Is My Piano Worth Restoring? Rebuild Costs vs. Value, Brand by Brand
Restoration can turn an inherited grand into a $30,000 instrument — or sink $8,000 into a piano worth $900. The decision comes down to brand, what's actually broken, and today's used values.
By Joey Bouza, Founder, US Piano Connection · Updated August 29, 2026
Every technician has the same conversation weekly: a family has an old piano, it needs work, and they want to know whether to fix it. The honest answer starts with two numbers — what the repair costs, and what the piano is worth afterward. This guide gives you typical shop figures for the first and points you to the live market for the second.
What restoration work typically costs
| Work | Typical cost | When it's needed |
|---|---|---|
| Tuning (plus pitch raise if neglected) | $100 – $350 | Every piano, once or twice a year |
| Action regulation | $300 – $1,500 | Uneven touch, slow repetition, keys that don't return |
| Voicing (hammer reshaping/needling) | $200 – $600 | Harsh or dull tone; usually done with regulation |
| New hammers and shanks | $1,000 – $3,500 | Deeply grooved, hard, or broken hammers |
| Restringing with new tuning pins | $2,000 – $6,000 | Rusted or dead strings, loose pins in a sound pinblock |
| Pinblock replacement | $2,500 – $5,000 (grands) | Pins won't hold tune; almost never worth it on uprights |
| Soundboard repair or replacement | $1,500 – $8,000+ | Buzzing cracks, separated ribs, lost crown |
| Case refinishing | $2,500 – $8,000 | Cosmetic; adds resale appeal but rarely recovers its cost |
| Full rebuild (grand) | $12,000 – $35,000+ | Everything above; reserved for Tier 1 and select Tier 2 instruments |
The decision rule
Restore when the finished piano is worth clearly more than the repair plus what you could sell it for as-is — or when its value to you isn't financial and you can afford the work. Don't restore when the repair exceeds the value of a comparable, already-working piano on the market. The second case covers most uprights built after 1950 and nearly every spinet.
Usually worth restoring
- Steinway, Mason & Hamlin, Bösendorfer, Bechstein, Blüthner, Baldwin (pre-1970 grands) — rebuilt examples sell for a large fraction of a new instrument's price.
- Any Tier 2 grand (Yamaha C-series, Kawai RX/GX, Schimmel) needing only regulation, voicing, or hammers.
- Instruments with family history where the owner values keeping them and the structure (pinblock, soundboard, plate) is sound.
Usually not worth restoring
- Spinets and consoles of any brand needing more than a tuning and minor regulation — a working replacement costs less.
- Uprights with a failed pinblock (won't hold tune). Replacement isn't practical; the piano has reached the end of its life.
- Mid-market production pianos needing restringing or a soundboard — the repair is more than a better used piano.
- Player pianos (pneumatic) unless the buyer specifically wants a restored player; the mechanism is a separate, expensive specialty.
Check the after-repair value before you decide
The live tables below and on our value guide show what pianos of each brand and type are asking today. Compare the top of your brand's range (a restored example) against the bottom (as-is) — the gap is the most a restoration can be worth in dollars.
| Brand | Median asking | Lowest | Highest | Listings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yamaha | $8,250 | $400 | $89,995 | 408 |
| Steinway & Sons | $58,500 | $1,500 | $250,000 | 384 |
| Kawai | $8,492 | $648 | $185,000 | 196 |
| Baldwin | $9,992 | $10 | $60,775 | 126 |
| Roland | $2,848 | $400 | $18,650 | 70 |
| Schimmel | $34,780 | $6,500 | $172,363 | 51 |
| Samick | $4,435 | $999 | $11,995 | 48 |
| Young Chang | $4,785 | $1,500 | $19,996 | 43 |
| Mason & Hamlin | $22,990 | $1,495 | $68,500 | 39 |
| Boston | $14,200 | $4,795 | $49,200 | 37 |
| Wurlitzer | $2,488 | $100 | $10,195 | 32 |
| Kohler & Campbell | $4,990 | $499 | $10,195 | 30 |
| Pearl River | $6,647 | $1,500 | $21,437 | 30 |
| Casio | $2,999 | $1,030 | $7,500 | 29 |
| Essex | $8,395 | $3,899 | $19,990 | 25 |
If you decide not to restore
List it honestly. Buyers on this site include rebuilders and technicians who look for exactly these instruments — a Steinway needing a rebuild, or an Acrosonic with a good pinblock and tired hammers — and will pay a fair as-is price without you spending anything. Photos of the plate, serial number, hammers and soundboard do more for an as-is listing than a paragraph of description.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does it cost to rebuild a piano?
- Typically $12,000 to $35,000 or more for a full grand rebuild (new pinblock, strings, hammers, action parts, soundboard work, refinishing). Partial work — hammers, restringing, regulation — runs from a few hundred to several thousand dollars.
- Is it worth restoring an old upright piano?
- Rarely, unless it's a premium make or has personal value. A serviceable used upright usually costs less than restringing an old one.
- Is an old Steinway worth restoring?
- Almost always, if the plate and case are sound. Rebuilt Steinway grands sell for a substantial share of new-Steinway prices; check the live Steinway range on this site.
- How do I know if the pinblock is bad?
- The piano won't hold a tuning; a technician can measure pin torque. On uprights a failed pinblock ends the discussion; on grands it's replaceable at a cost.
- Does refinishing increase a piano's value?
- It increases appeal and sale speed more than price. Refinishing rarely recovers its full cost unless the instrument underneath is a Tier 1 grand.
- Can I sell a piano that needs work?
- Yes. List it as-is with clear photos of the plate, hammers and soundboard; rebuilders and technicians search for these.
- What's the difference between reconditioning and rebuilding?
- Reconditioning keeps the original major parts and cleans, adjusts, and replaces small components. Rebuilding replaces the strings, pins, hammers and often the pinblock and soundboard — effectively a new piano inside the old case.
- Who should do the work?
- A Registered Piano Technician (RPT) for regulation, voicing and hammers; a dedicated rebuilding shop for pinblocks, soundboards and full rebuilds. Ask for references and instruments you can play.
About the author
Joey Bouza — Founder, US Piano Connection
Working musician and founder of Prospects International, the marketing firm behind appointment-based piano sale events across the country.
Prices and counts in our guides come from live listings on this site and are recalculated hourly. Where we quote industry-typical figures (mover quotes, tuning fees, rebuild costs) we say so, and we never publish a number we haven't measured or sourced.