36 Top Rated Builders in Oxfordshire for 2026

The list above ranks 36 builders across Oxfordshire by their Google reputation. Between them they hold 825 Google reviews with an average rating of 4.75 out of 5, and 24 of them are rated 4.8 or higher.

When many builders score highly, the star rating alone will not separate them. The better questions are how many customers that rating rests on, whether the builder regularly takes on the kind of project you have in mind, from a small repair to an extension or loft conversion, and whether they will put the price, the timings and the payment terms in writing. A 4.9 from 200 customers tells you far more than a 5.0 from five.

A good way to use this page is to shortlist three builders near you, ask each for references from recent jobs, and get a written quote from all three for the same work. The sections below explain what to look for at each step.

Based on Google reviews, the highest ranked builders in Oxfordshire are Amazing Lofts (Storage Solutions) Ltd (4.8 from 312 reviews), Knights Builders Oxford (5.0 from 36 reviews) and Farrelly limited (5.0 from 32 reviews).

The 36 builders listed here hold 825 Google reviews between them, with an average rating of 4.75 out of 5. 1 of them has 50 or more reviews, which gives a rating far more weight than a handful of five star reviews.

The services listed most often by builders in Oxfordshire are house extensions (24 businesses), renovations and refurbishments (21 businesses), new builds (21 businesses) and loft conversions (10 businesses). Each profile shows that business's main services, taken from its own website.

Every builder on this page is ranked by one score built only from their public Google reviews. The score starts from the average star rating and weights it by how many reviews it rests on, so a business with a handful of five star reviews does not jump ahead of one that has kept a high rating over hundreds of jobs. A small extra boost goes to businesses with more reviews overall.

Ratings and review counts are refreshed from Google across the whole site. Nobody can pay to move up the ranked list. Businesses marked as a Featured Partner appear in a separate, clearly labelled box above the list, and the ranked order below it is not changed.

Building work is a big commitment, so it pays to check a builder properly before you agree to anything. Before you sign, check these points:

• References. Ask for two or three recent references and contact those customers yourself, because written references are not always genuine. If you can, go and see a finished job.
• Trade body membership. If a builder says they belong to a scheme or trade association, check it with that body. The Federation of Master Builders says its members pass a vetting process and an independent inspection of their work before joining, and TrustMark is the only UK Government Endorsed Quality Scheme for work in and around the home.
• Written quotes. Get written quotes from at least three builders for the same work. A quote is a fixed price, while an estimate is only a rough guess. A good quote gives a fixed total, a breakdown of the work and materials, how long the price is valid, whether VAT is included and when the price can go up.
• A written contract. It should cover the start and finish dates, materials, clearing up and the payment schedule. If you agree a day rate, get written confirmation of how many days the work will take and how many hours make up a working day.
• Insurance. Check the builder has public liability insurance, employers' liability insurance if they have staff, and contractors' all risk cover. Tell your own buildings insurer before work starts, and if you are a leaseholder, check whether your lease needs permission for the work.
• Payment. Do not pay everything up front. Pay in stages, avoid a deposit where you can and never agree to more than 25%, and pay by card or bank transfer rather than cash.

Be wary of anyone who will not give references, only gives a mobile number, or quotes far lower than everyone else. Our guide to finding a good local builder covers each check in more detail.

Planning permission and building regulations approval are two different things, and a project in Oxfordshire might need both. Planning decides whether the work can go ahead at all. The Building Regulations 2010 set the standards the work has to meet, and they apply to extensions and new buildings as well as many alterations, such as replacing windows and doors, replacing roof coverings and installing a bathroom that involves new plumbing.

Many smaller extensions can be built without a planning application under permitted development rights. According to the Planning Portal, a single storey rear extension can usually reach up to 4 metres beyond the original rear wall of a detached house, or 3 metres for other houses, and be no more than 4 metres high. Side extensions must be single storey and no wider than half the original house, and extensions cannot cover more than half the land around the original house. These rights do not apply to flats or maisonettes and are tighter in conservation areas, National Parks and other designated land. Most planning applications are decided within 8 weeks, and once permission is granted, work must normally begin within three years unless the permission says otherwise.

Without building regulations approval you will not have the certificates of compliance you may need when you sell, and the council could make you pay to fix faulty work. Agree in the contract who will arrange building control sign off.

If the work is on or at the boundary with a neighbour, on a shared party wall (for example cutting into it or removing a chimney breast from it), or involves digging below and near their foundations, you must tell your neighbour under the party wall rules. Notice has to be given between 2 months and a year before work starts. Your neighbour should reply in writing within 14 days, no reply does not count as agreement, and if you cannot agree, surveyors draw up a party wall award.

Our guides to planning permission for extensions and lofts and building regulations for home improvements go into more detail.

Prices depend on the size of the job, so a written quote is the only reliable figure. As a rough guide, national cost guides put a general builder at about £150 to £250 a day and a labourer at about £100 to £150 a day, with a bricklayer at £180 to £280. A day rate usually covers labour only, so materials, skips, scaffolding and waste removal are normally extra unless agreed.

For bigger projects, one national guide puts a single storey extension of 20 to 30 m² at about £44,000 to £60,000, and another puts a single garage conversion at about £8,000 to £18,000. A fixed price quote is the safest option for homeowners, because a day rate leaves you exposed if the work drags on.

Prices rise over time, so compare written quotes from two or three builders. Our guides to builder day rates and extension costs per square metre go into more detail.

Time on site is only part of the picture, because design and any approvals usually come first. National cost guides give these typical timescales:

• Side return extension. About 9 to 12 weeks.
• Kitchen extension. About 10 to 14 weeks.
• Double storey extension. About 16 to 18 weeks.
• Loft conversion. About 8 to 12 weeks on site, often after 3 to 6 months of design and approvals.
• Single garage conversion. About 3 to 6 weeks on site.

On a renovation the usual order is structural repairs first, then making the building weathertight, then first fix carpentry, plumbing and electrics, plastering, second fix and finally decorating. Living in the house while the work goes on usually makes it take longer, and hidden problems are a common cause of delay, so a contingency of 10% to 20% of the budget is realistic. Our guide to planning a house renovation step by step explains each stage.