How long does it take to install a kitchen?

A standard extension kitchen takes 3 to 7 working days, while larger ones with islands, utility rooms, or stone worktops can stretch to 10 days. With quartz or granite, you also wait two to four weeks between units going in and the templated worktops arriving.

What needs to be ready before a kitchen fitter arrives?

Plastering must be complete and dry, sockets and switches in their final positions at the correct heights, plumbing stub-outs capped in the right places, and the floor cured and level. Every unit, worktop, and accessory should also be delivered and checked the day before, not on the morning the fitter starts.

What order is a kitchen installed in?

Fitters start with the base units in a corner and work outward, then hang wall units to a laser-levelled line, fit worktops and end panels, and finish with doors, handles, plinths, cornice, and lighting. Plumbing, electrical, and any gas connections are made by the relevant trades during and after this sequence.

Should you tile the floor before or after fitting kitchen units?

Both work. Tiling first gives a continuous floor with no bare patches if you ever move a unit, but risks tile damage during fitting. Units first saves tile cost under the cabinets but fixes the footprint, and thick tiles laid afterwards can stop appliance legs retracting enough for servicing.

How do you snag a newly fitted kitchen?

Go through every element before signing off: check doors open and close without catching, drawer runners are smooth, gaps between doors are even, cut worktop edges and sink seals are watertight, handles sit at a uniform height, and plinth and cornice joints are clean. Withholding a percentage of payment until snags are fixed is standard practice.

Why is it important to check a kitchen delivery on the day it arrives?

Wrong or missing parts are the single most common cause of installation delays, and replacements can take days or weeks. Open every box, count each item against the order, photograph any damage, and note problems on the delivery paperwork before the driver leaves so the supplier cannot dispute it later.

Back to Kitchen Extension

Phase 7 · Second Fix · Task 05 of 09

Kitchen Installation: Preparation and Fitting

What to have ready before your kitchen fitter arrives, how the installation process works day by day, and how to snag the finished kitchen. Labour costs £1,500 – £3,500 for a standard extension.

12 min readUpdated 2026Premium

Kitchen installation timeline showing the day-by-day process from base units through wall units, worktops, and appliance connections

Prerequisites

Complete these first

Your extension has been a building site for months. Bare plaster walls, screed floors, cables poking out of junction boxes. Then, with the boxes of units that have been stacked in your hallway for weeks finally ready to go in, a kitchen fitter gets to work, and within a week you have a room that looks like the CGI render your kitchen designer showed you back in spring. It's the most satisfying week of the entire build.

But that week only goes well if everything behind those walls is exactly where it needs to be. Sockets at the right height. Plumbing stubs behind the right unit. Walls plumb and plastered, ideally with a mist coat on. Floor level. One thing out of position and your fitter is standing around while you call the electrician back.

What this guide covers

01Who fits your kitchen
02Before the fitter arrives
03How installation works
04The stone worktop complication
05Coordinating trades during installation
06Inspecting your delivery
07Problem items
08Floor tiles first or units first?
09The utility room
10Snagging the finished kitchen

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