Cost guide · updated August 2026
Café and coffee-shop fit-out costs in the GTA
Cafés are the most approachable food-service build in the GTA — no full kitchen, lighter ventilation, smaller units — and in 2025–2026 most land between $120 and $275 per square foot of construction. The catch is that a café budget is decided by three early questions: will you bake or cook on site, what does the espresso equipment need behind the wall, and how much millwork carries the brand.
The figures below are hard construction cost. Equipment, furniture, signage and fees are listed separately, because mixing them is how café budgets go wrong.
The ranges
2026 construction cost by concept
| Concept | Construction / sq ft | Construction weeks | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Café / coffee shop | $120 – $275 | 6 – 10 | Espresso-led, no on-site cooking |
| Bakery / dessert shop | $150 – $300 | 6 – 10 | On-site baking usually adds a Type I hood |
| Bubble tea shop | $100 – $250 | 5 – 8 | Counter and equipment led, minimal cooking |
Hard construction cost, CAD, 2025–2026 GTA benchmarks. ±30% until a site review produces a written scope. Permit timing and approvals remain subject to municipal review.
What moves the number
Five drivers decide where you land in the range.
- 01
The hood decision
Espresso and warming equipment generally avoid a commercial hood; baking or frying on site generally triggers one, with make-up air and fire suppression — a $40,000–$100,000 swing plus roof work. Settle the menu question in design, not during construction.
- 02
Millwork
The counter, back bar and shelving are the brand. Custom millwork in a café is commonly $30,000–$90,000 and four to eight weeks of fabrication lead time — order early or it, not construction, sets your opening date.
- 03
Services to the counter
Filtered water, drainage, and dedicated circuits for the espresso machine and grinders. In slab-on-grade units, getting drains to an island counter means trenching — one more reason counter position is a budget decision.
- 04
Unit condition
Second-generation food space saves real money (roughly a 20% factor in our estimating); a cold shell in a new build adds HVAC, services and often washrooms.
- 05
Seating and washrooms
Seat count drives occupant load, which can drive washroom requirements under the OBC. Crossing that threshold adds plumbing cost that a slightly smaller seating plan avoids.
Worked example
Worked example — 1,200 sq ft café, second-generation space
- Effective construction rate (second-gen factor applied)
- $96 – $220 / sq ft
- Construction range
- $115,000 – $264,000
- Mid-point for planning
- ≈ $190,000
- Typical construction duration
- 6 – 10 weeks
- Lease to opening, with permits and millwork lead times
- 10 – 14 weeks
Espresso equipment (commonly $25,000–$60,000 with grinders and filtration) sits outside these figures — it is yours through your supplier, and we coordinate the rough-ins to its specifications.
Kept honest
What these figures exclude.
Mixing construction cost with everything else is how budgets go wrong. Carry these as their own lines:
- Espresso machine, grinders, brewers and filtration (typically $25,000–$60,000, supplier-provided)
- Design, engineering and permit fees (typically 8–15% of construction on these project sizes)
- Municipal permit and development charges
- Furniture, shelving stock, décor and small wares
- Signage fabrication and installation
- Security, IT, point-of-sale and audio systems
- HST
- Contingency — we recommend carrying 10–15% on second-generation space and 15–20% on cold shell
Your numbers
Run the range for your project.
Same benchmark table as this guide — by project type, size, unit condition and location. A site review refines it to a written scope and price.
Questions
Asked on nearly every project.
- Can I open a café for under $100,000?
- In a small second-generation unit with modest millwork and no cooking, construction near the bottom of the range is achievable — a 600–800 sq ft unit at $96–$150 per sq ft lands under $120,000. Add equipment, signage, fees and contingency before deciding the business plan works.
- What makes a café go over budget?
- Three patterns: a menu change mid-design that adds a hood; discovering the electrical service cannot carry the equipment; and millwork revisions after fabrication starts. All three are prevented in the design phase, which is why we do not price from a floor plan alone.
- How much does a drive-thru or kiosk format change things?
- Kiosks and counters inside existing buildings run lighter than the ranges here; drive-thru adds site work, canopies and municipal approvals that put it into a different category. Both are quoted from a site review rather than by the square foot.
- Do you handle the health-unit approval?
- We design to food-premise requirements — hand sinks, mop sink, finishes, refrigeration — submit the layout where the health unit reviews plans, and build to pass the pre-opening inspection.
More guides: all cost guides.
Ready for a real number?