Home Equity How Much Does It Cost to Paint a House? 2 people contribute to this content Written by Jonathon Jachura Written by Jonathon Jachura Expertise: Home improvement, HVAC systems, energy efficiency, plumbing, lawn care Jon Jachura is a home improvement enthusiast and engineer with more than a decade of experience in HVAC systems and hands-on home projects. He enjoys helping homeowners understand, plan, and budget for upgrades that make their homes more comfortable and efficient. Learn more about Jonathon Jachura Edited by Amanda Hankel Edited by Amanda Hankel Expertise: Writing, editing, digital publishing Amanda Hankel is a managing editor at LendEDU. She has more than seven years of experience covering various finance-related topics and has worked for more than 15 years overall in writing, editing, and publishing. Learn more about Amanda Hankel Written by Jonathon Jachura Written by Jonathon Jachura Expertise: Home improvement, HVAC systems, energy efficiency, plumbing, lawn care Jon Jachura is a home improvement enthusiast and engineer with more than a decade of experience in HVAC systems and hands-on home projects. He enjoys helping homeowners understand, plan, and budget for upgrades that make their homes more comfortable and efficient. Learn more about Jonathon Jachura Edited by Amanda Hankel Edited by Amanda Hankel Expertise: Writing, editing, digital publishing Amanda Hankel is a managing editor at LendEDU. She has more than seven years of experience covering various finance-related topics and has worked for more than 15 years overall in writing, editing, and publishing. Learn more about Amanda Hankel show more Jan 15, 2026 It costs about $2,000 to $6,000 to paint the entire interior of most houses. For exteriors, it costs between $1,800 and $4,550. A single room you paint yourself might run $150 in supplies. A fresh coat of paint ranks among the fastest ways to boost your home’s curb appeal and property value. What you actually spend depends on your home’s size, the surfaces you’re painting, and if you do the work yourself or hire pros. Costs in this article are sourced from contractor estimates via Angi. Table of Contents Average cost to paint a house Cost by square footage Cost by number of stories Exterior painting costs Cost by siding material Brick Stucco Vinyl siding Wood siding Prep work costs Trim, doors, and additional features Interior painting costs Cost by room type Factors that increase interior costs Paint type and quality DIY vs. hiring a pro When DIY makes sense When to hire a pro How to save money on professional painting How to pay for a house painting project How long does house paint last? Exterior paint lifespan by material Maintenance tips FAQs How much does it cost to paint a 1,500-square-foot house? How much does it cost to paint a two-story home? How many gallons of paint do I need? What time of year is best to paint a house exterior? Average cost to paint a house Interior painting with professionals runs $2,000 to $6,000 when you’re doing the whole house. Exterior painting comes in at $1,800 to $4,550 for mid-sized homes. What drives those numbers? Square footage is the big one, followed by paint quality, and wall condition. Here’s something worth knowing: labor accounts for 75% to 95% of a professional paint job. That’s why grabbing a brush yourself saves so much cash, assuming you’ve got the hours to spare. I went through this math myself back in 2023 when building my house in northern Indiana. Three different painters quoted me $3,200 to $4,800 for a 3,100-square-foot one-story exterior. Talking to friends in Chicago and on the East Coast, I realized my quotes ran quite a bit lower—Midwest labor just doesn’t cost what it does in bigger metros. Where you live changes everything. Cost by square footage Square footage is the biggest factor in your painting budget. Interior rates run $2 to $6 per square foot, depending on wall condition and paint choice. Exterior work comes in at a touch lower at $1.50 to $4 per square foot. To give you a sense of what full interior jobs cost at different home sizes: Home sizeInterior painting cost500 sq. ft.$200 – $1,0001,000 sq. ft.$2,000 – $6,0001,200 sq. ft.$2,400 – $7,2002,500 sq. ft.$5,000 – $15,0003,000 sq. ft.$6,000 – $18,000 Why the huge spreads? A lot comes down to local labor costs and what shape your walls are in. Someone in Seattle is going to pay way more than a homeowner in Columbus or rural Pennsylvania for the exact same square footage. Cost by number of stories If your house has a second floor, add about 50% to whatever you’d pay for a ranch. Renting scaffolding adds up, and the pace slows down at height. Once walls go above 8 feet, most painters add 30% or so. Above 13 feet? Tack on 60% or more. Cathedral ceilings look amazing, but every painter I talked to charges extra for them—and honestly, after watching a crew work a 20-foot entryway, I get why. Exterior painting costs The national average sits around $3,150 for exterior work. Small, simple ranches might get away with $600. Bigger places with dormers, multiple gables, and lots of detail work can hit $7,700 or higher. What your house is made of matters too—vinyl is quick to paint while brick takes forever. Cost by siding material Some siding practically begs for paint. Vinyl and aluminum are quick jobs—a power wash and you’re ready to spray. Brick and stucco? Plan on primer plus extra coats to fill all that texture. Siding materialTotal costCost per sq. ft.Vinyl$600 – $3,500$1.25 – $3Wood$700 – $3,000$1 – $3Stucco$1,400 – $6,000$1.50 –$3.50Brick$3,500 – $10,000$1.50 – $4.50 Brick Brick is porous and absorbs paint. That rough, pitted surface soaks up way more product than you’d expect, and you absolutely need masonry primer or nothing sticks. Brick painting typically runs $3,500 to $10,000, or $1.50 to $4.50 per square foot. Limewash is worth a look too—gives that old-world weathered finish and breathes better than latex. Stucco Stucco’s texture uses almost double the paint of smooth surfaces. Figure on $1,400 to $6,000 for stucco. Elastomeric paint is the way to go—it has some give, so it moves with stucco in hot and cold weather. And don’t paint over cracks or water damage. You’ll waste money; fix the stucco first. Vinyl siding Vinyl is an easy one. It’s cheap to paint at $600 to $3,500, or $1.25 to $3 per square foot. The prep work is minimal beyond a good power wash. Fair warning: never paint vinyl darker than its current shade. Dark colors absorb too much heat and the siding warps. I’ve watched it happen on a neighbor’s south-facing garage wall. Stay the same color or lighter. Wood siding People love wood siding for the look, but be ready to maintain it. You’ll be out there repainting every three to seven years because wood finishes just don’t last like vinyl or fiber cement. Each job costs $700 to $3,000—call it $1 to $3 per square foot. Also worth paying for: sealer before the paint goes on. Water destroys wood siding, and sealer blocks it. Prep work costs Dirt, mildew, loose flakes—none of that can stay. Power washing costs $200 to $450 and handles most of it. If you have old paint that’s peeling or bubbling, it has to be stripped. That adds $0.50 to $2 per square foot. I know it’s tempting to paint over it, but you’ll be redoing the job in a year. Pre-1978 homes are another consideration. Lead paint could be hiding under all those layers. Don’t mess with it yourself—lead dust is dangerous, especially if you have young kids. Get a certified lead abatement contractor—this isn’t DIY territory. Trim, doors, and additional features All that trim—window frames, shutters, doors—costs $1 to $6 per linear foot. Most homeowners spend $1,000 to $2,500 total on trim. If you’re already having the siding painted, add trim to that same job. Painters give better rates when they’re already set up on-site. Interior painting costs Most interior jobs average around $2,000. One room might cost $350. Premium finishes throughout the whole house can push $5,800. Cost by room type The cost to paint by room takes into account average room size, and special paints you may need (such as moisture resistant for bathrooms): Bathroom (standard): $150 to $400 Primary bathroom: $250 to $650 Bedroom: $350 to $850 Primary bedroom: $650 to $1,400 Living room: $600 to $2,000 Kitchen (walls only): $150 to $250 (cabinets and backsplash reduce paintable area) Cabinets change everything. All that sanding, priming, and spraying—four or five coats sometimes—pushes cabinet work alone to $1,200 to $7,000. Factors that increase interior costs If your home has tall ceilings, your quote goes up 20% to 50%. Ladder work slows painters down, and repositioning scaffolding eats hours. Want an accent wall? Add 20% to 30% for the extra taping and separate color. Bad walls need fixing first. Nail holes and small dings run $0.50 to $0.75 per square foot to patch. More serious damage—bigger holes, water stains—costs around $600 to repair. Got wallpaper? Removing it costs around $3 per square foot. In a standard 12-by-12 bedroom, that’s roughly $550 before a drop of paint touches the wall. Paint type and quality A gallon runs anywhere from $10 for basic primer up to $35 for high-end enamel. An average house takes about 6 gallons per coat, so material costs add up when you buy the good stuff. Paint typeCost per gallonPrimer$10Flat paint$13Semi-gloss$17High-gloss enamel$35VOC-free paint$35 Glossy finishes wipe clean—grease, fingerprints, scuff marks come right off. That’s why kitchens, bathrooms, and hallways do better with semi-gloss or high-gloss. Flat and eggshell suit bedrooms and living rooms where durability matters less. DIY vs. hiring a pro DIY or pro? Ask yourself: how many free weekends do you actually have, and are you good with ladders? Most DIY regrets I hear about come down to rushing prep work. The taping, the patching, the priming—that’s where the hours go. When DIY makes sense Interior rooms are good starter projects, especially if the walls are in decent shape and the ceilings are standard height. You’ll save 75% or more on labor, and most people can knock out a single room in a day. Mistakes inside the house are also easy to fix. A drip here, a thin spot there—touch it up and move on. You’re inside with the AC running—no rain delays, no racing against sunset. When to hire a pro Anything above the first floor on an exterior should go to professionals. I mean it—ladders at those heights are genuinely dangerous if you’re not used to working on them. Whole-house interior jobs also benefit from professional help. A crew can complete in three days what might take you three weeks of evenings and Saturdays. After spending two weekends painting the inside of the garage at my own house, I don’t regret hiring out for my basement when we finished it a year ago. How to save money on professional painting Talk to three painters minimum and ask for line-by-line quotes. Comparing itemized bids shows you where each contractor’s price comes from. Looking to trim the bill? Move your own furniture, pull outlet covers, and fill nail holes. Let the painters focus on painting. Many people think buying their own paint saves money. Sometimes it does, but contractors often get wholesale pricing that beats what you’d pay at the hardware store. Ask before you stock up. How to pay for a house painting project When your exterior quote comes back at $5,000, $8,000, or more, that’s a chunk of money most people don’t have sitting in checking. There are ways to spread out the cost. Home improvement loans offer fixed rates and predictable monthly payments without tapping your home equity. These unsecured personal loans fit projects under $50,000 well. Homeowners sitting on equity have another route. A HELOC for home repairs lets you borrow against your house at rates well below credit cards. Draw what you need and pay interest only on that amount. How long does house paint last? Inside your house, paint lasts for five to 10 years with normal use. Outside, the same range applies, but your climate and siding material shift that window. Exterior paint lifespan by material Wood siding needs fresh paint every three to seven years. Temperature swings make wood expand and contract, which eventually cracks the paint. Vinyl, aluminum, and fiber cement stay more stable. These materials get you seven to 10 years before you’re calling painters again. Brick and stucco outlast everything else—10 to 15 years between paint jobs isn’t unusual when the first application was done right. Maintenance tips Every spring or fall, grab a hose and rinse down your siding. Pollen and mildew accumulate so gradually you don’t notice—until the paint starts breaking down. Pressure wash anything that won’t come off with a regular spray. Walk the perimeter and look at your caulk, too. Once those seams fail, water sneaks behind the paint and rot starts. Chips and scratches are worth addressing early—thirty minutes with a brush now versus thousands for a full repaint in a few years. FAQs How much does it cost to paint a 1,500-square-foot house? Professional work on that size house runs $3,000 to $9,000. Going DIY? The paint and supplies cost $400 to $800, though you’ll put in 40 hours or more on the project. How much does it cost to paint a two-story home? Painters make their money on labor—it’s 75% to 95% of any bid. On a $5,000 quote, the actual materials probably only cost the painter $500 to $1,000. How many gallons of paint do I need? A gallon covers 300 to 400 square feet on smooth walls that have been primed. For a 2,400-square-foot house, plan on 6 gallons per coat. Textured walls or bare drywall soak up more, so buy extra. What time of year is best to paint a house exterior? Wait until spring warms up or catch early fall before frost hits. Paint cures best between 50 and 85 degrees with humidity on the lower side. Extreme heat, cold, or moisture causes bubbling and poor adhesion. Article sources At LendEDU, our writers and editors rely on primary sources, such as government data and websites, industry reports and whitepapers, and interviews with experts and company representatives. We also reference reputable company websites and research from established publishers. This approach allows us to produce content that is accurate, unbiased, and supported by reliable evidence. Read more about our editorial standards. Angi, How Much Does It Cost to Paint the Interior of a House? [2025 Data] Angi, How Much Does It Cost to Paint the Exterior of a House? [2025 Data] National Lime Association, Limewash: Compatible Coverings for Masonry and Stucco InterNACHI Inspection Community, Spalling brick About our contributors Written by Jonathon Jachura Jon Jachura is a home improvement enthusiast and engineer with more than a decade of experience in HVAC systems and hands-on home projects. He enjoys helping homeowners understand, plan, and budget for upgrades that make their homes more comfortable and efficient. Edited by Amanda Hankel Amanda Hankel is a managing editor at LendEDU. She has more than seven years of experience covering various finance-related topics and has worked for more than 15 years overall in writing, editing, and publishing.