What will your project actually cost?
A real, no-email-required estimate for luxury home builds, whole-home remodels, ADUs, and commercial build-outs — across 28 major U.S. cities. Built on 2026 market cost-per-square-foot ranges, adjusted live by a city construction cost index, tier, site, stories, and the premium features you choose.
Get a scoped estimate and design roadmap.
A calculator sets the range. To pin the number, we scope your actual project — location, program, finish level, and site — then show you exactly where the budget goes and how a photoreal digital twin protects it before construction starts. Takes under a minute.
- Scoped build range
- Line-item budget clarity
- Design + visualization plan
This is what those numbers build.
Photoreal pre-construction visualizations and finished work across Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and beyond. Every project was resolved in a digital twin and walked in VR before construction.
The 2026 market ranges behind every number.
This calculator multiplies your project size by realistic 2026 U.S. cost-per-square-foot ranges for your tier, then scales the result by a city construction cost index (Los Angeles = 1.00) and adjusts for site condition, stories, premium features, and contingency. The tables below are public so you can sanity-check any estimate by hand, and they mirror the figures in our Answers library.
City construction cost index — 28 major U.S. cities (2026, Los Angeles = 1.00)
Multiply any baseline cost-per-square-foot figure by a city's index for a metro-adjusted estimate. The right column shows the resulting range for architect-led custom homes ($1,200–$1,800/sf at the LA baseline).
| City / metro | Cost index | Architect-led custom $/sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 1.00× | $1,200–$1,800 |
| Orange County | 0.98× | $1,175–$1,765 |
| San Diego | 0.95× | $1,140–$1,710 |
| San Francisco / Bay Area | 1.12× | $1,345–$2,015 |
| Santa Barbara / Montecito | 1.06× | $1,270–$1,910 |
| Palm Springs / Coachella | 0.90× | $1,080–$1,620 |
| Sacramento | 0.88× | $1,055–$1,585 |
| Austin | 0.82× | $985–$1,475 |
| Dallas–Fort Worth | 0.80× | $960–$1,440 |
| Houston | 0.79× | $950–$1,420 |
| San Antonio | 0.77× | $925–$1,385 |
| Seattle | 0.99× | $1,190–$1,780 |
| Portland | 0.90× | $1,080–$1,620 |
| Denver | 0.89× | $1,070–$1,600 |
| Aspen / Vail | 1.28× | $1,535–$2,305 |
| Park City | 0.94× | $1,130–$1,690 |
| Scottsdale / Phoenix | 0.82× | $985–$1,475 |
| Las Vegas | 0.85× | $1,020–$1,530 |
| New York City | 1.30× | $1,560–$2,340 |
| The Hamptons | 1.22× | $1,465–$2,195 |
| Boston | 1.10× | $1,320–$1,980 |
| Washington, D.C. | 1.03× | $1,235–$1,855 |
| Miami / South Florida | 0.99× | $1,190–$1,780 |
| Naples / Palm Beach | 1.02× | $1,225–$1,835 |
| Atlanta | 0.81× | $970–$1,460 |
| Nashville | 0.83× | $995–$1,495 |
| Chicago | 0.96× | $1,150–$1,730 |
The index reflects local labor rates, material logistics, permitting friction, and luxury-trade availability. Vividly Built has studios in Los Angeles, San Diego, Dallas, and Austin, and designs for clients nationwide.
Luxury custom home — construction cost per square foot (LA baseline, flat lot, 2026)
| Build tier | $/sq ft (construction) | What it buys |
|---|---|---|
| High-end production luxury | $850–$1,200 | Stock-plan-derived, large-builder execution, mid-luxury finish package, predictable schedule. |
| Architect-led custom | $1,200–$1,800 | Bespoke design, full custom millwork, premium appliances, integrated AV, structural sophistication. |
| Trophy / no-compromise | $2,000–$3,500+ | Imported stone, museum-grade glazing, signature architect, art-handling finishes. |
Multiply by the city index above. Site premiums: sloped/hillside adds ~15–35%, coastal/waterfront adds ~10–25%. Two-story adds ~3–8% and three+/vertical ~8–15%. Land, soft costs, and FF&E typically add 25–40% (the "all-in" toggle layers these on).
Luxury home remodel & ADU — cost per square foot (LA baseline, 2026)
| Scope | $/sq ft | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Remodel — cosmetic refresh | $150–$350 | Finishes, paint, flooring, fixtures, light kitchen/bath updates — no structural change. |
| Remodel — full whole-home renovation | $350–$700 | New kitchen and baths, reconfigured layout, new finishes and systems throughout. |
| Remodel — down-to-studs / structural + addition | $600–$1,100+ | Gut renovation, structural work, new MEP, square-footage addition. |
| ADU — garage conversion | $200–$350 | Convert an existing garage to a permitted, code-compliant living unit. |
| ADU — attached | $300–$500 | New attached accessory dwelling sharing a wall with the main home. |
| ADU — detached custom / guest house | $400–$700 | Free-standing custom guest house with its own kitchen, bath, and systems. |
Kitchens and bathrooms concentrate the highest cost per square foot. Interior design fees typically run 10–18% of construction; FF&E is additional.
Commercial build-out — cost per square foot (LA baseline, 2026)
| Space type | Tier | $/sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurant | Fast-casual / QSR | $150–$300 |
| Full-service | $300–$550 | |
| Fine-dining / chef-driven | $550–$1,000+ | |
| Cafe | Kiosk / compact | $150–$300 |
| Full cafe | $250–$450 | |
| Roastery-cafe | $400–$700 | |
| Office TI | Spec suite | $40–$90 |
| Creative office | $90–$175 | |
| Executive HQ | $175–$350+ | |
| Retail | Standard inline | $100–$250 |
| Elevated boutique | $250–$500 | |
| Luxury flagship | $500–$1,500+ | |
| Medical / dental | General practice | $200–$400 |
| Dental / ortho | $250–$500 | |
| Surgical / imaging | $400–$800 | |
| Fitness / wellness | Boutique studio | $120–$250 |
| Full club / gym | $200–$400 | |
| Luxury wellness / spa | $300–$600 | |
| Boutique hotel (per key) | Refresh / soft-goods | $25k–$75k |
| Full renovation | $150k–$450k | |
| Ground-up | $450k–$1M+ |
Commercial figures scale by the same city index; local labor markets can move these ±10%. See the detailed guides: restaurant, office TI, retail, cafe, and boutique hotel.
What actually moves the number.
Square footage and city index set the rough scale; these five factors decide where in the range you land:
Structural sophistication. Open spans, cantilevers, and large frameless glazing add $80–$200/sf in steel and engineering. Stone & slab budgets. A $400k stone package and a $1.2M one buy very different homes. Glazing system. Aluminum-clad wood vs thermally-broken steel vs minimalist systems can swing $150–$400/sf on a glass-heavy home. Integrated systems. Crestron + Lutron + climate + shade done right is $80–$150/sf. Custom millwork volume. Millwork in 22 rooms vs 6 is a six-figure difference. The single biggest budget-killer, though, is change orders — field-driven changes commonly cost 5–10× the same scope priced up front, which is exactly why we resolve the entire project in a photoreal digital twin and walk it in VR before construction starts.
Cost calculator FAQs.
How accurate is this calculator?
It gives a realistic planning range, not a quote. It uses 2026 U.S. market cost-per-square-foot ranges by tier, scaled by a city cost index and adjusted for site, stories, and premium features. Actual cost depends on design complexity, finish specification, structure, and site-specific conditions only a real scope can capture. Use it to set a budget range and a reserve, then get a scoped estimate.
How does the city cost index work?
Every metro is indexed to Los Angeles at 1.00. The calculator multiplies the baseline cost per square foot for your tier by that index — e.g. architect-led custom is $1,200–$1,800/sf in LA, about $960–$1,440/sf in Dallas–Fort Worth (0.80×), $985–$1,475/sf in Austin (0.82×), and $1,560–$2,340/sf in New York City (1.30×). The index reflects local labor, material logistics, permitting, and luxury-trade availability.
How much does it cost to build a custom home in my city?
Pick your city in the calculator and it applies the index automatically. As a guide, architect-led custom construction runs roughly $925–$1,475/sf across Texas, ~$1,140–$1,710/sf in San Diego, ~$1,190–$1,780/sf in Seattle and Miami, and $1,320–$2,340/sf in Boston, San Francisco, and New York — before land, soft costs, and FF&E, which add 25–40% on top.
How much does an ADU or guest house cost?
At an LA baseline, a garage conversion runs ~$200–$350/sf, an attached ADU ~$300–$500/sf, and a detached custom ADU or guest house ~$400–$700/sf. A 900 sq ft detached ADU therefore lands around $360k–$630k in LA before the city index, soft costs, and any premium features.
What is not included in a per-square-foot figure?
Usually land, soft costs (architecture, structural, MEP, geotech, civil, and interior design fees — 15–30% combined), FF&E and art, permits and impact fees, and financing. Turn on the all-in option to layer soft costs and FF&E on, add premium features individually, and always carry a 10–15% contingency.
Do you build, or just estimate?
Vividly Built is a luxury interior design and architecture firm with an integrated visualization studio. We design the project — architecture, interiors, FF&E — and produce a photoreal digital twin you walk in VR before construction, which is how budgets stay intact. Tell us about your project for a real, scoped estimate.
Detailed cost guides & design services.
Ready for a real number?
Tell us the project — location, type, size, and timeline — and we'll come back with an honest scope, a realistic build range, and a design + visualization plan that protects the budget before construction starts.