Where do I start planning a new bathroom? What is the to do list?

It's a small room, but probably the most complicated to get right.

Once you start thinking about plumbing, layout, storage, lighting, extractor fans, the number of decisions adds up quickly. Most problems people run into later usually come from rushing the planning up front - so if you’re going to take one thing away from reading this, is that you need to plan, thoroughly!

It is going to take at least a few weeks of decision making before getting trades involved. You need to plan enough up front to have the information you need to get comparable quotes, and understand whether the trades you are dealing with are covering your plan, or some generic idea of what you might be looking for. Saves a lot of frustration and cash once the work starts!

Keeping track of all of this feeling like too much effort? We have even made an interactive, free Bathroom Renovation Planner Checklist for you to tick-off as you go too.

Ask yourself:

• Who will be using the bathroom?
• Is it a main family bathroom or a guest space?
• Is this a long-term home or are you renovating to sell?

The best way to start is with two lists.

Wants

Things you'd love to have e.g. a large walk-in shower, a freestanding bath, beautiful marble tiles.

Needs

The practical things the room has to deliver e.g. enough storage, space for children to get ready, good lighting, easy cleaning.

Once you have both lists, prioritise them into a single 'this is what the bathroom must do' list. That (and your budget) become the basis for every other decision.

Set a realistic budget early

The earlier you set one, the easier it's going to be to decide between different layout options, fittings and materials without constantly second-guessing.

The biggest cost isn't the taps or tiles, it's the labour and plumbing work.

Include a healthy contingency (at least 10%) into your budget for the unexpected rotten joists / wall / old pipe replacements.

As a general rule:

• Replacing items in the same position is cheapest
• Moving plumbing, especially the toilet, is the most expensive

Understanding that trade-off early will help you avoid expensive changes later and shock surprises in your quotes.

Check out this example bathroom plan made on Reno, from the floor plan to the elevations, plumbing points and measurements.

It's tempting to choose fixtures first, but most bathroom products affect the layout more than you'd expect.

For example:

• Wall mounted taps need pipework inside the wall
• Concealed showers need space for valves
• Back to wall toilets need space for the cistern, wall hung toilets a frame too

Any extra structure to cover those choices can easily take up more room, changing how everything fits.

This is why creating a to-scale plan of your bathroom is one of the most useful things you can do early on.

Start by marking:

• The soil pipe location (where it exits the room)
• Windows and doors
• Structural elements like pipe columns or attic hatches
• Wall types (solid or stud)
• Floor construction (concrete or suspended timber)

These details determine what can realistically move and what is best left where it is.

If you want to organise all of this properly, it helps to plan this to scale! Have a play with a demo room to see how you'd go about creating your own.

Then think about how the room will actually work. You should be able to:

• Move comfortably around the fixtures
• Open shower doors or cupboards easily
• Reach gaps for cleaning
• Use the mirror (lighting properly)

There may be a bit of back and forth here, but once the layout works, you can start the bit that you probably started way earlier before realising you had so much planning to do! Choosing:

• Sanitaryware - bath, toilet, basin, shower
• Taps and shower valves
• Tiles and flooring including finishing edges and door thresholds
• Lighting and electrics

Check:

• Product dimensions
• Installation requirements
• Delivery lead times

Ensure everything fits your plan and check delivery lead times-tiles, for example, can take *months* to arrive.

• Do your research - check reviews, past projects, and even financial health (yes, it's worth a Companies House search)
• Get three quotes - ensure you receive detailed breakdowns of costs for materials and labour. Clarify if quotes are fixed or estimates
• Ask for a breakdown of labour and materials
• Immediate availability might be a red flag - quality trades are often in high demand

It's also worth clarifying whether a quote is an estimate or a fixed cost, and agreeing a written contract before work begins.

• Order materials - allow extra time for deliveries, and check for damages or missing items early. Pay attention to returns options and timing
• Empty cabinets and work out a temporary bathroom solution if you need one
• Plan where to store them - bathroom furniture takes up a lot of space, as do stacks of boxes of tiles!
• Protect your home - cover floors and seal off rooms to minimise dust

• Demolition - removing tiles, flooring, and old fixtures
• Building work - replacing windows, re-enforcing floor joists etc
• First fix - laying pipes and installing cables
• Plastering and tiling - including floor preparation and sealing / waterproofing
• Second fix - installing the sanitaryware, the light fixtures
• Decoration - painting, decorating, and snagging
• Snagging and final checks