Get quotes to replace taps in your home

HaMuch is Excellent
By Emily Rivers
Last updated 15th September 2023

We all take taps for granted in our homes. We don’t ever think about them until they go wrong – it’s only when they start leaking or stop letting out any water at all that we realise how much we rely on them.

While it’s possible to replace a tap yourself, it can be a tricky job that DIYers can find frustrating if they can’t get it right. The average cost for a plumber to replace a tap is £120, but it can range from £80-£200.

So what will affect the overall cost for tap replacement? Let’s go through it in our guide.

How much would a plumber charge to replace a tap?

As we said, the average price a plumber would charge to replace a tap is £120, but there are a few factors that can affect the cost. The type of tap (whether it’s a mixer tap or a pillar tap), whether there are isolation valves present, access to the plumbing and where you live will all have an impact on the cost of replacing a tap.

HaMuch has a large database of hourly and daily rates for plumbers all across the country. Take a look at our table further down the page and find your town or city to get an idea of how much it will cost to replace a tap in your area.

Types of tap

The type of tap you need to replace can affect the cost, as some are more tricky to fit than others. And of course, you’ll need to pay for the tap itself. Let’s take a look at the different types of tap and how much you should expect to spend:

Type of tap Common brands Average cost

Pillar taps

Bristan, Burlington, Heritage, Silverdale

£20-£250

Sensor taps

Armitage Shanks, Grohe, Roca

£60-£700

Mixer taps

Brista, Duravit, hansgrohe, Ideal Standard

£45-£500

Boiling water taps

Bower, Grohe, Reginox

£40-£800

To get an idea of the total cost of your tap replacement, add the average cost of labour to the average cost of the type you’d like. To get an accurate quote, post your job on HaMuch.

Tap Replacement Cost

What happens if you leave a dripping tap?

If you leave a dripping tap, the biggest thing that will happen is that you’ll waste a lot of water. According to Water UK, just one dripping tap wastes at least 5,500 litres of water per year – enough to fill a paddling pool every week for the whole summer. That could be £120 you’re throwing down the drain (literally!) every year.

Another thing that can happen if you leave a dripping tap is limescale build up. If you live in a hard water area, you’ll notice white or light grey-coloured flaky build up around your taps, in your kettle and around the sink areas in your home. Leave a tap dripping and you’ll notice that this limescale build up gets worse, meaning you’ll have to spend more time cleaning.

Why has my tap suddenly stopped working?

Washer failure

The most common reason for a tap to suddenly stop working is that the washer has failed or become loose. The washer is a small disc that sits inside the tap to relieve friction, spread load and to create a valve seal when the tap is turned off to prevent leakage.

That’s why when the washer fails, your tap can leak as well as stop working completely. Usually, you can simply replace the washer inside the tap to rectify the problem, but if it’s happening more and more regularly it’s probably time to replace the entire tap.

Blockages

If you’ve checked your washer and it seems intact, you should check your pipes for blockages. If you don’t have a magnetic filter connected to your central heating system, your pipes might be suffering from sediment, or ‘sludge’, build up which can stop the flow of water. If you notice that your radiators don’t heat up evenly, this is another sign that you’ve got a blockage.

A simple way to fix sediment build up is to get a powerflush. This involves a heating engineer flushing chemicals and water through your central heating system and pipes to break down the sludge and get water flowing freely through your pipes again.

Can I replace a tap myself?

You can replace a tap yourself, as if you follow the instructions provided with your tap it can be a pretty straightforward job. However, if your tap is in a difficult-to-access place, such as under a bath or a pedestal basin without much room to move, you might be better off asking a plumber to help.

If you’re unsure how to replace a tap, we’d always recommend asking a professional to help. If you try to replace the tap when you don’t know what you’re doing, you could damage the tap, spoiling the look of it in your kitchen or bathroom, or it might even stop working. Then you’ll be back to square one!

You also run the risk of damaging the pipes themselves. Use the wrong tools and you could cause problems to the pipes that will cost much more than a replacement tap to fix.

Can a handyman fix a dripping tap?

It’s possible for a handyman to fix a dripping tap. In fact, you may have more luck finding a handyperson to come and fix your tap more quickly. Plumbers are often busy with bigger jobs like installing baths, toilets and showers as well as fixing heating issues, so they might struggle to fit a small job like yours in.

However, it’s always worth getting in touch with plumbers to ask if they can fit you in as they are the most qualified to help you. They’ll probably have time at the beginning or the end of the day to fit you in, or be able to pop by to fix a dripping tap or replace one in between jobs.

Post your job on HaMuch now to be put in touch with reliable plumbers in your area.


Estimates for common plumber jobs;

Rates for other trades

Tap replacement cost in the UK
Tap replacement cost in the UK (excluding VAT or callout charges)
Location in UKTap replacement cost
Tap replacement near Aberdeen£111
Tap replacement near Amber Valley£114
Tap replacement near Angus£123
Tap replacement near Arun£135
Tap replacement near Ashfield£111
Tap replacement near Aylesbury Vale£150
Tap replacement near Barnsley£108
Tap replacement near Basildon£141
Tap replacement near Basingstoke & Deane£162
Tap replacement near Bassetlaw£105
Tap replacement near Bath & North East Somerset£114
Tap replacement near Bedford£144
Tap replacement near Belfast£96
Tap replacement near Birmingham£117
Tap replacement near Blackburn£111
Tap replacement near Blackpool£108
Tap replacement near Bolton£117
Tap replacement near Bournemouth£129
Tap replacement near Bracknell Forest£165
Tap replacement near Bradford£111
Tap replacement near Braintree£138
Tap replacement near Breckland£102
Tap replacement near Bridgend£105
Tap replacement near Brighton£147
Tap replacement near Bristol£111
Tap replacement near Broadland£120
Tap replacement near Broxtowe£114
Tap replacement near Bury£117
Tap replacement near Caerphilly£102
Tap replacement near Calderdale£111
Tap replacement near Cambridge£132
Tap replacement near Canterbury£132
Tap replacement near Cardiff£105
Tap replacement near Carmarthenshire£93
Tap replacement near Charnwood£114
Tap replacement near Chelmsford£141
Tap replacement near Cheltenham£129
Tap replacement near Cherwell£144
Tap replacement near Chester£111
Tap replacement near Colchester£135
Tap replacement near Conway£99
Tap replacement near Coventry£117
Tap replacement near Crewe & Nantwich£108
Tap replacement near Dacorum£159
Tap replacement near Derby£114
Tap replacement near Doncaster£108
Tap replacement near Dover£132
Tap replacement near Dudley£120
Tap replacement near Dumfries & Galloway£99
Tap replacement near Dundee£123
Tap replacement near East Ayrshire£120
Tap replacement near East Devon£105
Tap replacement near East Dunbartonshire£117
Tap replacement near East Hampshire£135
Tap replacement near East Hertfordshire£156
Tap replacement near East Lindsey£105
Tap replacement near East Riding£111
Tap replacement near Eastleigh£126
Tap replacement near Edinburgh£120
Tap replacement near Elmbridge£165
Tap replacement near Epping Forest£162
Tap replacement near Erewash£114
Tap replacement near Exeter£108
Tap replacement near Falkirk£120
Tap replacement near Fife£120
Tap replacement near Flintshire£108
Tap replacement near Gateshead£117
Tap replacement near Gedling£114
Tap replacement near Glasgow£117
Tap replacement near Gloucester£153
Tap replacement near Guildford£165
Tap replacement near Gwynedd£90
Tap replacement near Halton£114
Tap replacement near Harrogate£105
Tap replacement near Havant & Waterloo£123
Tap replacement near Highland£99
Tap replacement near Horsham£156
Tap replacement near Huntingdonshire£132
Tap replacement near Ipswich£135
Tap replacement near Isle of Wight£120
Tap replacement near Kings Lynn & West Norfolk£102
Tap replacement near Kingston-upon-Hull£111
Tap replacement near Kirklees£114
Tap replacement near Knowsley£114
Tap replacement near Lancaster£114
Tap replacement near Leeds£111
Tap replacement near Leicester£114
Tap replacement near Lisburn£96
Tap replacement near Liverpool£111
Tap replacement near London£165
Tap replacement near Luton£156
Tap replacement near Macclesfield£114
Tap replacement near Maidstone£138
Tap replacement near Manchester£117
Tap replacement near Mid Bedfordshire£150
Tap replacement near Mid Sussex£153
Tap replacement near Middlesbrough£120
Tap replacement near Milton Keynes£144
Tap replacement near Neath Port Talbot£105
Tap replacement near New Forest£126
Tap replacement near Newbury£162
Tap replacement near Newcastle Upon Tyne£117
Tap replacement near Newcastle-under-Lyme£108
Tap replacement near Newport£102
Tap replacement near North Ayrshire£117
Tap replacement near North East Lincolnshire£108
Tap replacement near North Hertfordshire£153
Tap replacement near North Lanarkshire£117
Tap replacement near North Lincolnshire£105
Tap replacement near North Somerset£111
Tap replacement near North Tyneside£117
Tap replacement near North Wiltshire£129
Tap replacement near Northampton£138
Tap replacement near Norwich£120
Tap replacement near Nottingham£114
Tap replacement near Nuneaton & Bedworth£117
Tap replacement near Oldham£117
Tap replacement near Oxford£150
Tap replacement near Pembrokeshire£78
Tap replacement near Perth & Kinross£117
Tap replacement near Peterborough£123
Tap replacement near Plymouth£96
Tap replacement near Poole£129
Tap replacement near Portsmouth£123
Tap replacement near Powys£123
Tap replacement near Preston£111
Tap replacement near Reading£165
Tap replacement near Redcar & Cleveland£120
Tap replacement near Reigate & Banstead£165
Tap replacement near Renfrewshire£117
Tap replacement near Rhondda, Cynon, Taff£102
Tap replacement near Rochdale£114
Tap replacement near Rochester-upon-Medway£114
Tap replacement near Rotherham£108
Tap replacement near Salford£117
Tap replacement near Salisbury£126
Tap replacement near Sandwell£120
Tap replacement near Scarborough£105
Tap replacement near Scottish Borders£135
Tap replacement near Sefton£111
Tap replacement near Sevenoaks£156
Tap replacement near Sheffield£108
Tap replacement near Slough£162
Tap replacement near Solihull£117
Tap replacement near South Ayrshire£117
Tap replacement near South Bedfordshire£144
Tap replacement near South Cambridgeshire£135
Tap replacement near South Gloucestershire£114
Tap replacement near South Kesteven£117
Tap replacement near South Lanarkshire£117
Tap replacement near South Oxfordshire£156
Tap replacement near South Somerset£99
Tap replacement near South Tyneside£117
Tap replacement near Southampton£126
Tap replacement near Southend-on-Sea£135
Tap replacement near St Albans£159
Tap replacement near St Helens£114
Tap replacement near Stafford£117
Tap replacement near Stockport£117
Tap replacement near Stockton-on-Tees£120
Tap replacement near Stoke-on-Trent£108
Tap replacement near Stratford-on-Avon£123
Tap replacement near Stroud£129
Tap replacement near Suffolk Coastal£135
Tap replacement near Sunderland£117
Tap replacement near Swale£135
Tap replacement near Swansea£105
Tap replacement near Tameside£117
Tap replacement near Teignbridge£111
Tap replacement near Tendring£138
Tap replacement near Test Valley£129
Tap replacement near Thamesdown£150
Tap replacement near Thanet£129
Tap replacement near The Wrekin£153
Tap replacement near Thurrock£147
Tap replacement near Torbay£111
Tap replacement near Trafford£117
Tap replacement near Vale of Glamorgan£108
Tap replacement near Vale of White Horse£150
Tap replacement near Vale Royal£111
Tap replacement near Wakefield£111
Tap replacement near Walsall£117
Tap replacement near Warrington£117
Tap replacement near Warwick£117
Tap replacement near Waveney£126
Tap replacement near Waverley£162
Tap replacement near Wealden£141
Tap replacement near West Lancashire£114
Tap replacement near West Lothian£123
Tap replacement near West Wiltshire£129
Tap replacement near Wigan£114
Tap replacement near Windsor & Maidenhead£162
Tap replacement near Wirral£111
Tap replacement near Wokingham£165
Tap replacement near Wolverhampton£120
Tap replacement near Wrexham Maelor£111
Tap replacement near Wychavon£123
Tap replacement near Wycombe£162
Tap replacement near York£105