Conservatory Cost Calculator UK

How the Conservatory Cost Calculator Works

Choose your style, enter footprint and select your frame and roof options. The calculator combines current supply and fit rates to produce a price band for your specification, with London and South East adjusted upwards where labour runs 20 to 30 percent above national average.

The 2026 benchmarks behind numbers: most UK conservatories land between £12,000 and £22,000 fully fitted, with a small uPVC lean-to starting around £8,000 and large premium builds exceeding £30,000.

Cost by Conservatory Style

For comparison, a single storey brick extension of similar footprint typically starts around £35,000, which is gap that keeps conservatories popular.

The Roof Decision Matters Most

No single choice moves price and usability more than the roof. Polycarbonate is cheapest but earns conservatories their too hot in summer, too cold in winter reputation, often limiting real use to around seven months a year. Solar control glass adds roughly 10 to 20 percent over polycarbonate and transforms comfort and light.

A solid tiled roof adds 40 to 70 percent over glass, but turns space into a genuine year round room with a plastered ceiling, and it is specification that actually adds property value rather than just floor area.

Frames follow a simpler pattern: uPVC is the standard, aluminium adds 15 to 25 percent for slimmer sightlines and larger glass, and hardwood adds 30 to 50 percent for period properties.

Planning Permission and Building Regulations

Most conservatories fall under permitted development, needing no planning permission provided they stay within the limits, a rear projection of 3m for semi detached or 4m for detached homes, no higher than 4m, no more than half the garden covered and not forward of the main elevation. Listed buildings and conservation areas always need permission.

Building regulations are a separate track. A traditional glazed conservatory under 30 m², thermally separated from house by external quality doors and with its own heating controls, is usually exempt. Fit a solid roof, remove separating doors or open the space into kitchen and build becomes an extension in regulatory terms, needing full approval. Use FENSA or CERTASS registered installers for the glazing compliance paperwork either way.

What Else Goes on the Bill

The advertised price rarely covers everything, so check quotes for base and foundations, which can add £1,000 to £3,000 on clay soils or sloping sites, heating (an electric radiator, underfloor heating or extending central heating), flooring, electrics beyond a token socket and blinds. Upgrading French doors to bifolds typically adds £1,600 to £4,200. On value, be realistic: a mid spec conservatory roughly returns its cost at sale, while a solid roofed, plastered and heated specification adds genuine value because buyers see a room rather than a lean-to.

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