LEARNING CENTER KITCHEN
How much does it cost to replace a kitchen sink in Louisville? (Drop-in, undermount, and the farmhouse truth)
The short answer
Replacing a kitchen sink in Louisville runs about $700 to $2,000 installed, and the mount and the material decide where you land, not the brand on the box. If you buy the sink yourself and we just install it, that’s $600–$700 in labor. For us to supply and install it too: a stainless steel single bowl is $1,000–$1,200, a stainless steel double bowl is $1,200–$1,400, a composite single bowl is $1,200–$1,400, and a composite double bowl is $1,600–$1,800. One style doesn’t get a number here on purpose: a farmhouse or apron-front sink usually means cutting into the cabinet box underneath it, so that’s carpentry work we’ll scope with you in person alongside a cabinet crew, rather than price sight unseen.
A kitchen sink doesn’t fail dramatically. It just gets tired. The finish wears through on an old stainless bowl, a composite sink starts holding stains it never used to, or the caulk line around a drop-in rim finally gives up and lets water creep into the cabinet below. Whatever got you here, the good news is a kitchen sink swap is one of the more straightforward jobs we do, and the price is mostly a function of two honest questions: are you supplying the sink, and what’s it made of. Here’s the real math, the mount question everybody asks about, and where a farmhouse sink changes the conversation.
What you’ll actually pay
Five numbers cover almost every kitchen sink swap we do. Which one is yours comes down to whether you’re bringing your own sink and what it’s made of.
- You supply the sink, we install $600–$700. Bring us whatever sink you picked out and we’ll pull the old one, set the new one, and hook everything back up. Labor only, no markup on a sink you already bought.
- Stainless steel, single bowl, we supply $1,000–$1,200. Our standard stainless single bowl, installed. The most common swap we do, and the safest choice if you just want the old one replaced with something reliable.
- Stainless steel, double bowl, we supply $1,200–$1,400. Same stainless sink, split into two bowls so you can soak on one side and rinse on the other. A little more sink, a little more price.
- Composite, single bowl, we supply $1,200–$1,400. Granite or quartz composite, quieter than stainless and it won’t show water spots the same way. Costs more up front for the look and the feel.
- Composite, double bowl, we supply $1,600–$1,800. The top of our lineup: composite material in a two-bowl layout. If you want the quiet, scratch-resistant surface and the split bowl both, this is where it lands.
Drop-in, undermount, or farmhouse: the mount is what actually moves things
Those five numbers above cover drop-in and undermount sinks, in either material, in either bowl count. The mount style is what people ask us about most, so let’s talk through what each one actually means before you pick.
- Drop-in (top-mount) The rim sits on top of the countertop and the sink hangs from it, sealed with a bead of caulk. It works with any countertop material, including laminate, and it’s the easiest sink to swap because the existing cutout usually fits a new one with no countertop work at all. This is what most Louisville kitchens already have.
- Undermount The sink attaches to the underside of the counter, so the countertop edge is exposed and there’s no rim to wipe crumbs against. It looks clean, but it only works with a solid-surface countertop like granite, quartz, or solid-surface material strong enough to support the sink from below. Swapping an existing undermount for a new one is a straightforward job. Converting a laminate drop-in kitchen to undermount means replacing the countertop too, and that’s a different project with a different contractor.
- Farmhouse or apron-front The front of the sink replaces part of the cabinet face instead of sitting on top of the counter, which is what gives it that deep, exposed look. Because the sink becomes part of the cabinet structure, fitting one in almost always means cutting down or rebuilding the cabinet box underneath it, and that’s carpentry, not plumbing. We’ll handle every bit of the plumbing hookup once the sink is set. For the cabinet work itself, plan on bringing in a cabinet or countertop crew alongside us, and we’ll price our side of it once we’ve seen your specific cabinet in person.
What’s included, and how to pick the right tier
Whichever tier fits your kitchen, the install itself covers the same ground: we disconnect and haul away the old sink, run fresh supply lines to the shutoffs, set and seal the new sink, and reconnect your drain, including a garbage disposal or dishwasher line if you’ve got one. If your disposal’s on its way out too, we’ll tell you honestly instead of forcing it back in, and a disposal swap is its own flat-rate job we can bundle into the same visit. A lot of people also replace the faucet while the sink’s already disconnected, since it’s a natural time to do it. If yours is due, our guide to picking a kitchen faucet is a good next stop.
So how do you actually choose? If your current sink is fine and you just want it swapped, stainless single bowl covers most kitchens and it’s the middle of the road on price and durability. Composite is worth the jump if you’ve been fighting water spots or noise for years and you’re ready to stop. Customer-supplied only makes sense if you’ve already found a sink you love, since buying it yourself saves the markup but not the labor. And if a farmhouse sink is the dream, that’s a real project worth doing right. Just budget the cabinet work as its own line item alongside ours. If you want a straight number before anyone comes out, Ask Goldie can walk you through which tier fits your kitchen in a couple of minutes.
When a flat number isn’t the right one yet
Most kitchen sink swaps are exactly what’s above. A few situations change the shape of the job before we can quote it:
- You’re set on a farmhouse sink As covered above, that’s a cabinet conversation first and a plumbing price second. We’ll walk through both with you.
- You’re switching mount styles Going from drop-in to undermount, or the reverse, usually means a new countertop cutout, and sometimes a new countertop entirely. We’ll look at what you have before quoting.
- The sink is moving to a new spot Relocating the sink means new drain and supply line runs, which is its own job beyond a straight swap.
- The old sink is cast iron A cast iron sink is heavy, and pulling one out solo isn’t a one-person job. It doesn’t change our price, but it’s worth knowing before you plan the day.
Common questions we get
How much does it cost to replace a kitchen sink in Louisville?
Usually $700 to $2,000 installed. It’s $600–$700 in labor if you supply the sink yourself, and $800–$1,600 if we supply it too, depending on stainless versus composite and single versus double bowl. A farmhouse sink is priced separately once we’ve seen the cabinet.
Is it cheaper to buy my own kitchen sink or have you supply it?
Buying it yourself and paying our $600–$700 labor rate is usually cheaper if you’ve already found a sink you like at a good price. Having us supply it runs $1,100–$1,900 depending on material and bowl count, and it means one call instead of a trip to pick out and haul a sink home yourself.
Can any countertop have an undermount sink?
No. Undermount needs a solid-surface countertop like granite, quartz, or solid-surface material strong enough to support the sink from below. Laminate countertops only work with a drop-in sink. If you want to switch a laminate kitchen from drop-in to undermount, that’s a countertop replacement, not just a sink swap.
Why don’t you have a flat price for a farmhouse sink?
Because the sink itself becomes part of the cabinet face, and every cabinet is built a little differently underneath. Fitting one in almost always means cutting down or rebuilding the cabinet box, which is carpentry work outside our plumbing scope. We price our plumbing side once we’ve seen your cabinet, and we’ll point you to a cabinet or countertop crew for the rest.
Does the price include hooking my garbage disposal and dishwasher back up?
Yes. Reconnecting your existing disposal and dishwasher drain line is part of the swap. If the disposal itself is failing, we’ll say so, and swapping it is its own flat-rate job we can do the same visit.
The next questions to ask
Not sure which sink tier fits your kitchen?
Ask Goldie walks you through stainless vs. composite and gives you a straight number in a couple of minutes. Try it at goldenplumbingky.com/instant-estimate/