What is the approximate difference in price range for remodelers?

The question is kind of hard to answer straight, but here are some thoughts. First off, there is no set price for remodeling, so the range can be that one company costs 10 times more than another. But is that cheap company worth it? Are they one of the "9 out of 10 contractors will go out of business in the first 5 years?" And, yeah, they usually go out of business because they don't know how to charge enough for their work. I'm speaking from the perspective of one of those other 1/10 Contractors that is still in business after 10 years.

Second, a 10k budget for a kitchen remodel sounds like you have just enough to maybe do your countertops and one or two appliances. Let's run through an extremely ballpark budget:

Cheap New Cabinets, IKEA, 10-15 feet of base and wall, installed: $3-7000.

Cheap tile countertop, cheap sink, cheap faucet:$3-5000.

Cheap Dishwasher, Disposal, Fridge, Freestanding Range, Vent Hood: $1800-2500.

VInyl Floor (including tear-out/prep): $500-1500.

Code required electrical upgrades, but no new lighting: $500-2500.

So, why the big price ranges? Well, I don't know the sizes of your space, the quality or finish you won't settle for less than, the local labor rates in your area, etc. Anyhow, my point is just that, you will want to do some planning to find ways to expand your budget if necessary, and you will want to talk to some small, maybe 1 man remodelers that have been in business in your area for at least a few years to start getting ballpark estimates.

A design-build company will add design fees, of course, and the company with lots of crews and flashy advertising will have more overhead, and probably won't even come look at your job when they hear your budget. But, maybe one of these new "3-day kitchen" companies can come out and do something for cheap that makes you feel like you got enough done in your kitchen to make it feel new.