Conservatory Costs UK — What to Charge for Conservatory Supply and Build in 2026

Conservatory supply and build is one of the most price-variable jobs in the home improvement market. A homeowner calling three contractors can receive quotes anywhere from £9,000 to £40,000 for what appears, on the surface, to be the same structure. That confusion is your opportunity — if you can explain clearly what drives the cost, you win the job on trust rather than just price.

This guide covers the full cost picture for conservatory supply and fit in 2026: style by style, material by material, roof option by roof option, and all the labour, planning, and regulatory factors that change what you need to charge.

Conservatory Types — Full Supply-and-Fit Price Ranges

The figures below are complete supply-and-fit prices including the frame, roof, glazing, and installation labour. They assume uPVC frames and exclude base works, electrics, heating, and VAT. Base costs are covered separately below.

Prices assume uPVC frames, standard glass or polycarbonate roof, typical ground conditions. Excludes base, electrics, heating, planning fees, and VAT.

Lean-to Conservatories

The lean-to is the simplest and most cost-effective conservatory style. A mono-pitch roof slopes away from the house wall, keeping fabrication complexity and installation time to a minimum. It suits bungalows and properties with restricted planning height — the low ridge line is less likely to trigger a permitted development height issue.

A 3×3 m lean-to in uPVC sits at £8,000–£12,000 supply and fit. Scale up to a 4×3 m and the range moves to £10,000–£15,000. The cost differential is driven by additional frame sections, larger roof panels, and the extra half-day to a day of installation time.

In aluminium, add 20% to these figures — so a 4×3 m lean-to in aluminium runs £12,000–£18,000. In timber, the premium is 30–50%, taking the same footprint to £13,000–£22,500. Timber requires more detailed joinery at the install stage and periodic maintenance thereafter, both of which justify the premium in your quote.

Victorian Conservatories

The Victorian conservatory is defined by its faceted bay — typically three facets at 45 degrees, occasionally five — and steeply pitched roof with a central ridge. It's the most visually distinctive style and remains popular on older housing stock where the period character suits the property.

The faceted bay adds cost because each corner requires a specialist fabricated section, and the roof geometry above the bay is more complex than a plain rectangular pitch. For a 3×3 m Victorian in uPVC, quote £12,000–£18,000. A 4×3.5 m version moves to £15,000–£22,000.

These are meaningfully higher than equivalent lean-tos of the same footprint — the complexity premium is real, not just marketing. Factor in an extra day of installation time versus a lean-to of comparable size.

Edwardian Conservatories

The Edwardian — sometimes called a "Georgian" or "box bay" — is square or rectangular with a simple pitched roof and straight-line front elevation. It maximises floor space relative to footprint, which is why it's the most popular choice for customers prioritising usable room area over period character.

Costs run broadly in line with Victorian equivalents: 3×3 m at £12,000–£18,000 and 4×4 m at £16,000–£25,000 in uPVC. The roof is less complex than a Victorian (no bay geometry to deal with), but the larger rectangular footprint means more linear metres of frame. In practice the two styles price similarly at equivalent sizes.

P-Shape Conservatories

A P-shape combines a lean-to section (the straight back) with a Victorian or Edwardian bay section projecting from one end — creating a structure that reads as two interconnected spaces. They're popular where the customer wants a large conservatory but the rear elevation doesn't allow a full-width Victorian without over-sailing the boundary.

The pricing reflects the compound nature of the build: £18,000–£30,000 in uPVC for a typical 5×4 m footprint. Lead time from a trade fabricator is also longer — allow 8–12 weeks for a P-shape versus 4–8 for simpler styles — which affects your programme planning.

Orangeries

An orangery sits between a conservatory and a full extension. The distinguishing features are solid brick or rendered piers (rather than a full glazed frame), a solid roof perimeter with a central glass lantern, and typically more substantial interior finishes. The result is a structure that feels more like a room and less like a greenhouse.

At 4×3 m, expect to quote £20,000–£35,000. A 5×4 m orangery will run £28,000–£50,000+. The upper end of that range reflects high-specification materials — aluminium lantern, hardwood flooring, plastered and decorated internal walls, underfloor heating. The brickwork element alone typically costs £2,000–£5,000 for a standard orangery.

Orangeries almost always require building regulations approval because the solid roof brings them out of the conservatory exemption. You need to factor in compliance costs — insulation, structural elements, inspections — when pricing.

Frame Materials — Cost Comparison

Frame material is the single biggest controllable variable in your supply cost. Here's how the three main options compare on price, performance, and what you should be telling customers.

On uPVC, white frames are the baseline price. Coloured uPVC — foiled in anthracite grey, chartwell green, or cream — adds roughly 5–15% to the frame supply cost depending on the fabricator and colour. Dual-colour (white internal, coloured external) is available from most fabricators at a modest additional premium.

Aluminium frames are powder coated as standard and can be specified in any RAL colour without a colour uplift — it's already baked into the premium you pay for the material. This is a genuine selling point versus uPVC when a customer wants a specific colour match to their windows or front door.

Roof Options and Their Cost Impact

The roof choice has the biggest single impact on how the finished conservatory performs as a room — and it's the area where you have the most scope for upselling without resistance, because customers genuinely care about whether the space is usable year-round.

Labour Breakdown

Most conservatory frame prices from a trade fabricator include frame erection labour as part of the supply deal — the fabricator's installation team fit their own product. But the work either side of the frame is yours to price: strip-out, groundworks, base, and internal fit-out.

Foundation cost is the most variable line in any conservatory quote. Standard concrete strip or pad foundations on good clay ground run £1,500–£3,000. Made-up ground, poor bearing capacity, or proximity to trees can push this significantly higher — piled foundations in difficult ground cost £5,000–£10,000+ and require a structural engineer. Never quote base works without visiting the site and probing the ground.

Planning Permission — Permitted Development Rules

Most domestic conservatories fall within permitted development (PD) and do not require a formal planning application. But PD is not automatic — specific conditions must all be met, and it is your responsibility to verify them at the survey stage.

A conservatory qualifies as permitted development if it meets all of the following:

• It does not exceed 50% of the total area of land around the original house (including any previous extensions)
• It is single storey only
• It does not extend beyond the rear wall of the original house by more than 6 m for a detached property or 4 m for a semi-detached or terraced — or 8 m / 6 m respectively under the Larger Home Extension Scheme (prior approval required)
• It does not front onto a highway — side or front elevations visible from a public road typically require full planning
• The maximum eaves height is 3 m if any part of the conservatory is within 2 m of the boundary
• The ridge height does not exceed the ridge height of the original house
• The property is not in a conservation area, AONB, or National Park — Article 4 directions in these areas often remove PD rights entirely
• The property is not a listed building — any works require listed building consent regardless of scale

The 50% garden rule catches more customers than they expect. A rear extension built five years ago already eats into the allowance. Always ask whether any previous extensions have been added since the house was originally built, and check the original footprint against what's there now.

Building Regulations — What's Exempt and What Isn't

Conservatories benefit from a building regulations exemption — but the conditions are specific. A glazed conservatory is exempt from Part L (energy efficiency) and associated regulations only if it meets all of:

• It is thermally separated from the main dwelling by an external-quality wall, door, or window between the house and the conservatory
• The roof is at least 75% translucent material (glass or polycarbonate) — so a solid tiled roof immediately removes the exemption
• The walls are at least 50% glazed
• It has a heating system that is independently controlled from the main house heating

Solid roof conservatories and orangeries are not exempt. They require a building regulations application and inspections. The door between the conservatory and the house should remain as an external-quality door (thermally and acoustically performing to Part L standards) to maintain the thermal separation. If the customer asks to remove this door and open the conservatory into the main house, the exemption is lost and the whole structure must comply.

All glazing installed must meet the minimum U-value of 1.4 W/m²K for windows and 1.8 W/m²K for roof lights — these are the Part L standards that apply across the board regardless of exemption status.

Site Survey Checklist

A thorough site survey before quoting is non-negotiable. These are the items to cover on every visit:

• Measure to millimetre accuracy — the external opening width at the house wall, internal depth from house wall to proposed front line, and any returns or steps in the rear elevation that affect the frame layout
• Check the ground — probe for existing concrete slabs (check thickness and condition), soft spots, fill material, tree roots within 3 m, and proximity to any drains or service runs
• Confirm permitted development eligibility — check local planning authority records for Article 4 directions, measure existing extensions, confirm the property is not listed
• Assess the house wall — check for damp, movement cracks, or pointing defects in the elevation the conservatory will attach to; these need rectifying before the frame goes up
• Note the roof line — where the conservatory roof intersects the house wall matters for weatherproofing; a complex junction (e.g. abutting a window above) will add labour time
• Identify services — gas, electric, water and drainage runs under the proposed footprint; you'll need a plan to work around or divert them
• Confirm frame lead time — custom frames typically take 4–10 weeks from order to delivery; set the customer's expectation at the survey, not two weeks before start date

Upsells — What to Include in Every Quote

A conservatory quote that stops at the frame is leaving money on the table. These are the upsells that convert well because customers genuinely want the finished room to be usable, not just built.

Present upsells at the survey or during the quote presentation — not as an afterthought once the main price is agreed. Customers are mentally prepared to spend at the time of signing; raising additional items later feels like price creep even when the items are entirely reasonable.

VAT on Conservatories

VAT on conservatory supply and fit is straightforward in most cases but frequently misunderstood:

• Conservatories on new-build dwellings: 0% VAT applies under zero-rating for new construction. If you are a subcontractor fitting a conservatory as part of a new-build project, the main contractor can zero-rate the supply to the end customer, and you should zero-rate your supply to the main contractor.
• Conservatories on existing homes: Standard rate (20%) applies. There is no reduced rate for conservatory work on existing properties — unlike some energy-saving installations. The 5% reduced rate that applies to certain renovation work (on properties unoccupied for 2+ years) is narrow and unlikely to apply to a typical domestic conservatory enquiry.
• No reduced rate: Unlike insulation or heat pumps, there is no VAT relief mechanism for conservatories on existing homes. Your quote to the customer must include 20% VAT if you are VAT-registered.

If you're not VAT-registered (turnover under the £90,000 threshold), you charge no VAT — but this also means you cannot reclaim VAT on materials. For conservatory supply businesses handling significant material volumes, it is almost always worth registering voluntarily before the threshold is reached.

Quoting Process — How to Structure Your Quote

Conservatory quoting sits between the fixed-price product world of windows and doors and the variable labour world of general building. Most contractors operate on a cost-plus basis: fabrication supply cost + installation labour + site-specific costs + margin. Typical gross margins run at 30–45% on the overall contract value.

Two stages work well in practice:

How Trade2Base Helps Conservatory Contractors

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For a conservatory company doing 30–60 installs a year, knowing which marketing to cut and which to double down on can mean three to five additional jobs annually with no increase in spend. That's the value of attribution done properly.

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