Bathroom remodeling in Cleveland
A midrange bathroom remodel in Cleveland cost $24,4481 in the 2025 Cost vs. Value report, below the $26,1382 national figure. What shapes the job most here is the age of the house: 49%3 of homes in the City of Cleveland were built before 1940, so the drains, floor framing and wiring behind an old bathroom are usually older than anything you can see.
Calls are recorded. One independent company that handles bathroom remodels in the Cleveland area answers.
Updated October 12, 2026
What a Cleveland bathroom costs
Cost vs. Value puts a price on the same standard bathroom jobs in each market it surveys. Its 2025 edition is the newest with a Cleveland page, so the national column is from 2025 as well.
| Measure | Cleveland | U.S. average |
|---|---|---|
| Midrange bathroom remodel, job cost | $24,4481 | $26,1382 |
| Upscale bathroom remodel, job cost | $77,3551 | $81,6122 |
| Universal-design bathroom remodel, job cost | $40,8961 | $42,1832 |
| Midrange bathroom remodel, cost recouped at resale | 71%1 | 80%1 |
Each Cleveland job cost comes in under the national one, and a midrange bath here earns back less of its price at resale than it does nationally. Build the room for the years you'll live with it, not for a buyer.
How old Cleveland's houses are
The Census Bureau's year-built table, compared for Cleveland proper and all of Cuyahoga County.
| Measure | City of Cleveland | Cuyahoga County |
|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1980 | 85%3 | 80%3 |
| Homes built before 1940 | 49%3 | 28%3 |
| Homes built 1940–1969 | 31%3 | 42%3 |
The typical city house predates the Second World War, while most of the county's suburbs filled in after it. In either, expect a contractor to look from the basement or open a wall before committing to a plumbing price.
Doubles and two-family houses
The Census Bureau sorts homes by how many units share a building. Cleveland's two-family houses, the stacked doubles locals call up-and-downs, land in the two-unit count.
| Measure | City of Cleveland | Cuyahoga County |
|---|---|---|
| Homes in two-unit buildings | 14%4 | 7%4 |
In a double, the upstairs bathroom usually sits over the lower unit, so a leak or a rerouted drain reaches two households. If the other unit is rented, one more city rule applies. Cleveland requires rental properties built before 1978 to obtain a Lead Safe Certification or an exemption; owner-occupied homes do not need to be certified.5
What homes are worth
A house's value is a rough ceiling on how much bathroom it can carry before the remodel outprices the street.
What the trades earn
Most bathroom jobs bring in a plumber, a carpenter and a tile setter, and often an electrician. Median hourly wages in the Cleveland metro and nationally:
| Measure | Cleveland metro | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters, median hourly wage | $30.30/hr7 | $30.67/hr8 |
| Electricians, median hourly wage | $34.07/hr7 | $30.38/hr8 |
| Carpenters, median hourly wage | $29.16/hr7 | $29.12/hr8 |
| Tile and stone setters, median hourly wage | $23.99/hr7 | $26.77/hr8 |
Electricians here out-earn the national median, tile setters earn less, and plumbers and carpenters sit close to it. The local tile count is small, so read that row as a rough guide.
Winters a Cleveland bathroom has to handle
Cold is the main climate concern. A supply line in an outside wall or over an unheated porch needs to be kept warm, and shower steam needs a fan that exhausts outdoors rather than into the attic.
| Measure | Cleveland Hopkins Airport |
|---|---|
| Days a year with a low at or below freezing | 111 days9 |
| Days a year when the high stays at or below freezing | 37 days9 |
| July afternoon relative humidity | 56%10 |
Ask where the new supply lines will run before the walls close, especially in an upstairs bath on an outside corner of the house.
What's in the water
Cleveland Water's 2025 water quality report lists an average hardness for the water it delivers, along with the range its samples fell in.
Permits
Inside city limits, permits come from Cleveland's Department of Building and Housing, and the Residential Code of Ohio sets the baseline: new tile, paint or a vanity counts as finish work, while moving a drain, a supply line or a circuit needs approval first. If the house is in a suburb instead, the same state code applies but you'll deal with that community's building department. Ask the contractor who pulls each permit and when the inspections fall.
- Under the Residential Code of Ohio, anyone who plans to alter or repair a home, or to install, alter, convert or replace its electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing systems, must first apply to a certified residential building department and get approval.13
- The Residential Code of Ohio doesn't require approval for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work, though that work still has to meet the code.13
- Ohio's residential code lets a homeowner fix a leaking drain or water pipe without approval, but replacing a defective concealed pipe with new material counts as new work that needs approval and inspection.13
- To build or rehabilitate homes in Cleveland, contractors must be bonded, insured and registered with the Department of Building and Housing, electricians and plumbers must also be licensed, and homeowners can call the department to confirm a contractor is registered.14
- Cleveland reviews plans for code compliance once a permit application is made, and review for one- and two-family homes can generally be done in 3 to 5 working days.14
- In Cleveland, the contractor or do-it-yourselfer schedules inspections, which come after rough-in, before the work is concealed, and again on completion.14
- Cleveland's online Permit Portal is where you apply for permits, submit plans, pay permit fees, track a permit's progress and see the permit history at an address.15
Checked October 12, 2026
Before you hire
Ohio doesn't license residential remodelers statewide, so ask which city license or registration the company holds where you live, confirm it with that building department, and check any electrician, plumber or HVAC contractor on the state's OCILB lookup.
Talk to a pro who handles bathroom remodels in Cleveland
Calls are recorded. You'll be connected to one independent company that handles bathroom remodels in your area. We never call or text you. Privacy Policy ·Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
Remodeling a bathroom in an older Cleveland house
49%3 of the city's homes went up before 1940, against 28%3 across Cuyahoga County. Bathrooms in houses that old were often added or redone piece by piece, so the tub, the drain under it and the joists below may each date from a different decade.
Two materials are worth asking about before demolition starts. The EPA notes that lead can collect inside galvanized pipe and later reach drinking water, and that solder made before 1986 contained high levels of lead.16 The EPA lists vinyl floor tile, vinyl sheet backing and flooring adhesives among products that may contain asbestos, which is released mainly when the material is disturbed.17 The EPA advises having an accredited asbestos professional inspect before a remodel that could disturb suspect materials, and not sanding or power-stripping suspect flooring yourself.18
Cleveland Water adds orthophosphate during treatment to coat the inside of pipes and plumbing so lead is less likely to dissolve into the water, and replaces lead service lines during water main repairs and through its Lead Service Line Replacement Program.11 That treatment protects water on its way in; the old pipe inside your own walls is still your call, and an open bathroom wall is the cheapest time to replace it.
Planning a Cleveland bathroom for aging in place
More than one in four adults 65 and older fall each year.19 The CDC's home fall-prevention checklist recommends grab bars in and beside the tub and next to the toilet, and a non-slip surface on tub and shower floors.20 The National Institute on Aging suggests non-skid surfaces wherever a floor can get wet and a light left on in the bathroom at night.21
A universal-design bathroom cost $40,8961 in Cleveland in the 2025 Cost vs. Value report. In a double or a house whose only full bath is upstairs, ask whether a first-floor bathroom is possible before putting the money into the second floor. NAHB's Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) credential trains remodelers in home modifications for aging in place.22
What happens when you call
When you call the number on this page, the call is recorded and goes to one independent company that handles bathroom remodels in the Cleveland area. You talk through the project, the schedule and the price with them directly.
That company pays us for the call. You pay us nothing, and we never call or text you afterward. How we make money
After you're connected
Look the company up yourself before you sign or pay a deposit. Ohio's Department of Commerce says residential contractors are not required to be licensed in Ohio, and advises homeowners to ask their local building department whether a contractor is licensed or registered to work in their city, county or township.23 To build or rehabilitate homes in Cleveland, contractors must be bonded, insured and registered with the Department of Building and Housing, electricians and plumbers must also be licensed, and homeowners can call the department to confirm a contractor is registered.14 Check an Ohio license
Questions people ask
How much does a bathroom remodel cost in Cleveland?
The 2025 Cost vs. Value report put a midrange Cleveland bathroom at $24,4481 and an upscale one at $77,3551. The room's size, whether fixtures move, and what's hiding behind the old tile decide where a real job lands.
Do I need a permit to redo a bathroom in Cleveland?
Not for finishes alone. The Residential Code of Ohio doesn't require approval for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work, though that work still has to meet the code.13 Moving or adding plumbing or wiring is different. Under the Residential Code of Ohio, anyone who plans to alter or repair a home, or to install, alter, convert or replace its electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing systems, must first apply to a certified residential building department and get approval.13
Can I remodel the bathroom in my own Cleveland double?
Cleveland owners of one- or two-family homes may do alterations themselves without registering as contractors, but they must follow the same permit, plan review and inspection rules.14 If you hire a company instead, keep the paperwork in view. Cleveland's Department of Building and Housing tells homeowners to ask their contractor for copies of all permits before work begins and not to accept the work before a city inspector's final inspection.14
Who answers when I call the number on this page?
One independent company that handles bathroom remodels in the Cleveland area. We don't do remodeling ourselves, and we never contact you after the call.
Sources
Page updated October 12, 2026. How we source our numbers
- Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value 2025, Cleveland, OH. Released 2025. Cleveland, OH. Industry source.
- Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value 2025, national. Released 2025. United States. Industry source.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25034. Released January 29, 2026. City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, OH.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25024. Released January 29, 2026. City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, OH.
- City of Cleveland Department of Public Health, Lead Safe Program. No publication date. View source.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25077. Released January 29, 2026. City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, OH, Cleveland, OH metro area.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Cleveland, OH MSA. Released May 15, 2026. Cleveland, OH metro area.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Released May 15, 2026. Plumbers, United States, Electricians, United States, Carpenters, United States, Tile and stone setters, United States.
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020. Released 2021. Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (station USW00014820).
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Comparative Climatic Data, average relative humidity, period of record 1948–2018. Released November 2024. Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (WBAN 14820).
- Cleveland Water (City of Cleveland Division of Water), 2025 Water Quality Report. Released 2025. Cleveland Water service area.
- U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School: Hardness of Water. No publication date. View source.
- Ohio Board of Building Standards, Ohio Administrative Code rule 4101:8-1-01 (Residential Code of Ohio, administration). Released July 1, 2019. View source.
- City of Cleveland Department of Building and Housing, Home Building, Rehab and DIY Permits. No publication date. View source.
- City of Cleveland Department of Building and Housing, Division of Construction Permitting. No publication date. View source.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Sources of Lead in Drinking Water. Released August 2017. View source.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Learn About Asbestos. Released July 13, 2026. View source.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Protect Your Family from Exposures to Asbestos. Released June 25, 2026. View source.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Facts About Older Adult Falls. Released September 4, 2026. View source.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, STEADI: Check for Safety, a home fall prevention checklist for older adults. No publication date. View source.
- National Institute on Aging, Preventing Falls at Home: Room by Room. Released September 12, 2022. View source.
- National Association of Home Builders, Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS). No publication date. View source. Industry source.
- Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Industrial Compliance, OCILB: Verifying Licensed Contractors. No publication date. View source.