ºÃÉ«ÏÈÉúTV

Read our policy.

Close menu
Car parks - Current construction costs
Unit size
m2/car		 Unit cost
£/m2 gifa
Surface 20-22 40-55
Surface landscaped 20-24 65-95
Grade and upper level 23-30 135-200
Multistorey flat slab 23-30 200-320
Semi-basement with natural ventilation 25-30 300-380
 
Industrial buildings - Current construction costs
Unit size m2 gifa Shell with heating and lighting to office areas only £/m2 gifa Unit including services to production area £/m2 gifa
500-1000 260-580 480-680
1000-2500 210-500 430-620
greater than 2500 270-500 430-620
Warehouse and distribution centres -
Current construction costs
Unit size (m2)  
2000-10 000
£/m2 gifa		 10 000+
£/m2 gifa
Low bay, speculative 220-400 230-300
Low bay, owner-occupied 330-600 300-550
 
Business park offices -
Current construction costs (including developer’s finish)
Unit size (m2)  
Less than 2000
£/m2 gifa		 More than 2000
£/m2 gifa
Functional – non air-conditioned 650-800 600-750
Medium quality – non air-conditioned 700-900 650-850
High quality – air-conditioned – 850-1200
High quality – mixed mode ventilation, for owner occupiers – 1150-1600
West End and City offices -
Current construction costs (including developer’s finish)
Low rise
£/m2 gifa		 Medium rise
£/m2 gifa		 High rise
£/m2 gifa
High-quality speculative offices      
air-conditioned 900-1200 1000-1300 –
mixed-mode ventilation 1150-1600 1300-1600 –
High-quality speculative City offices      
air-conditioned – 1500-1800 1650-2200
High-quality owner-occupied City offices (including owner’s fit-out)      
air-conditioned – 1950-2600 2050-3000
Cost of the City of London speculative and owner-occupied offices are based on a City of London location. The speculative office costs are based on a South-east England location
Office fit-out -
indicative costs for fit-out of office
City/West End offices
£/m2 nia		 Out-of-town offices
£/m2 nia
General office space – open plan 490-570 390-440
General office space – part cellular 650-880 490-610
Senior executive offices 1200-1550 720-1000
Meeting areas 650-900 500-650
Conference suites 1350-1700 880-1100
Reception area 1600-2000 950-1200
Back of house/storage 540-640 280-440
Restaurant 1660-2450 1330-1960
Kitchen 2000-2500 1600-2000
Cost of City/West End office fit-outs are based on a central London location. The out-of-town office fit-out costs are based on a South-east England location. All rates are based on net internal floor area. Costs of furniture, IT wiring and equipment are excluded.
Supermarkets -
Current construction costs
Unit cost £/m2 gifa
Shell 250-650
Supermarket fit-out 900-1900
Hypermarket fit-out 900-1300
Shopping centres -
Current construction costs
Unit rate £/m2 gifa
New build shopping centre  
mall, comfort-cooled 2500-3500
food court 2800-3600
Retail shells  
anchor tenants, capped-off services 600-700
medium/small store units, capped-off services 700-800
service corridors 1300-1600
service yard (surface level only) 800-1000
service yard (basement) 1000-1400
New build factory outlet centre  
retail units with enclosed mall 950-1400
retail unit with open mall 430-650
Shopping centre refurbishment  
mall, limited scope 800-1250
mall, comprehensive 1200-1750
Leisure centres - Current construction costs
Indicative area m2 gifa Unit cost m2 gifa
Dry leisure centre 1000-1500 700-1100
Wet and dry leisure centre 4500-9000 1300-1850
Swimming pool – 25 m long 1800-2500 1100-1850
Swimming pool – 50 m long, international competition standard n/a 2250-2750
Out-of-town health and fitness club (shell and fit-out, including pool) 3200-4200 900-1350
Leisure centre extension to hotel (shell and fit-out, including pool) 450-800 1300-1950
Theatres - Current construction costs
£/m2 gifa
Opera house  
new build 2850-3500
Large theatre (more than 500 seats)  
new build 1800-2700
refurbishment 1100-2000
Studio/workshop theatre  
new build 1000-1500
Grandstands and stadia - Current construction costs
Unit cost £/seat
Basic stand; WCs and concession areas only 300-600
Medium quality stand; WCs, concession areas and limited hospitality 600-1300
High-quality stand; changing facilities, offices, retail, hospitality areas and conference facilities 1300-2500
National stadium; full facilities including retail, hospitality and conferencing; retractable roof and pitch 2500-4000
Indoor arena with permanent ice pad and demountable running track, with 50% retractable seating (Unit costs based on higher seating capacity achieved in ice rink configuration) 4000-4500
Construction cost estimates of stadia, grandstands and arenas should be based on a clear understanding of the cost drivers of a specific scheme. There are many development variables that may not directly be affected by the number of seats. These include: tier arrangement, roof structure, sight lines, building footprint and provision of additional space for hospitality/community use. Estimates prepared on a cost/seat basis without taking into account these variables could be inaccurate.
Schools and colleges - Current construction costs
Unit rate £/m2 gifa
Classroom blocks 600-1000
Laboratories 800-1050
Craft, design and technology 750-1050
Music 900-1300
Museums and art galleries - Current construction costs
Unit costs £/m2
International standard art gallery (exc fit-out) 2500+
National standard museum (exc fit-out) 1700+
National standard independent specialist museum (exc fit-out) 1500-2500
Independent commercial art gallery 850-1200
Refurbishment of historic building to create gallery space to international standards Up to 4000
Libraries and learning resource centres -
Current construction costs
Unit costs £/m2 gifa
Learning resource centres – economical 750-1000
Learning resource centres – high-quality 1000-1400
University and collegiate libraries (inc fittings) 1800-2300
Public libraries 1150-1550
Social housing - Current construction costs
Unit size m2 Unit cost £/m2 gifa
Terrace, two bed 65 445-705
Semi-detached, three bed 90 500-765
Low-rise flats, two bed 62 590-820
Medium-rise flats, two bed 62 645-900
Private housing - Current construction costs
£/m2 gifa £/m2 saleable area
Three- to four-storey villa    
Load-bearing construction, limited finishes, low-pressure hot water central heating 900-1050 1075-1250
High-quality multistorey apartments    
Framed construction, cladding and curtain walling, multiple core layout, limited finishes, limited comfort cooling, all-electric heating installation 1500-1700 1900-2100
Prestige quality multistorey apartments    
Framed construction, high-quality stone and glass curtain walling, multiple core layout, extensive high-quality finishes, comfort cooling throughout, low-pressure hot-water central heating 2100-2300 2560-2750
All costs in this table are based on an inner London location
Hotels - Construction costs
(including furniture, fittings and equipment)
Average gross
floor area per
room £/m2 gifa		 Unit cost
£/m2 gifa		 Unit cost £000/bedroom
Luxury city-centre hotel      
multistorey, conference and wet leisure facilities 70-130 1500-2000 135-200
Business town-centre/provincial hotel      
4-6 storeys, conference and wet leisure facilities 70-100 1200-1750 90-130
Mid-range provincial hotel      
2-3 storeys, conference and leisure facilities 55-70 1100-1500 55-85
2-3 storeys, bedroom extension 35-45 800-1250 30-45
City-centre aparthotel      
4-7 storeys apartments with self-catering facilities 50-60 900-1200 45-75
Budget city-centre hotel (new build)      
4-6 storeys, dining and bar facilities 35-45 950-1050 35-50
Budget city-centre hotel (office conversion)      
4-6 storeys, excluding dining facilities 32-38 750-1150 22-45
Budget roadside hotel      
2- to 3-storey lodge, excluding dining facilities 28-35 850-1050 26-33
Regional variations
Inner London 1.09
Outer London 1.03
South-west England 0.93
East Midlands 0.9
West Midlands 0.9
East Anglia 0.91
Yorkshire and Humberside 0.88
North-west England 0.88
Northern England 0.92
Scotland 0.92
Wales 0.87
Northern Ireland 0.76
The cost breakdown is based on a project in South-east England and should be adjusted by the following location factors for schemes in other regions.