^Free design consultations feel like the safe way to fill a calendar. The cost shows up later, in designer hours spent drawing layouts for people who were never going to buy. A paid consultation asks for a small commitment up front, and someone willing to pay for design time is telling you the project is real.

Here's the case for charging, why $297 is a sensible number, and how to frame the fee so it doesn't scare good leads off.

Charging for Design Is Normal

Plenty of kitchen designers already charge for design. When Houzz asked kitchen designers how they charge in 2019, they mentioned $350 to $500 for an initial conceptual meeting and $2,500 to $3,500 as typical for a full design process. Houzz also noted that "many designers will apply the fee as a credit toward product purchases."

Cabinet showrooms do the same. Gate City Kitchens in Greensboro, North Carolina, says its design retainer "is credited toward your cabinetry purchase." KBF Design Gallery in Maitland, Florida, credits its retainer in full toward the project for same-footprint remodels and makes it refundable up until the measure visit.

Why a Fee Changes Behaviour

There's research on why paying for something makes people use it. In a 1985 field study, psychologists Hal Arkes and Catherine Blumer found that customers who paid more for a theatre season subscription attended more plays over the next six months (Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes). It's known as the sunk cost effect: once people have paid, they want their money's worth.

The study wasn't about kitchens. But a homeowner who's paid $297 has a reason to show up, bring their measurements and take the meeting seriously.

Why $297

• It stays under $300. Researchers Manoj Thomas and Vicki Morwitz showed that a price ending in 9 feels smaller than one a cent higher when the leftmost digit changes, like $2.99 versus $3.00 (Journal of Consumer Research, 2005). The effect comes from that left digit, and $297 starts with a 2. We haven't found research showing a 7 ending beats a 9 ending, so $299 would do the same job.
• It sits below what designers quoted Houzz. It's under the $350 to $500 range for an initial meeting.
• It's small next to the project. The 2026 U.S. Houzz Kitchen Trends Study puts the median major kitchen remodel at $55,000 (USD). $297 is about half of one percent of that.