House Painting Cost Calculator 2026 — Interior & Exterior
House painting costs and calculator. Fixr puts interior walls, ceilings and trim at $3–$4 per sq ft of floor and exteriors at $2.84–$5.28 per sq ft of wall.
House Painting Cost Calculator
What are you painting?
Floor area of the rooms being painted, not wall area. 50–10,000.
Used to price patching and repairs per room. 1–40.
Adjusts the labor share by local construction wages (BLS, May 2025).
homeprojectestimator.com · · https://homeprojectestimator.com/calculators/painting-cost/
Estimated interior painting cost
$7,000
Typical range $6,000 – $8,000
Cost per sq ft of floor
$3.50
Where the money goes
- Labor: walls, ceilings and trim, prep, cleanup 85% of $3–$4 per sq ft of floor, 2,000 sq ft$5,100 – $6,800
- Paint, primer and supplies (2 coats) About 15% of a two-coat job; scales with the number of coats$900 – $1,200
National average. Pick your state and metro area to adjust the labor share (about 85% of this job) to local wages. Get three written quotes before you commit to a budget.
Professional painting with mid-grade paint, prices from Fixr (January 2025). Labor for a third coat is not priced separately by the sources, so the 3-coat option adds paint only. Lead-safe work on pre-1978 paint is extra.
This calculator estimates a professional paint job, inside or outside, from the measurements you can take with a tape measure. It returns a typical cost, a low-to-high range and a breakdown into labor, paint and prep. Below it are the price tables it is built on, a worked whole-house example, paint and primer choices, and the ways to cut the bill.
In short: Fixr's 2025 prices put interior painting at $1.50–$3.50 per sq ft of floor area for walls only and $3–$4 for walls, ceilings and trim, or $6,000–$8,000 for every interior surface of a 2,000 sq ft home. Exterior painting runs $2.84–$5.28 per sq ft of wall, or $6,242–$11,617 for 2,200 sq ft of wall. Prep, height and local wages decide where in those ranges a quote lands.
How to use this calculator
Interior or exterior. Pick one at the top. To price both, run it twice and add the results.
Interior jobs
- Measure the job by floor area or by rooms. Fixr prices interior painting per square foot of floor area, not wall area, so a 12 × 12 ft bedroom counts as 144 sq ft whatever its wall height. Use the area option for a whole floor or house (the living area on a listing or appraisal is close enough). Use the rooms option to count rooms and pick a typical room size: 10 × 10, 12 × 12, 14 × 14 or 20 × 15 ft.
- Number of rooms. In rooms mode it sets the area. In area mode it is used only to price patching and repairs, which painters charge per room.
- Surfaces. Walls only or walls, ceilings and trim.
- Surface condition. Good means nail holes and hairline cracks, which are included in the base price. Fair adds sanding and patching per room. Poor adds drywall repairs on top.
Exterior jobs
- Exterior wall area. Measure the house perimeter and multiply by the wall height to the eaves. Add the triangles of any gable ends (width × height ÷ 2) and subtract garage doors and other large openings. A 40 × 30 ft one-story house with 9 ft walls has 140 × 9 = 1,260 sq ft before gables, which prices at about $3,600–$6,650.
- Trim and fascia. Linear feet of fascia boards, corner boards and window and door casings painted in a separate color. Enter 0 if the trim is the body color.
- Surface condition. Poor means peeling paint, bare wood or repairs before painting.
Both
- Coats. Two coats is the standard the sources price. One coat suits a same-color refresh; three coats a big color change.
- Your state adjusts the labor share to local wages.
Painting cost in 2026
Interior, by room size
| Interior job | Walls only | Walls, ceiling and trim |
|---|---|---|
| Per sq ft of floor area | $1.50–$3.50 | $3–$4 |
| 10 × 10 ft room (100 sq ft) | $150–$350 | $300–$400 |
| 12 × 12 ft room (144 sq ft) | $215–$505 | $430–$575 |
| 14 × 14 ft room (200 sq ft) | $300–$700 | $600–$800 |
| 20 × 15 ft room (300 sq ft) | $450–$1,050 | $900–$1,200 |
| 20 × 20 ft room (400 sq ft) | $600–$1,400 | $1,200–$1,600 |
Source: Fixr, Cost to Paint a Room, updated January 31, 2025.
Interior, by room type
| Room (Fixr's size range) | Price |
|---|---|
| Bathroom (20–100 sq ft) | $60–$400 |
| Bedroom (200–310 sq ft) | $600–$1,240 |
| Kitchen (200–360 sq ft) | $600–$1,320 |
| Living room (300–400 sq ft) | $900–$1,600 |
| Basement (850–1,500 sq ft) | $2,550–$6,000 |
Source: Fixr, Cost to Paint a Room, updated January 31, 2025. Fixr's national average for one room is $1,200, with most jobs between $990 and $1,320.
Whole interior, by floor area
| Floor area | Walls only | Walls, ceilings and trim |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 sq ft | $1,500–$3,500 | $3,000–$4,000 |
| 1,500 sq ft | $2,250–$5,250 | $4,500–$6,000 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $3,000–$7,000 | $6,000–$8,000 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $3,750–$8,750 | $7,500–$10,000 |
| 3,000 sq ft | $4,500–$10,500 | $9,000–$12,000 |
Floor area × Fixr's $1.50–$3.50 and $3–$4 per sq ft (Cost to Paint a Room, January 31, 2025).
Exterior, by wall area
| Exterior wall surface | Installed price |
|---|---|
| 1,000 sq ft | $2,837–$5,281 |
| 1,500 sq ft | $4,256–$7,921 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $5,675–$10,561 |
| 2,200 sq ft | $6,242–$11,617 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $7,093–$13,202 |
| 3,000 sq ft | $8,512–$15,842 |
Source: Fixr, Exterior Painting Cost, updated January 31, 2025 ($2.84–$5.28 per sq ft of wall).
Exterior, by siding
| Siding | Per sq ft of wall |
|---|---|
| Wood, vinyl or fiber cement | $3.10–$5.80 |
| Brick | $2.90–$5.40 |
| Stucco | $2.70–$5.05 |
| Metal | $2.30–$4.30 |
| All exteriors (the calculator's rate) | $2.84–$5.28 |
Source: Fixr, Exterior Painting Cost, updated January 31, 2025.
The calculator uses the all-exterior rate. For wood, vinyl or fiber cement siding, Fixr's prices run about 10% higher, so expect a quote toward the top of the calculator's range.
Extras
| Extra | Price |
|---|---|
| Sanding and patching | $50–$115 per room |
| Wall repairs | $75–$350 per room |
| Wallpaper removal | $0.75–$4 per sq ft |
| Paint removal | $4–$9 per sq ft |
| Interior doors, windows | $35–$50 each |
| Kitchen cabinets (10 × 10 ft kitchen) | $1,300–$2,500 |
| Exterior trim | $2.15–$3.99 per linear ft |
| Interior latex paint | $15–$50 per gallon |
Sources: Fixr, Cost to Paint a Room, Exterior Painting Cost and Cost to Hire a Painter (cabinets), all updated January 31, 2025.
With the default inputs (2,000 sq ft of floor, walls, ceilings and trim, two coats, good condition) the calculator returns $6,000 to $8,000, typical $7,000, or $3.50 per square foot. A default exterior job, 2,200 sq ft of wall with no separate trim, returns $6,250 to $11,600, typical $8,950.
Fixr publishes a second, higher interior figure: $5.75–$10.70 per sq ft of floor to prime, paint and seal the walls of a whole house, or $11,498–$21,400 for 2,000 sq ft. The calculator uses the room prices because they separate walls-only from full-room work and match the room sizes above. If a quote includes priming every surface, expect it to land between the two.
What drives the price
- Area. Every line in the calculator scales with the square footage.
- Surfaces. Adding ceilings and trim moves the per-foot price from $1.50–$3.50 to $3–$4. On its own, a ceiling runs $0.50–$3 per sq ft.
- Wall condition. Light patching is included. Fair walls add $50–$115 per room, poor walls up to $465 per room in the calculator. Outside, walls in poor condition can cost over 60% more to paint.
- Ceiling height. For a 2,200 sq ft home, Fixr lists $11,001–$20,474 with 8 ft ceilings and $14,816–$27,574 with 12 ft ceilings.
- Height outside. Fixr says homes with more stories tend to cost more to paint. Second-story walls need ladders, scaffolding or lifts, and the work goes slower. Ask whether scaffolding is in the quote.
- Paint, color and coats. Paint is about 15% of the bill, so a pricier gallon moves the total far less than the area or the prep does. A color change costs more than a refresh: Fixr notes that darker colors usually need more than one coat.
- Labor rates. Labor is about 85% of the price, so local wages move a painting estimate more than a material-heavy project.
Cost breakdown
- Labor. 85% of the per-sq-ft price, from Fixr's statement that materials are about 15% of painting prices. It covers moving and covering furniture, masking, light patching and caulking, cutting in, rolling, and cleanup. Outside, it includes power washing, sanding, caulking and masking.
- Paint, primer and supplies. 15% of a two-coat job. It scales with the number of coats: half for one coat, one and a half times for three.
- Prep. Per-room sanding, patching and drywall repairs inside; the poor-condition premium outside.
- Trim. Exterior trim in a contrasting color, per linear foot.
Not included: wallpaper removal, cabinet painting, lead-safe work practices, mold cleanup, siding or wood rot repair, and scaffolding for very tall walls. Labor for a single or third coat is not priced separately by the sources, so the calculator changes only the paint line when you change coats; a painter will also charge for the time.
Prices by state and metro area
The calculator multiplies the labor share of the job, 85%, by your state's construction wage index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). Paint and supplies stay at national prices.
For the default 2,000 sq ft interior job, national typical $7,000:
| State | Wage index | Typical estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Washington | 1.26 | $8,550 |
| Illinois | 1.25 | $8,500 |
| California | 1.20 | $8,200 |
| Texas | 0.84 | $6,050 |
| Arkansas | 0.74 | $5,450 |
The spread between Washington and Arkansas is about $3,100 for the same job. Painting moves more with wages than the deck (59% labor) or insulation (40% labor) calculators on this site, because so much of a paint job is labor. See how regional cost adjustments work.
For a closer number, choose your metro area as well as your state. At the default inputs the national estimate of $7,000 becomes $8,600 in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, where construction wages are 27% above the national mean, and $6,000 in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX, 17% below it.
How much paint you need
Fixr gives about 400 sq ft of wall per gallon per coat for interior paint, and 250–400 sq ft per gallon on exterior siding. To estimate wall area for one room, add the wall lengths, multiply by the ceiling height and subtract doors and large windows. A 12 × 12 ft room with 8 ft ceilings has 48 × 8 = 384 sq ft of wall, so two coats take about two gallons. At $15–$50 per gallon for latex, that is $30–$100 of paint, a small part of the $430–$575 Fixr quotes for painting that room.
Paint finishes and primer
| Finish | Where it fits | Fixr price per gallon |
|---|---|---|
| Flat / matte | Ceilings, low-traffic rooms; hides flaws, hardest to wash | $10–$70 |
| Eggshell | Living rooms, bedrooms | $11–$60 |
| Satin | Hallways, kitchens, bathrooms | $12–$60 |
| Semi-gloss | Trim, doors, cabinets | $12–$70 |
| High-gloss | Front doors, accent features | $17–$80 |
Prices: Fixr, Cost to Paint a Room, updated January 31, 2025.
Fixr recommends against flat paint in kitchens, bathrooms and children's bedrooms. Outside, use an exterior acrylic latex rated for your siding.
Primer is a separate product. Fixr says it is especially important on newly installed drywall, and prices it per gallon at $15–$60 for latex, $25–$70 for oil-based and $30–$80 for shellac. Ask whether a quote includes a full primer coat or only spot-priming of patches. Fixr's higher whole-house figure, $5.75–$10.70 per sq ft of floor, covers priming, painting and sealing.
Better paint lines generally hide the old color in fewer coats. Because paint is only about 15% of a professional price, the step up usually adds little to the total.
Example: pricing a whole-house paint job
This is a worked example built from the sourced prices above, not a real project: a 2,000 sq ft home, interior walls, ceilings and trim in fair condition (8 rooms), plus an exterior with 2,200 sq ft of wall and 150 linear feet of contrasting trim.
| Line | Range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Interior, $3–$4 per sq ft of floor | $6,000–$8,000 | Fixr |
| Sanding and patching, 8 rooms at $50–$115 | $400–$920 | Fixr |
| Exterior walls, $2.84–$5.28 per sq ft | $6,242–$11,617 | Fixr |
| Exterior trim, 150 ft at $2.15–$3.99 | $323–$599 | Fixr |
| Total | $12,965–$21,136 |
To reproduce it, run the calculator twice: once for the interior with fair condition and 8 rooms, once for the exterior with 150 ft of trim. If the exterior walls were in poor condition, Fixr's 60%-plus premium on the wall line would add at least $3,700–$7,000. Where in each range you land depends mostly on prep, height and local wages.
DIY or hire a painter
With paint only about 15% of a professional price, doing it yourself saves most of the bill. On the 2,000 sq ft interior above, about $900–$1,200 is paint, primer and supplies and roughly $5,100–$6,800 is labor. Painters charge $40–$60 per hour on average.
The cost of DIY is time. Fixr puts a single room at two to four days on average to prep, prime and paint, and cutting in along trim and ceilings without tape takes practice. DIY makes sense for one or two rooms. A whole interior, high ceilings, stairwells and second-story exteriors are where professionals earn their fee, both for speed and for ladder and scaffolding safety.
If the house was built before 1978, lead is the deciding factor. The EPA requires anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces in a pre-1978 home to be certified in lead-safe work practices. The rule generally does not cover homeowners working on their own homes, but the dust is just as hazardous, so test before you sand or scrape.
How to cut the cost
- Do your own prep. Moving furniture, removing outlet covers and clearing the walls cuts the hours a crew spends on your job. Check with the painter before washing exterior walls, since they may want to do it themselves.
- Repaint before paint fails. Outside, Fixr says walls in poor condition can cost over 60% more to paint. Repainting before paint peels to bare wood avoids most of that premium.
- Keep to fewer colors. Every extra color adds cutting-in, setup and cleanup time.
- Ask about timing and bundling. Ask whether a different start date, or booking the interior and exterior together, changes the price.
- Buy paint yourself only by agreement. The painter will want a specific product and quantity, and Fixr notes that painters often pass on their contractor discount on supplies, which can cancel the saving.
- Order the work. If new floors are coming, paint first so drips land on the old floor. See the flooring cost calculator.
When these prices don't fit
- Lead paint. Pre-1978 homes may need containment and specialized cleanup by a certified firm, which add time and cost. Historic districts may also need approval for colors.
- Damage under the paint. Rotted siding, cracked stucco or water-damaged drywall turn a paint job into a repair job that ends with paint. Get the repair priced separately, for example with the drywall cost calculator or the siding replacement cost calculator.
- Harsh climates. Coastal salt air, strong sun and freeze-thaw cycles are hard on paint. Ask about products rated for those conditions, and expect a narrower weather window for exterior work.
- Unusual houses. Curved walls, cathedral ceilings, exposed beams or several buildings need a custom estimate; per-square-foot prices fit them poorly.
How to compare painting quotes
Get at least three quotes, and ask each painter to state, in writing:
- which surfaces are included (walls, ceilings, trim, doors, closets);
- the number of coats and whether a primer coat is included;
- the paint brand and product line;
- what prep is included and what is extra, priced per room or per hour;
- whether ladders and scaffolding are included for high work;
- who moves the furniture, and the cleanup and touch-up policy.
Two quotes that differ by thousands often differ in coats and prep, not in rates. See how to hire a renovation contractor.
Sources
- Fixr, Cost to Paint a Room — interior prices per sq ft of floor, room-size and room-type tables, national average per room, prep, repair and paint removal prices, paint, finish and primer prices per gallon, coverage per gallon, darker colors needing more coats, flat finish advice, primer on new drywall, two to four days per room (updated January 31, 2025). link
- Fixr, Exterior Painting Cost — exterior price per sq ft of wall and size table, price by siding material, trim per linear foot, poor-condition premium, more stories costing more (updated January 31, 2025). link
- Fixr, Cost to Hire a Painter — materials about 15% of painting prices, painter hourly rates, kitchen cabinet painting, day rates for one- to two-day jobs, contractor discount on supplies (updated January 31, 2025). link
- Fixr, Cost to Paint a House Interior — whole-house price per sq ft of floor and ceiling-height table (updated January 31, 2025). link
- Fixr, How Much Does it Cost to Paint Your House Exterior? — 250–400 sq ft of siding per gallon (published October 15, 2021). link
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program — certification for paid work disturbing paint in pre-1978 homes (updated June 17, 2026). link
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — construction wages by state for the state adjustment (May 2025). link
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to paint the interior of a house?
Fixr's room prices work out to $1.50–$3.50 per sq ft of floor area for walls only and $3–$4 per sq ft for walls, ceilings and trim. For a 2,000 sq ft home that is $6,000–$8,000 for every surface, which is the calculator's default. Fixr's whole-house page quotes more, $5.75–$10.70 per sq ft, for priming, painting and sealing the walls.
How much does it cost to paint the exterior of a house?
Fixr puts exterior painting at $2.84–$5.28 per sq ft of wall surface, including standard prep such as power washing, sanding, caulking and masking. A house with 2,200 sq ft of exterior wall costs $6,242–$11,617. Trim painted in a separate color adds $2.15–$3.99 per linear foot, and walls in poor condition can cost over 60% more.
How much does it cost to paint one room?
Fixr's national average is $1,200 for priming and painting a 330 sq ft living room, with most paying $990–$1,320. A 12 × 12 ft bedroom costs $215–$505 for the walls only and $430–$575 for walls, ceiling and trim. Fixr prices a bathroom at $60–$400. Wall repairs add $75–$350 per room, and sanding and patching $50–$115.
How much of a painting quote is labor?
Most of it. Fixr says materials typically account for about 15% of painting prices, which leaves roughly 85% for labor, prep and cleanup. Painters charge $40–$60 per hour on average, about $50. On a $6,000–$8,000 whole-interior job that is roughly $5,100–$6,800 of labor, which is what painting it yourself saves, and why the state adjustment moves painting estimates so much.
How much paint do I need?
Plan on about 400 sq ft of wall per gallon per coat for interior latex, according to Fixr, and two coats as standard. Exterior siding takes more: one gallon covers 250–400 sq ft. Interior latex costs $15–$50 per gallon and oil-based $20–$60. Darker colors usually need more than one coat, Fixr notes, which adds to the paint bill.
What paint finish should I use?
Flat hides wall flaws but is the hardest to wash, and Fixr recommends against it in kitchens, bathrooms and children's bedrooms. Eggshell suits living rooms and bedrooms, satin suits hallways, kitchens and baths, and semi-gloss suits trim and doors. Fixr's prices per gallon: flat $10–$70, eggshell $11–$60, satin $12–$60, semi-gloss $12–$70 and high-gloss $17–$80.
Do I need to prime before painting?
Fixr says primer is especially important on newly installed drywall, and notes that darker colors usually need more than one coat. Fixr prices latex primer at $15–$60 per gallon, oil-based at $25–$70 and shellac at $30–$80. A quote that primes every surface lands above the room prices this calculator uses; Fixr's whole-house figure for priming, painting and sealing is $5.75–$10.70 per sq ft.
How long does it take to paint a room?
Fixr puts it at two to four days on average to prep, prime and paint an entire room. A whole interior takes longer, and exterior work also depends on the weather. Fixr notes that day-rate pricing suits small jobs of one to two days; for anything larger, ask each painter for a written schedule and for what happens if rain stops exterior work.
Does siding type change the cost of exterior painting?
Somewhat. Fixr's prices per sq ft of wall are $3.10–$5.80 for wood, vinyl and fiber cement, $2.90–$5.40 for brick, $2.70–$5.05 for stucco and $2.30–$4.30 for metal, against $2.84–$5.28 across all exteriors, which is the rate the calculator uses. The wall's condition matters more: Fixr says walls in poor condition can cost over 60% more to paint.
Do painters need lead certification for older homes?
Yes, for homes built before 1978. The EPA requires anyone paid to do work that disturbs painted surfaces in a pre-1978 home to be certified in lead-safe work practices, including sole proprietors. The rule generally does not apply to homeowners working on their own homes. Ask a painter for the firm's RRP certification before you sign.