Why most contractors won't give you a number over the phone
The honest reason: window pricing depends on too many variables to quote sight-unseen, and contractors don't want to commit to a number they'll have to walk back. The dishonest reason: some quote artificially low to get into your living room and then close on emotion. Both behaviors produce the same effect — homeowners can't find real numbers online, which is the entire reason you're reading this.
I'll give you the ranges I actually quote in Calgary in 2026, organized by tier and project size. These are not the "starting at" numbers you'll see in ads. They're the real bands where Calgary projects land once the visit is done.
Per-opening cost by REHAU line × scope band
This table is the one most homeowners want before they read anything else. It's the cost per installed opening at typical Calgary residential size (roughly 900 × 1500mm tilt-and-turn) for the three REHAU profile tiers, across three scope bands. Scope band describes the install complexity — straightforward retrofit at one end, full structural rework at the other.
| REHAU line | Standard retrofit | Stucco / brick wrap | Custom shape / structural |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brilliant Design (70mm) | $1,800-2,400 | $2,200-2,800 | $2,800-3,800 |
| Synego (80mm) | $2,300-3,000 | $2,800-3,500 | $3,400-4,600 |
| Artevo (86mm flagship) | $3,500-4,800 | $4,200-5,500 | $5,000-7,500 |
Prices are installed, including triple-pane standard glass, German GU hardware, RAL three-layer install method, and disposal of the existing window. Ranges reflect typical Calgary 2026 project quotes. Final number depends on opening size, glass build, hardware spec, and access. Subject to revision quarterly as REHAU lead times and material costs shift.
Full-house ranges: $15k to $50k, and where most projects land
A standard Calgary home — 22-30 openings including patio doors, mostly standard rectangular shapes, vinyl-clad exterior, garage-truck access — comes in at $25,000-40,000 in Brilliant Design with triple-pane standard glass. That's the median of what I quote in 2026. Most clients land there or within 10% of it.
The wider $15-50k range exists because Calgary's housing stock is genuinely varied:
- $60-80k — smaller homes (15-22 openings), production-built finishes, all rectangular shapes, ground-floor access on all elevations. Typical: a 1990s Calgary bungalow.
- $25-40k — typical Calgary full-house. The median. 22-30 openings, mix of standard and a few feature units, vinyl or simple stucco wrap, full garage access.
- $120-150k — larger homes with cathedral or great-room windows, brick or full-stucco facades, mountain-view picture units, mix of operable and fixed. Typical: a Calgary home close to the mountains.
- $40-50k — heritage-restricted inner-city Calgary homes, custom-shape upper transoms, acreage access challenges, Artevo flagship line, or any project where two or more of the above stack.
What drives cost up
Heritage and architectural overlay
Inner-city Calgary heritage districts — anywhere with a heritage designation or architectural overlay — adds 15-30% to the project. The reasons: municipal approval submissions, possibly required mock-ups, sometimes custom profile colours, and occasionally restricted operating styles that require non-standard hardware. The visit identifies whether your property is subject to these rules before any quote.
Stucco and brick exteriors
A stucco-wrapped window opening needs either a flange-cut return (clean line, requires specialty cuts in the stucco) or a stucco-specialist sub for the repair band after install. Brick openings often need brick-mason coordination for sill rebuild and lintel inspection. Add $400-800 per opening on stucco, $500-1,200 per opening on brick. We coordinate the trades so you have one quote rather than three.
Custom shapes and oversized units
Arched tops, trapezoids, half-circles, oversized picture units beyond 2.4m on any axis — all add cost. The two reasons: REHAU custom-shape fabrication runs 6-12 weeks longer than standard rectangular, and the units often require on-site rough-opening rework. An acreage cathedral wall near Calgary with five trapezoid uppers can add $15-25k to a project just for the shape complexity.
Acreage and access difficulty
If the truck can't get within 50m of every elevation — typical on an acreage near Calgary with a long driveway, or an inner-city Calgary home with limited side access — install crews add labour for materials movement. Acreage projects also often have less grid power for tools and need generator coordination. Adds 5-10% across the project.
Structural rework
If the rough opening needs a new header (because the existing one is undersized for code or sagging), or if the wall around it has rot or stucco failure that has to be repaired before the new window goes in, that's structural work quoted separately. We flag it on the visit, get a structural engineer's letter if required, and coordinate the rework so you don't have to chase a separate framer.
What drives cost down
Production-builder homes with standardised openings
If your home was built by a volume builder (Cardel, Jayman, Brookfield) in the last 25 years and the windows are all standard rectangular sizes with vinyl exterior wrap, the install per opening is the cleanest case. Lowest end of every band in the cost table above.
Ground-floor and walk-out access
If the bulk of your openings are at grade or one floor above grade, install is faster, materials handling is easier, and crew time per opening drops. A bungalow project is meaningfully cheaper to install per opening than a three-storey infill.
Staged retrofit vs. full-house in one go
Counter-intuitively, doing the whole house at once is the cheapest per opening, not the most expensive. The crew mobilises once, the supply order ships once, the permits (where required) file once. Staging across two or three phases adds roughly 8-12% to total project cost due to remobilization. But staging is still the right call if cash flow demands it — see the staged-math section below.
The staged-retrofit math
If a $90k full-house project is out of reach this year but $35k is doable, here's how staging works. Year one: target the worst-performing elevation (almost always west or north in Calgary — that's where the prevailing wind hits and where solar gain is lowest). Spec the entire house plan on day one with the visit so the year-two and year-three phases use the same profile, same glass, same hardware family. Document everything in writing so a future contractor or even a future you can complete the sequence consistently.
The cost premium for three-stage vs. all-at-once is typically 10-12%. The benefit is that you get the worst rooms fixed immediately while spreading the rest over 18-24 months. Most of my staged clients close the remaining phases within the planned window. A few stop after phase one because the rest of the house feels acceptable once the worst rooms are fixed. That's an honest outcome too.
Permit note
Like-for-like replacements at the existing rough opening in Calgary generally don't require a development permit. Structural changes do. Egress alterations do. Heritage overlay properties almost always do. The City of Calgary's Permit Services publishes the current fee schedule and submission requirements — typical residential development permit fees run $200-650 for window-scope work, separate from the project cost. We submit on your behalf when required and pass the permit fee through at cost.
What a real Calgary window replacement quote should include
If you're collecting quotes from three contractors, here's the itemisation list to compare them against. Anything missing is either rolled into a hidden line or is going to be a change order later.
- Opening count and per-opening pricing, not a single all-in total. You should be able to see what each window costs.
- Profile line and glass spec named explicitly. "Triple-pane European" isn't a spec. "REHAU Brilliant Design 70mm, triple-pane warm-edge spacer, argon fill, low-E² coating" is.
- Hardware spec. GU or Roto for European product. Cam count per sash. Restrictor hinges or key handles where specified.
- Install method. RAL three-layer for European product. The flashing membrane brand. The compression tape spec.
- Per-opening flashing detail. Each opening that needs stucco patching, brick rework, or trim rebuild should be itemised separately.
- Screen and child-safety hardware as a separate line, not bundled into the window cost.
- Disposal of existing windows and interior trim rework as separate lines.
- Rough-opening rework if required. Most Calgary openings are 5-10mm out of square; the visit should identify this and quote it.
- Permit handling. Who submits, who pays, what the expected fee is.
- Timeline. Quote-signed to install-start (typically 10-14 weeks on REHAU). On-site duration (typically 3-6 working days for a 25-window home).
- Payment schedule. Deposit percentage, milestone payments, completion holdback. Anything front-loading 50%+ before any window is on site is a red flag.
Honest call
If your stay-horizon is under 3 years, do not pay for Synego or Artevo. Brilliant Design at the lower scope band is the right financial answer. If your stay-horizon is under 2 years and you're selling, skip European entirely — replace only what's visibly failing, in mid-tier PVC, and put the difference into staging the house for sale.
How the measurement visit works
The visit is on-site, free, and there's no quote handed over at the kitchen table. I walk the house, measure every opening, look at the install behind the trim where I can, check the rough-opening squareness on a sample of openings, identify any heritage or permit considerations, and document the existing condition. Three to five days later you get a written quote by email itemised against the list above. You owe nothing if you don't move forward, and there's no follow-up sales pressure.
The reason this works: by the time the quote arrives in your inbox, you've had time to think without anyone in your kitchen. That's better for you and better for me. The clients who say yes are the ones who actually want the project.