger, full-service job can take far more hours. One homeowner posted a contractor's labor breakdown for a 6 by 8 bathroom in 2025: 170 man-hours at about $100 an hour, $17,025 in labor on a $20,000 quote (r/Remodel).
Tile and grout, tub area and floor
Man-hours
64
Over a third of the job
Demolition: walls, floor and tub
Man-hours
25
The ceiling stayed
Paint, walls and ceiling
Man-hours
24
Set the tub, rework plumbing and lighting
Man-hours
16
Cement board and drywall
Man-hours
16
Waterproofing, tape, mud and texture
Man-hours
16
Vanity, faucet, toilet, cabinets, cleanup
Man-hours
6
Our arithmetic: the 170 total less the listed lines
Materials pickup and prep
Man-hours
3
| Item | Man-hours | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tile and grout, tub area and floor | 64 | Over a third of the job |
| Demolition: walls, floor and tub | 25 | The ceiling stayed |
| Paint, walls and ceiling | 24 | |
| Set the tub, rework plumbing and lighting | 16 | |
| Cement board and drywall | 16 | |
| Waterproofing, tape, mud and texture | 16 | |
| Vanity, faucet, toilet, cabinets, cleanup | 6 | Our arithmetic: the 170 total less the listed lines |
| Materials pickup and prep | 3 |
Source: a homeowner's r/Remodel post of the quote's line items. The homeowner thought it was high; the replies mostly said it was fair.
That's more than twice Homewyse's 70 hours, for a room only 13 square feet bigger. The difference is how the job is run. Tearing out every wall, then taping, mudding and texturing the new drywall, and tiling the whole floor and surround all cost hours that a lighter remodel skips.
What Denver bathroom trades earn, and what they bill
Denver plumbers earn a median $30.72 an hour, carpenters $31.21 and electricians $30.36 (BLS). You pay more than the wage, because an employer's real cost of an hour adds payroll taxes, insurance and time that can't be billed, often 30% to 60% on top (Projul). A typical remodeler then marks that cost up by at least 1.5 times (Markup & Profit).
Plumber
Denver median wage: $30.72 an hour
Billed, national (Fixr): $75 to $150 an hour
Billed, Denver (Angi): $55 to $250 an hour
Electrician
Denver median wage: $30.36 an hour
Billed, national (Fixr): $70 to $130 an hour
Billed, Denver (Angi): $55 to $110 an hour
Carpenter
Denver median wage: $31.21 an hour
Billed, national (Fixr): $75 to $125 an hour
Billed, Denver (Angi): Not listed
Tile setter
Denver median wage: $27.74 an hour (Colorado)
Billed, national (Fixr): $8 to $14 a sq ft
Billed, Denver (Angi): Not listed
Drywall installer
Denver median wage: $30.89 an hour
Billed, national (Fixr): $1.50 to $3.50 a sq ft
Billed, Denver (Angi): Not listed
Painter
Denver median wage: $27.92 an hour
Billed, national (Fixr): $2 to $7 a sq ft
Billed, Denver (Angi): Not listed
| Trade | Denver median wage | Billed, national (Fixr) | Billed, Denver (Angi) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plumber | $30.72 an hour | $75 to $150 an hour | $55 to $250 an hour |
| Electrician | $30.36 an hour | $70 to $130 an hour | $55 to $110 an hour |
| Carpenter | $31.21 an hour | $75 to $125 an hour | Not listed |
| Tile setter | $27.74 an hour (Colorado) | $8 to $14 a sq ft | Not listed |
| Drywall installer | $30.89 an hour | $1.50 to $3.50 a sq ft | Not listed |
| Painter | $27.92 an hour | $2 to $7 a sq ft | Not listed |
Sources: BLS, Denver metro and Colorado wages, May 2025; Fixr; Angi Denver, which scales national prices by Denver's price index.
Run a Denver plumber's median wage through that math and $30.72 an hour becomes about $60 to $74 billed (our arithmetic). That isn't anybody's actual rate. It's how a $31 wage turns into a $70 hour once the insurance, the truck and the taxes have had their say.
You can see the same gap in a 5x7. In a New Jersey thread, someone who hires bathroom crews put the crew's labor on a typical 5x7 at about $5,000 before the contractor's profit, and called $12,000 the high end for labor alone (r/bergencounty).
Two of the guides Google's AI quotes list electricians at $25 to $40 an hour, which is close to what a Denver electrician earns, not what one bills. If you ever find a licensed electrician who bills $25 an hour, frame the invoice next to the first dollar your business ever made.
Tile: the most labor-hungry 82 square feet in the house
A 5x7 with a tub has about 82 square feet to tile: 22.5 square feet of floor outside a 30 by 60 inch tub, plus about 60 square feet of surround (our arithmetic). The building code wants a water-resistant surface at least 6 feet up the walls around a shower (IRC R307.2), and that's where the 60 comes from.
At Fixr's $8 to $14 a square foot for a tile installer (Fixr), that's $660 to $1,155 just to set the tile (our arithmetic). Backer board, waterproofing and floor prep come on top of it.
Tile size changes the hours too. Small mosaics mean more joints and more setting time, and big tiles need a flatter wall and careful layout (Quality First Builders).
Every grout line in a mosaic is one more tiny decision, and a mosaic floor holds hundreds of them. Penny tile is gorgeous. It's also the reason tile setters develop strong personal opinions about pennies.
Moving plumbing and tub-to-shower conversions
Moving plumbing costs $80 to $200 a line, and most fixtures need at least three lines (Fixr). Moving a shower to another wall runs $1,740 to $4,100, Fixr says, and a whole new floor plan adds about $5,000 (NerdWallet).
Turning the tub into a walk-in shower averages about $3,170 in Denver, by Angi's count (Angi), and Fixr's range runs $1,200 to $10,000 (Fixr). A 30 by 60 inch tub alcove clears the 30 by 30 inch minimum shower size, though it's six inches shallower than the 36 by 36 the NKBA recommends (NKBA).
The tub in a 5x7 sits where it does because that's where the drain is, and the drain has no interest in moving. It's been there since the house was built. Persuading it otherwise is possible, but it bills by the line.
What pushes labor up in an older west-metro bathroom
Hidden water damage is the big one: Fixr puts the repair at $500 to $4,500 for an average bathroom, and mold remediation at $500 to $1,500 (Fixr). West-metro houses are old enough to hide plenty of it. Lakewood's median home was built in 1977 and Wheat Ridge's in 1965 (Census Reporter).
Water damage under the tub or toilet
What it costs: $500 to $4,500
Source: Fixr
Mold remediation
What it costs: $500 to $1,500
Source: Fixr
Asbestos floor tile removal
What it costs: $5.50 to $21 a sq ft, so $193 to $735 for a 35 sq ft floor (our arithmetic)
Source: Angi Denver
Taking out the old tub
What it costs: $100 to $500
Source: Fixr
Carrying a cast iron tub from an upper floor
What it costs: Around $100 extra
Source: Fixr
| Problem | What it costs | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Water damage under the tub or toilet | $500 to $4,500 | Fixr |
| Mold remediation | $500 to $1,500 | Fixr |
| Asbestos floor tile removal | $5.50 to $21 a sq ft, so $193 to $735 for a 35 sq ft floor (our arithmetic) | Angi Denver |
| Taking out the old tub | $100 to $500 | Fixr |
| Carrying a cast iron tub from an upper floor | Around $100 extra | Fixr |
Older floors are slower to tear out, too. One bathroom remodeler filming a 1960s house found the floor tile sitting on poured concrete about an inch and a half to two inches thick, and all of it had to come out (Steve White).
Old pipes slow things down too. On a thread about a 1930s bathroom, a remodeler who works on 1940s houses explained that cutting into a cast iron drain takes twice the room and a grinder or a saw, and that swapping out galvanized water lines is the real headache (r/BathroomRemodeling).
The scariest moment in any old-bathroom remodel is the first look under the toilet. It's the home-improvement version of checking your bank balance the morning after a vacation: you already know, but you look anyway.
5x7 bathroom permits in Lakewood and Denver
In Lakewood, "other than very minor cosmetic work, all construction requires a building permit," and the plumbing, electrical and mechanical work go on that one permit (Lakewood). In Denver, like-for-like fixture swaps need no permit, but tearing out more than one 4 by 8 sheet of drywall does (Denver).
Lakewood permit
What triggers it: All but very minor cosmetic work; the trades ride on one permit
In a 5x7: The permit value must include labor and materials
Denver permit
What triggers it: Moved or new fixtures, or more than one 4x8 sheet of drywall
In a 5x7: The tub walls alone are nearly two sheets (our arithmetic)
Colorado asbestos inspection
What triggers it: Disturbing more than 32 sq ft of non-pipe material in a home (CDPHE)
In a 5x7: A full tear-out of the floor and tub walls crosses it
EPA lead-safe rules
What triggers it: Pre-1978 homes, more than 6 sq ft of paint per room (EPA)
In a 5x7: Pulling the vanity or the tub-wall drywall usually does
| Rule | What triggers it | In a 5x7 |
|---|---|---|
| Lakewood permit | All but very minor cosmetic work; the trades ride on one permit | The permit value must include labor and materials |
| Denver permit | Moved or new fixtures, or more than one 4x8 sheet of drywall | The tub walls alone are nearly two sheets (our arithmetic) |
| Colorado asbestos inspection | Disturbing more than 32 sq ft of non-pipe material in a home (CDPHE) | A full tear-out of the floor and tub walls crosses it |
| EPA lead-safe rules | Pre-1978 homes, more than 6 sq ft of paint per room (EPA) | Pulling the vanity or the tub-wall drywall usually does |
Lakewood wants the labor counted in the permit's valuation (Lakewood). That makes the city the only party in a bathroom remodel that actively wants your labor number to be higher.
In an older house, Colorado's asbestos rule matters most. A full tear-out of a 5x7's floor and tub walls crosses the state's 32 square foot line, so a certified inspector checks the materials before demolition starts (CDPHE).
How bathroom labor gets quoted, and how to compare
Most contractors quote a small bathroom as one flat price rather than by the hour (Angi). If you hire each trade yourself, each one comes with its own minimum charge and its own schedule (USA Cabinet Store).
Google's top result for this exact search is a 2025 thread where a Chicago contractor said he charged about $6,000 in labor for a small full bath with a tiled tub surround, figured at twice the materials, and asked whether that was low. The replies told him to price from his own hours instead, and one added that it usually works out closer to three times the materials (r/Contractor).
"Labor only" means different things to different people, so ask whether it includes supervision, protection, disposal, permits and cleanup (Quality First Builders). It's a phrase with the confidence of a full sentence and the contents of about half of one.
Protection and demolition
Floors and hallway covered; tub, surround, toilet and vanity out; debris hauled
Rough carpentry
Framing fixes, blocking for grab bars, a niche
Rough plumbing
Drain, supply lines and the new shower valve
Electrical and ventilation
Fan vented outside, light, GFCI outlet
Backer board and waterproofing
Cement board or membrane behind every tiled wall
Tile and flooring
Surround and floor set, grouted and sealed
Finish installation
Tub trim, toilet, vanity, top, faucet, glass, accessories
Closeout
Caulk, paint touch-ups, cleanup and the final inspection
| Stage | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Protection and demolition | Floors and hallway covered; tub, surround, toilet and vanity out; debris hauled |
| Rough carpentry | Framing fixes, blocking for grab bars, a niche |
| Rough plumbing | Drain, supply lines and the new shower valve |
| Electrical and ventilation | Fan vented outside, light, GFCI outlet |
| Backer board and waterproofing | Cement board or membrane behind every tiled wall |
| Tile and flooring | Surround and floor set, grouted and sealed |
| Finish installation | Tub trim, toilet, vanity, top, faucet, glass, accessories |
| Closeout | Caulk, paint touch-ups, cleanup and the final inspection |
Source: the stages follow Quality First Builders' breakdown of a bathroom labor line.
Line two quotes up against those stages and the gaps show quickly. A stage that's missing from one quote isn't free. It's either done by somebody else, done later as a change order, or not done at all.
A quote with no stages at all is the hardest to judge. One homeowner's $9,000 quote for a 5x7 said nothing but "renovation and labor." The next contractor quoted $4,250 for the labor, with the homeowner buying the tub, toilet and vanity themselves (r/HomeImprovement, 2021).
How I handle the labor in a 5x7
In a 5x7 I'm one licensed contractor for the demolition, the plumbing, the electrical, the drywall and the tile. There's no trade minimum stacked on another trade minimum, and no general contractor's fee on top of three subcontractors. I don't charge for drive time, and materials go on the bill at what I paid for them.
Send me a few photos of the bathroom and I'll usually come back with a real number within one business day, and the estimate is free. You see the number before I start.
A customer named Amanda wrote after her bathroom remodel that I was "upfront about pricing, stayed within budget, and kept us updated as the work progressed." She'd gotten four other estimates first and called them "outrageous," which is a word I'd much rather hear about somebody else's estimate.
5x7 bathroom remodel cost FAQ
- Is a 5x7 bathroom small?
- Yes. A 5x7 bathroom is 35 square feet, and small bathrooms usually run 30 to 50 square feet. It's still a full bath: Cost vs Value's standard test bathroom is a 5x7 with a 30 by 60 inch tub.
- How much is labor on a 5x7 bathroom remodel?
- Labor is usually 40% to 65% of a bathroom remodel, Fixr says. On a full midrange redo of a 5x7, which cost $24,920 in the Mountain region in 2025, that's about $10,000 to $16,200. Homewyse's calculator puts a simpler 5x7 remodel at about 70 hours of labor.
- Can you remodel a 5x7 bathroom for $5,000?
- Only as a minor update. Houzz's median minor remodel of a bathroom under 100 square feet was $5,000 in 2025: new fixtures, a vanity, paint. A full redo with a new tub and tile cost $24,920 in the Mountain region, by Cost vs Value.
- What is the most expensive part of a bathroom remodel?
- Labor, at 40% to 65% of the total. Among the parts, the shower and tub and the vanity take the biggest shares of a typical budget, about 25% each by Fixr's split.
- How long does a 5x7 bathroom remodel take?
- About 70 hours of work by Homewyse's estimate, spread over two to four weeks on the calendar, Fixr says. Inspections, drying times and grout curing stretch it past the hours.
Get a number for your own 5x7
My bathroom remodeling page covers what I take on, from a new vanity to a full gut with the permit, and my tile installation page covers the surround and the floor. The bigger picture, from one-day remodels to primary baths, is in my bathroom remodel cost guide. Or send me photos of your bathroom for a free estimate, and I'll tell you what the labor in yours really takes.
