Tub to Shower Conversion Cost 2026: $2,000–$6,000 Typical

Converting one standard tub alcove in a US house — about 60 by 30 inches, the tub removed, a prefabricated base and walls, a standard valve and trim, a framed door, and the labor in one price, with the drain left where it is — often clusters around $2,000–$6,000. That is the typical tub to shower conversion cost. How much does a tub to shower conversion cost in that scope? It is that installed prefab job, not a tiled shower and not a curbless floor. The cost to convert a bathtub to a shower, for that alcove, is the same band. Bathtub to shower conversion cost is that installed price. How much does it cost to replace a tub with a walk-in shower, when the new shower is larger than the tub, is typically $5,000–$12,000, and that row replaces the prefab rate. A one day tub to shower conversion cost, when the insert and the labor are both in, is the $2,000–$6,000 band. The wider national spread, about $1,200–$15,000, covers a small conversion at the low end and a curbless floor at the high end. The rest of the bathroom is the bathroom remodel guide. A tank that cannot supply the new shower is the water heater guide. Supply pipe that is failing in more than this wall is the whole-house repipe guide. These are typical planning ranges, not a survey and not a quote.

This page is a conversion of a bathtub that is already in a single-family bathroom. A bid may call it a tub to shower conversion, a bathtub to shower conversion, or a tub-to-shower remodel. The tub comes out. A shower goes in the opening, or in a larger opening the bid names. It is not a new vanity, a new toilet, and a new floor, which is the bathroom remodel guide. It is not a new tank, which is the water heater guide. It is not a new hot and cold supply through the house, which is the whole-house repipe guide. Replacing a shower that is already a shower, with no tub coming out, is the shower remodel guide. This page does not price it.

The price of the job is the materials and the labor that installs them. The type of shower is the first cut. Whether the drain stays is the second. A type row is a way to read one conversion. It is not a second bill. Price the footprint the drawing names.

The rows below are ways to read one job. They are not added together. The type table is one installed conversion, tub removal included. The typical band is the prefab row: one standard alcove, drain left where it is. A tiled shower, a larger walk-in, and a curbless floor replace that rate. They are not a second shower on top of it. Use an add-on row only for a line the type row does not include. A drain the proposal already moves is not a second drain. Frameless glass the proposal already includes is not a second door.

Conversion	Typical installed cost
Prefab alcove, drain stays	$2,000–$6,000
Tiled shower, curb, same footprint	$6,000–$12,000
Walk-in larger than the tub	$5,000–$12,000
Curbless	$8,000–$15,000

Add-on	Typical planning range
Drain moved, when the bid leaves it out	$900–$1,100
Frameless glass, when the bid leaves it out	$1,200–$3,000

The type rows replace one another. Do not add tile on top of a prefab row for the same alcove. The add-on row is a line the type row left out. A framed door the prefab price already includes is not the frameless row on top. A conversion that does not move the drain does not get the drain row.

A prefab alcove — acrylic or fiberglass, about 60 by 30 inches, drain left where it is — is typically $2,000–$6,000. That whole row is the typical band. The floor of the row is the typical floor. The top of the row is the typical top. The wider floor, $1,200, is $800 under this row. It is a smaller conversion, not this alcove with a discount. From $2,000–$6,000 the job is this row. Do not add the tiled row on top of it.

A tiled shower with a curb, on that same footprint, is typically $6,000–$12,000. Six thousand is the floor of the tile row and the top of the typical band. Those are the same dollars and not the same job. One is prefab. One is tile. Ask which one the bid is. From $6,000–$12,000 the job has left the typical band except at that shared $6,000 point, and it stays inside the wider spread. Twelve thousand is $6,000 past the typical top and $3,000 under the wider top of $15,000. Do not add the prefab row to this one.

A walk-in larger than the tub is typically $5,000–$12,000. The overlap with the typical band is $5,000–$6,000. Five thousand is $3,000 over the typical floor and inside both rows. Six thousand is the typical top and inside the walk-in row. From $6,000–$12,000 the walk-in has left the typical band and stays inside the wider spread. The $12,000 point is also the top of the tiled row. Ask which shower the bid is. A prefab unit that stays inside the old footprint is the typical band, even when the bid calls it a walk-in. Do not add the prefab row to a walk-in that was already priced as its own shower.

A curbless floor is typically $8,000–$15,000. Eight thousand is $2,000 past the typical top. The whole row sits above the typical band. Fifteen thousand is the top of the row and the top of the wider spread. Eight thousand is also inside the walk-in row and inside the tiled row, both of which run to $12,000. Those are the same dollars and not the same job. One has a curb or a larger footprint. One has no curb and a floor that was rebuilt to drain. Ask which one the bid is. From $12,000–$15,000 the job has left the walk-in row and the tiled row and stays inside the curbless row. Do not add the walk-in row under a curbless price for the same opening.

Cost to convert a bathtub to a shower

The cost to convert a bathtub to a shower is this page when the tub comes out and a shower goes in, and the labor is in the price. Bathtub to shower conversion cost is that same installed price. A bid that says tub to shower and a bid that says bathtub to shower are the same dollars when the footprint, the material, and the labor match. The typical band, $2,000–$6,000, is one standard alcove of that installed prefab conversion. It is not a second product stacked on a type row you already have.

How much does it cost to convert a bathtub to a shower, as a surround-only number, is not this page. The installed row includes the tub removal, the base, the walls, the valve, the trim, a framed door, and the labor. A warehouse price for the panels, with the rest left out, is a parts list. On the standard alcove, the installed typical band is $2,000–$6,000. Do not add a panel price under an installed price for the same opening.

One day tub to shower conversion cost

A one day tub to shower conversion cost is the prefab row when the product is an acrylic or fiberglass insert, the tub comes out, and the labor is in the price. The typical band is $2,000–$6,000. The one-day schedule is a calendar. It is not a different rate. A quote of $2,000 on that insert is the typical floor. A quote of $6,000 is the typical top. A quote over $6,000 has left the typical band. It can sit inside the tiled row until $12,000, and inside the wider spread until $15,000. Ask whether the tub removal, the valve, and the labor are in the number. A one-day price for the panels alone is not this row.

Cost to replace a tub with a walk-in shower

The cost to replace a tub with a walk-in shower is the walk-in row when the new shower is larger than the tub. That installed range is $5,000–$12,000. It replaces the prefab rate. It is not the typical band plus a second shower. The overlap with $2,000–$6,000 is $5,000–$6,000. From $5,000–$6,000 the job can be a high prefab alcove or a low larger walk-in. Ask which footprint the bid priced. From $6,000–$12,000 the job has left the typical band and stays on the walk-in row. Twelve thousand is $3,000 under the wider top.

A walk-in that is also tiled uses the row the bid actually built. Tile on the old footprint is $6,000–$12,000. A larger walk-in is $5,000–$12,000. The overlap of those two rows is $6,000–$12,000. That overlap is almost the whole of both rows. Ask whether the footprint grew. Do not add $6,000 under a walk-in price that was already tiled.

What the range includes

The typical band assumes one standard alcove at a single-family house. The tub comes out. The prefabricated base is in. The prefabricated walls are in. A standard valve and the trim are in. A framed door is in. The labor is in. Ordinary haul-away of that tub, in this band, is part of the installed price. The drain stays where it is. A layout change for the rest of the bathroom is not in the band. A moved drain is not in the band. Frameless glass is not in the band. A curbless floor is not in the band.

How long the work takes depends on the material, the drain, and what is behind the tub, and the bid’s schedule is the one that counts. These are not a day count on this page. A bathroom that is the only one in the house is a scheduling question for the bid, not a dollar line.

The floor of the wider spread, near $1,200, is a small conversion. It is not a standard alcove someone discounted. The top, $15,000, is a curbless floor at the top of that row. It is not the prefab row plus every add-on. Six thousand plus a moved drain at $1,100 is $7,100. Six thousand plus $1,100 is $7,100, which has left the typical band by $1,100 and stays inside the walk-in row and the tiled row, under those rows’ $12,000 top. Six thousand plus frameless glass at $3,000 is $9,000. That sum has left the typical band by $3,000 and stays inside the walk-in row and the tiled row. Six thousand plus the drain at $1,100 plus frameless glass at $3,000 is $10,100. Ten thousand one hundred has left the typical band by $4,100 and stays inside the walk-in row and the tiled row, $1,900 under $12,000, and inside the wider spread, $4,900 under $15,000. Stacking those lines does not build the $15,000 job by itself. The $15,000 job is also the curbless row at its top, with no extra glass named. Treat a number above $15,000 as a larger rebuild, a full bathroom, or a shower the curbless line does not cover, and ask which one.

None of the bands include a drain move, when the bid leaves it out, typically $900–$1,100. Two thousand plus $900 is $2,900, inside the typical band. Two thousand plus $1,100 is $3,100, inside the typical band. Six thousand plus $1,100 is $7,100, $1,100 past the typical top and inside the walk-in row. A conversion that does not move the drain does not get this row. A drain the proposal already moves is not a second drain.

None of the bands include frameless glass, when the bid leaves it out, typically $1,200–$3,000. Two thousand plus $1,200 is $3,200, inside the typical band. Two thousand plus $3,000 is $5,000, inside the typical band and at the floor of the walk-in row. Six thousand plus $1,200 is $7,200, $1,200 past the typical top and inside the walk-in row and the tiled row. A framed door the prefab price already includes is not this row. A shower with no glass, and a curtain instead, does not get this row.

None of the bands include the rest of a bathroom remodel, which is the bathroom remodel guide, often $10,000–$25,000 for a mid-range bath that keeps the layout. Ten thousand is $4,000 past the typical conversion top. Ten thousand is also inside the walk-in row and the tiled row. Those are the same dollars and not the same job. One can be a shower. One is a bathroom. Six thousand plus $10,000 is $16,000, which has left the wider spread by $1,000, and that sum double-counts the shower if the remodel already includes a new surround. A remodel that already names a new shower is not this conversion on top. A conversion of a tub that is the only thing changing is not the remodel’s fixture line.

None of the bands include a new water heater, which is the water heater guide, often $1,400–$2,800 for a 40- to 50-gallon tank in the same spot. Two thousand plus $1,400 is $3,400, inside the typical band. Six thousand plus $2,800 is $8,800, $2,800 past the typical top, inside the walk-in row and the tiled row, and $6,200 under the wider top. Those are two jobs. Do not fold the heater into the shower price.

None of the bands include a whole-house supply repipe, which is the whole-house repipe guide, often $4,500–$15,000. Four thousand five hundred sits inside the typical conversion band. Those are the same dollars and not the same job. One is a shower. One is the supply through the house. Two thousand plus $4,500 is $6,500, $500 past the typical top and inside the walk-in row. Six thousand plus $15,000 is $21,000, which has left the wider spread by $6,000. Fifteen thousand is also the top of that wider spread, and it is the top of the repipe’s typical band. Ask which number the bid is. Do not fold the repipe into the shower price.

None of the bands include mold in the bathroom, which is the mold remediation guide, often $500–$2,000 for one bathroom. Five hundred is $700 under the wider conversion floor. Two thousand is the typical conversion floor. Those are the same dollars at $2,000 and not the same job. Six thousand plus $2,000 is $8,000, $2,000 past the typical top, at the curbless floor, and inside the walk-in row. A conversion that finds colonized material behind the tub does not get to hide that work inside the prefab price. Ordinary dust from the demo is not that row.

The band is the installed price. A sale on the surround is not subtracted. Read the form before you take a number off the bid. A credit you have not received is not inside the planning range. This page does not price a sale, and it does not name a percentage of the cost that comes back at resale.

Warranties are part of the contract, and this page is not a reading of one company’s form. A conversion warranty commonly splits the base, the walls, and the installation, and the term on labor is often shorter than any term on a panel. A seam that opens, a door that will not close, and a leak the workmanship warranty excludes are questions for that form. Read it. The warranty is not a dollar line in the planning range.

Homeowners insurance and a home warranty are contracts too. A standard homeowners policy is built around sudden and accidental damage. A shower ruined by a covered burst pipe is the kind of loss those policies sometimes respond to, and the repair is part of that claim only to the extent the form says. A tub you chose to convert, and a finish that was worn before the crew arrived, are the kind of loss those policies commonly treat as maintenance. Read the form. A home warranty may name the house and still exclude a shower you added. Neither contract is inside the planning range.

A permit the city requires for the plumbing is a line on the bid. This page does not price a city’s fee. A permit the proposal already includes is not a second permit.

As a cross-check, not a bid: one standard prefab alcove is $2,000–$6,000, the typical band. A tiled shower on that footprint is $6,000–$12,000. A larger walk-in is $5,000–$12,000. A curbless floor is $8,000–$15,000, and $15,000 is the top of the wider spread. If a bid and that reading are far apart, the bid is a different type, a moved drain, frameless glass, a soft floor, a full bathroom, or a price that left the labor out.

What moves the price

Driver	How it changes the bid
Type	A prefab alcove with the drain left in place is $2,000–$6,000, and that row is the typical band. Tile on that footprint is $6,000–$12,000 and replaces it. A walk-in larger than the tub is $5,000–$12,000 and replaces it. A curbless floor is $8,000–$15,000 and replaces it.
Drain	A drain that stays is inside the type row. A drain the bid leaves unpriced is $900–$1,100. A drain the proposal already moves is not a second drain.
Glass	A framed door is inside the prefab row. Frameless glass, when the bid leaves it out, is $1,200–$3,000. Glass the proposal already includes is not a second door. A curtain is not the frameless row.
The rest of the room	A mid-range bathroom that keeps the layout is $10,000–$25,000 on the bathroom remodel guide. A conversion that is only the tub does not get that remodel on top. A remodel that already includes the shower does not get this conversion on top.
Water	A 40- to 50-gallon tank in the same spot is $1,400–$2,800 on the water heater guide. Supply pipe through the house is $4,500–$15,000 on the repipe guide. Mold in one bathroom is $500–$2,000 on the mold guide. None of those is a second copy of the shower.
Access	A first-floor alcove with a tub the crew can carry out is the conversion this page prices. A cast-iron tub on an upper floor, a tight stair, and a high-cost metro can clear the top of the typical band on a straightforward prefab alcove.

The type is the first cut, and it is not a rate you add to itself. A prefab alcove at $6,000 and a tiled shower at $6,000 are the same dollars. They are not the same opening twice. Ask which material is in the price.

The drain is the second cut. Two thousand plus a move at $900 is $2,900, still inside the typical band. Six thousand plus a move at $1,100 is $7,100, which has left the typical band and can still be a walk-in. The higher number is not a prefab alcove that someone misread.

The same standard alcove in a lower-cost area and in a high-labor city can sit at opposite ends of $2,000–$6,000 without either bid being wrong. Ask whether the shower is prefab, tile, a larger walk-in, or curbless, and ask whether the drain stays. A bathroom remodel that replaces the rest of the room, a water heater that cannot feed the new shower, and a repipe of supply that fails in more than this wall are the projects that show up beside this one. Price them on their own pages. Two bids that disagree about the footprint, the material, and whether the labor is in are not the same job.

DIY or hire

Hire the conversion. The pan, the waterproofing, and the drain are the job. A weekend crew is most likely to miss a slope and a joint that is not sealed, and a leak shows up in the ceiling below.

A retail surround is a different product. It is not the installed rate on this page, and it is not a standard alcove with the tub out, the valve set, and the door hung. The installed row is the pro price. On that alcove, the job is $2,000–$6,000. That is the labor and the materials together. A tub to shower conversion is a hire.

Do not skip the waterproofing or the drain layout to save a day. If you are pricing a stack of panels, a valve, and a tub that is still in the alcove, you are pricing a contractor’s job without the crew. The person who converts the tub should say what happens if the subfloor is soft when the base is supposed to go down.

Repair or replace

Leave a sound tub in place when it holds water, the surround is dry, and the problem is the color. A reglaze of that tub is a different product. This page does not price a reglaze. If a refinish quote has reached the installed row for a new shower in the same alcove, price a conversion instead of a finish that costs the same.

Convert the tub when the tub is what has to change and the vanity, the toilet, and the layout can stay. A new shower is not a coat of finish. Leaving a tub you cannot use to save the $2,000–$6,000 is a choice about the bathroom, not a repair. A quote near $1,200 should say a small conversion, not a standard alcove.

Replace the bathroom, in the sense of a remodel, when the vanity, the toilet, or the layout has to change, or when the waterproofing of the whole room has failed. That job is the bathroom remodel guide, typically $10,000–$25,000 for a mid-range bath that keeps the layout. A conversion on a floor that is soft is a new shower on a floor that still needs to be rebuilt. A tank that cannot feed the shower is the water heater guide. Supply that fails in more than this wall is the whole-house repipe guide. If the same season includes any of those, they are separate scopes. Do not fold them into the conversion price.

How long a new shower lasts is not a number on this page. A prefab wall is not a warranty that a leak will miss the ceiling below. A tiled curb is not a warranty that the drain will stay clear. The bid’s scope is the work you bought.

How to use this number

Ask two or three contractors for a written price that names the footprint, whether the drain stays, whether the price is a lump sum, whether the tub removal, the base, the walls, the valve, the trim, the door, and the labor are all included, which material the walls are, and what happens if the subfloor is soft. Compare one standard prefab alcove, installed, with $2,000–$6,000. Compare tile on that footprint with $6,000–$12,000, a larger walk-in with $5,000–$12,000, and a curbless floor with $8,000–$15,000. Keep the materials and the labor inside those rows. Put a left-out drain move at $900–$1,100, and left-out frameless glass at $1,200–$3,000, on their own lines.

A very low bid on a standard alcove is a reason to ask whether the labor and the materials are both included, not a reason to celebrate. A quote near $1,200 should say a small conversion, not a standard alcove. A high bid should point at tile, a larger walk-in, a curbless floor, a moved drain, frameless glass, a soft floor, or the labor market. Two or three local bids on the same footprint, the same material, and the same drain are the number that matters. How this site sets the band is explained on the methodology page.