How long does a new staircase take?
Written by Scott Jones, The Stair Guys, independent staircase measuring and sourcing specialists·Last updated
"How long will it take" is a fair question and a badly answered one, because the honest answer has more than one stage, and the lead time a maker quotes is only part of it. Here is the real timeline, and where the time actually goes.
The stages
- Getting to site to survey. We usually get out to measure within about a week of you getting in touch. Nothing is ordered off a form; the real space is measured first.
- Drawings and sign-off. After the survey the staircase is drawn up and signed off with the manufacturer. This is where a proper measuring and sourcing service earns its place: The Stair Guys take responsibility for the drawings and sign them off with the maker, so you are not left approving technical drawings yourself or carrying the risk if something is wrong. It is handled before payment and before the lead time starts.
- Making and delivering. This is the lead time makers quote, and it runs from payment: about 2 to 3 weeks for a standard sourced staircase, and around 4 to 6 weeks for a more complex flight or one with bespoke components. That is the manufacturer's build queue plus delivery.
- Fitting. Then it is fitted on site, once it has arrived.
The two things that catch people out
The lead time is from payment, not from your first call. The 2 to 3 week lead time is the making, and it runs from payment. The survey and getting the drawings sorted and signed off come before it, so plan from first contact rather than from the headline number: a standard staircase is a few weeks door to door, a bespoke one longer. The lead time itself stays a clean 2 to 3 weeks; it is just not the whole clock.
Delivery dates quoted in days are optimistic. A "delivery in 7 to 10 days" figure is usually working days, not calendar days, and in practice it is not always stuck to. So do not pin a hard deadline, a house move, a wedding, a rental going live, on an optimistic delivery date. Build in slack, and treat the maker's fastest quote as the best case, not the promise.
What stretches it
Complexity is the main one. A straight, standard flight is at the quick end; a turned, curved or genuinely bespoke stair, or one with special components, moves toward the 4 to 6 week mark and beyond, because it takes more to make. Busy periods lengthen the maker's queue too. If your timescale is tight, the honest thing is to say so at the survey, so the design is kept to what can be delivered in time rather than promised and missed. For what "bespoke" really means for the timeline, see bespoke or made to order, and on getting it signed off see Building Control approval.
Frequently asked
How long does it take to get a new staircase?+
A survey usually happens within about a week of getting in touch. A standard sourced staircase then runs on a 2 to 3 week lead time from payment, and a more complex or bespoke flight around 4 to 6 weeks. That lead time is from payment, so the survey, the drawings and the sign-off beforehand add to it, and the realistic total from first contact is longer than the headline lead time.
How long is the lead time on a bespoke staircase?+
Around 4 to 6 weeks from payment for a more complex flight or one with bespoke components, against 2 to 3 weeks for a standard sourced staircase. The more the stair has to be made rather than sourced, the longer it takes, and a busy period stretches the maker's queue further.
Is the quoted delivery time for a staircase reliable?+
Treat it as a best case, not a promise. Delivery times quoted in days are usually working days rather than calendar days, and in practice they are not always met. So do not hang a hard deadline such as a house move or a wedding on an optimistic delivery date; build in slack and confirm the timescale at the survey.
Ready when you are.
Free and no obligation. The Stair Guys survey the real space, never off a plan.