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How much does carpet installation cost?

Carpet installation costs $3 to $12 per square foot in 2026. What changes your price is below.

That is carpet, pad and labor together. Most people pay about $1,200 to $1,400 to carpet a 16 by 16 foot room. The cost to install carpeting in a small room can be as low as $500. A large area in premium carpet can reach $4,000 and up.

Carpet installation costs $3 to $12 per square foot in 2026

Estimate your carpet install cost

Pick what you need and add your ZIP. The price updates as you go. Got a price already? Check it in the last step.

1Which one do you need?
2Old flooring
3What is your ZIP?
Local prices not added yet.
4Got a price?
Optional. We check it.

Is this price fair?

A fair price is $1,200 to $1,400.

Type a price above to check it.

Low$1,300High
Your estimateUS average
$1,200to$1,400

Middle of the range: $1,300

$0$950$1,900
Normal range Middle

What you are paying for

16 by 16 ft roomUS range for this job.$1,200 to $1,400
No removal neededOld flooring.Base price
US averageLocal prices not added yet.US price
Middle of rangeHalfway between low and high.$1,300
How we calculate this

    Prices are for the United States in 2026 from published cost guides, checked September 2026. This is an estimate, not a quote.

    Middle $1,300$1,200 to $1,400

    Cost by room size

    Per square foot, installed$3 to $12.
    16 by 16 foot room, 256 square feetAbout $1,200 to $1,400 in Inch Calculator's data.
    300 square foot roomAbout $1,440 to $2,524 in Inch Calculator's estimator, or $4.80 to $8.41 per square foot.
    MinimumAbout $500 for a small room.
    Maximum shownAbout $4,000 in Inch Calculator's typical range.

    What pushes a quote up

    Carpet fiberNylon, polyester, olefin and wool cost very different amounts.
    PadA thicker, denser pad costs more and makes cheap carpet feel better.
    RemovalPulling up old carpet and pad adds labor and disposal.
    StairsStairs are priced per step and take longer.
    FurnitureSome installers charge to move furniture.

    Carpet install cost by region

    Lower cost states$950 to $2,000. Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia and most rural areas.
    Average cost states$1,200 to $2,524. Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and most mid size cities.
    Higher cost states$1,550 to $3,300. California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Washington, plus big metros such as Chicago, Denver and Washington DC.

    These rows are our estimate. We took the typical national range and adjusted it for local labor costs, which run about 20 percent lower in the cheapest states and about 30 percent higher in the dearest ones. Retailer install programs set many local prices, so the gap between states is smaller than for most jobs.

    Free installation is not free

    Big box stores often advertise free or low cost carpet installation with a minimum purchase. The labor is real, so the cost sits somewhere else: in the carpet price, the pad, or the extras. Stairs, furniture moving, removal of old carpet, disposal and transition strips are the usual add ons.

    The fair test is the total. Ask for the price per square foot of carpet, pad and install together, plus every extra, and compare that to a local flooring store's all in quote.

    Measure it yourself first

    Carpet comes in 12 foot wide rolls, so there is always some waste. A quote with far more square feet than your rooms add up to may include a lot of waste, or may be padded. Measure length times width for each room and ask the installer to explain the difference.

    Why this costs more in 2026

    Most carpet is nylon or polyester, both made from petroleum, and rolls are heavy to ship.

    Fuel went up fast this year. AAA diesel topped $6 a gallon on September 11, 2026 (CBS 8), and building material prices rose 4.8 percent in a year (Roofing Contractor). Get the quote date in writing.

    How to judge the quote in your hand

    Ways to pay less