Métrica Architects

Construction Cost Estimator
for Custom Homes

A two-step planning tool. Step 1 sizes your home from the rooms you select. Step 2 prices it across the three components of construction cost. Combined, you get a planning-level budget before any drawings are produced.

Step 1 · Size

Size Your Home.

Select the rooms you need. Adjust dimensions if your version is bigger or smaller. The total adds 20% on top of the room subtotal for circulation, and includes the garage at full square footage.

Room W ft L ft Area SF
Total Conditioned Area
0
Total Garage & Mech
+ 0
Total Area
0 SF
Rounded to nearest 10 SF
Step 2 · Budget

Estimate the Construction Cost.

Pick a level of design ambition. We'll combine it with your square footage from Step 1 to give you a planning-level budget for construction.

Construction Cost = Size × Design Ambition

Construction Cost
Size
SF
2,000 SF 6,000 SF 10,000 SF

Synced from Step 1 · or override here

Design Ambition
$ / SF
$600 / SFRestrained $800 / SFRecommended $1,200 / SFAmbitious
A · Net Construction$0
B · GC Fee · 16% of A$0
C · Sales Tax · 10.1% of A+B$0
Estimated Construction Cost$0
About this tool

Default room sizes are typical for modern custom homes in the Seattle–Bellevue area. Circulation (hallways, landings, transitions between rooms) runs about 20% on top of the room subtotal. The garage is included at full square footage.

Construction cost is the full amount you'll pay your contractor — net build, GC fee, and Washington sales tax. The GC fee typically runs 12–20% of net construction; we use 16% as a market midpoint. Sales tax in the Eastside area runs 10.0–10.5%; we use 10.1%. Design fees and permits are additional, typically 12–15% on top.

The number you land on is a planning-level estimate. Real costs vary with site conditions, design ambition, and market. Use this as a starting point for the conversation with your architect or builder, not as a bid.

Want the full picture, including design fees, the workplan, and how we work? We put together a Residential Guide that walks you through the whole process from first conversation to handing over the keys.

Get the Residential Guide →

We wrote a five-part walk-through of what custom homes cost — from the components, to why "cost per square foot" can be misleading, to setting a real budget before you start designing.

Start with Part 1 →