I think the biggest value of refactoring is reducing code size, which is directly correlated with bug count / severity (there are tons of studies here). Ultimat

I think the biggest value of refactoring is reducing code size, which is directly correlated with bug count / severity (there are tons of studies here). Ultimately you're providing a huge value to your clients. If your code stinks on the inside, it's gonna take a huge effort to make it smell nice on the outside. If you stop repeating yourself, you may make less mistakes because there are simply less chances of it. Good abstractions help. They also speed up your development speed, accelerating you towards your goal instead of coasting.