What is the difference between a renovation and a remodel?

The short answer

A renovation updates what is already there. A remodel changes how the space is laid out or what it is used for. Refinishing a kitchen with new cabinets, counters and flooring in the same places is a renovation. Moving the sink to an island, taking out a wall and turning the old dining room into part of the kitchen is a remodel.

In everyday Canadian speech the words overlap, and plenty of contractors use them interchangeably. That is fine in conversation. On paper, what counts is a written scope that says exactly what stays, what moves and what is new.

What a renovation usually covers

A renovation keeps the bones of the room and replaces the surfaces and fixtures. Think new flooring, paint, trim, cabinet doors or full cabinets in the same layout, new counters, new tile, updated lighting fixtures and new plumbing fixtures on the existing lines.

Because nothing structural changes, a renovation is usually quicker and easier to live through. It can still need permits. In Calgary, new wiring, plumbing and gas work generally needs a trade permit even when the layout stays the same, and our permit guide explains which jobs do.

What makes it a remodel

A project becomes a remodel when the plan of the house changes. Walls come out or move, plumbing goes somewhere new, a bedroom becomes an ensuite or a closed kitchen opens to the living room. Taking out a load-bearing wall means an engineered beam has to carry the load instead, which is explained in our load-bearing wall guide.

Remodels almost always need a building permit, often drawings and sometimes an engineer. They also cost more per square foot than a renovation of the same room, because the work behind the walls is bigger.

Restoration is its own thing

Restoration means returning a house, or part of it, to how it looked at a particular time in its history. Canada's Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places, published by Parks Canada, separate three approaches. Preservation protects what is there. Rehabilitation adapts a historic place for continued use while keeping its character. Restoration accurately recovers its appearance from a specific period.

Most older Calgary homes are rehabilitated rather than restored. You keep the fir trim, the stair and the front porch, and you get a modern kitchen and new wiring. If your house is a designated heritage resource, changes may need approval first, and the City of Calgary's heritage planning team can tell you what applies. Our guide to original details worth keeping covers the parts most worth saving.

Other words you will hear

• A rebuild, or knockdown, means demolishing the house and building a new one on the lot. It needs a demolition permit, a development permit for the new home in most cases, and a full building permit. Our renovate or rebuild guide compares the two.
• An addition adds new floor area to the house, up, out or down. See our home additions page.
• A retrofit improves how a house performs, usually insulation, air sealing, windows or mechanical systems, without changing how it looks.
• A refresh or makeover is mostly cosmetic. Paint, lighting, hardware and furniture.

Side by side

Why the word changes the budget

Scope creep usually starts with a small change of words. A kitchen renovation becomes a remodel the moment the sink moves to the island, because that means new drain and vent lines, possibly through the floor joists. Taking out a short wall to open a hallway can mean a beam, a post and a footing in the basement.

Before you compare prices, ask each company to describe the work in writing, room by room. Two quotes for a kitchen renovation can be very different projects, and our guide to hiring a contractor explains what to look for.

Related guides

For the vocabulary you will hear on site, see our renovation dictionary. To plan the order of work in a bigger project, read what order to renovate a house in.