Interior Design Pricing Sydney
It's the question every prospective client wants answered honestly and the one most studios dance around. So here is a direct answer: the cost of interior design in Sydney varies significantly depending on the scope of your project, the level of service involved and the complexity of the spaces being designed.
What we can tell you upfront is how we charge — because at Kaiko Design Interiors, the model is deliberately different from how most studios operate.
We work on fixed project fees, not open-ended hourly rates. Before any creative work begins, you receive a custom proposal that clearly outlines the scope of work, the project deliverables and the exact design fee. You know what you're paying before you commit. There are no surprise invoices at the end of a long month.
To prepare an accurate proposal, we first need to understand your project — the scope, your style, your timeline and your budget. The process for getting there is straightforward.
For a detailed breakdown of what interior designers charge in Sydney, read our interior design cost guide.
Step 1 — Tell us about your project
We start with a conversation, not a contract. Send us photos, links, drawings or a Pinterest board — whatever best communicates the space and where you'd like it to go. We'll ask the questions that help us understand your project clearly: the scope, the architecture, the brief and the budget.
From that, we prepare an accurate estimate of our design fees, specific to your project. No generic price lists. No ballpark figures that end up meaning nothing.
Step 2 — We meet at your property
The next step is a design consultation, held in person at your property wherever possible, or by video for clients working remotely. We walk the space together, talk through your goals and ask the questions that surface what matters most to you — not just what you think you want, but how you actually want to live.
You talk and we listen. We don't design during the consultation. The design work begins once your project officially starts.
Following the consultation, we provide a custom proposal outlining the scope of work, all project deliverables and the associated design fees, structured across clearly defined stages.
Step 3 — The creative work begins
Once the proposal is approved, your project moves into its first stage. Progress payments are tied to each phase — you pay as deliverables are reached, not in advance of work that hasn't happened yet.
Clients can work with us in person or entirely remotely. We regularly work with clients outside Sydney and across regional Australia.
Our Process
01
Concepts and Ideas
Through the initial design consultation we establish your brief, your aspirations and the project budget. This forms the scope of works and becomes the basis for all project deliverables.
The goal of this stage is a clear, agreed interior design direction — one that responds honestly to the aesthetic, functional and budgetary requirements of your project. This is where the big decisions happen: spatial planning, the design concept, the colour direction.
02
Design Development
With the concept approved, we develop the design across all areas within the scope of works.
Typical deliverables at this stage include plans and elevations incorporating proposed material selections and preliminary fixtures and fittings schedules.
03
Detailed Documentation
This is where Kaiko Design Interiors earns its reputation for meticulous documentation. Every detail is drawn and scheduled so that every builder, joiner, tradesperson and supplier has exactly what they need to deliver their contribution correctly — the first time.
We provide a comprehensive drawing set alongside detailed schedules of all suppliers, materials, fixtures and fittings. Good documentation is what separates a smooth build from an expensive one.
04
Tender and Construction
Throughout the tender and construction phases we respond to RFIs from builders, joiners and project consultants, review shop drawings and conduct regular site visits to maintain design quality on the ground.
Construction is also when the decoration and furnishing stage begins, so the finished home is complete on handover rather than furnished in stages afterwards.
Our Pricing
Design fees — fixed and transparent
Every project is priced on a fixed-fee basis, scoped specifically to your project before work begins. We do not charge by the hour. Your investment is agreed upfront and your project has clear financial boundaries. There are no unexpected invoices mid-renovation.
Our work is full-service interior design for substantial renovations and new builds. Design fees for a whole-home project are typically a five-figure commitment, staged across the phases below so you pay as each stage is delivered. We do not take on single room scopes.
The fee buys certainty as much as design. Because every kitchen, bathroom, joinery item, light fitting and finish is drawn and scheduled in full before tender, builders can price the work accurately instead of covering the unknowns with provisional sums. Documented properly, a provisional sum becomes a fixed price. Decisions made on paper cost less than decisions made on site.
To receive a fee proposal for your project, book a discovery call or send us an enquiry below.
Furniture and procurement, where the fee often pays for itself
One of the less discussed benefits of working with an established studio is trade access. Kaiko Design Interiors holds trade accounts with leading Australian and international suppliers and passes those savings directly to clients.
On furniture, lighting and soft furnishings procured through the studio, clients typically save between 20 and 45 percent against standard retail, against a procurement fee of 20 percent. For a fully furnished home, that saving often offsets a meaningful portion of the design fee.