How many contractor bids should you get for a remodel?

One bid tells you what one contractor will charge for the job as they described it. It does not tell you whether that description matches the work, or whether the number is high, low, or typical. California's Contractors State License Board tells homeowners to get at least three written bids, compared on identical plans, specifications, and scope of work (CSLB). The Texas Attorney General says the best policy is bids from more than one person, in writing, with detail about exactly what will be done (Texas AG).

Three is the floor, not a magic number

Three written bids on the same scope give you a range. CSLB says not to accept the lowest bid automatically, and to beware of a bid that is substantially lower than the others. That gap can mean a mistake, or work the other bids included and this one did not. The Texas AG says most legitimate bids fall in a fairly close range, and that a very low bidder may be leaving tasks out, using inexperienced labor, or planning second-rate materials. Ask what the low number left out before you treat it as a bargain.

The Federal Trade Commission says the same thing in shorter form: get more than one written estimate, do not pick the lowest automatically, and ask why the bids differ (FTC). A written estimate, in the FTC's list, describes the work, the materials, a completion date, and the price.

When three bids are not three bids

• They priced different work. One includes haul-away and permits. One uses an allowance with no dollar amount. One excludes the fixtures. You do not have three prices for one job yet. Send the scope of work back and ask each contractor to price that.
• One of them is not a bid. A text that says "around thirty thousand" is not a written bid. Ask for the scope, the materials, the date, and the price on a page you can keep.
• You cannot use one of them. The license does not check out, they want the full price up front, or they will not put the permit in the contract. That bid does not count toward the three. The checks are in how to hire a remodel contractor and contractor red flags.

A fourth bid helps when the first three do not overlap, or when one of them drops out. It does not help if you keep shopping so long that the first prices expire. Read each bid on its own first. That pass is in how to read a contractor estimate. Then line them up.

What you are comparing

The useful comparison is the work, not the personality and not a single total. Comparing contractor quotes is the longer version of that. If a number is lower because an allowance is thin, the allowance guide shows what to ask. If you want the price to move, ask them to price a specific change. A round discount with no change in scope is covered in how to negotiate a contractor quote.

RenoBinder keeps the scope and the bids you are comparing in one project. One room is free.

This is general information, not legal advice. Rules vary by state; for a dispute, talk to a licensed attorney or your state contractor board.

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