How Much Does a Painter Charge Per Room?

Please note that the price information in this article was based on data from 2018 and may now be outdated. 

Want to give your home a little TLC after years of ignoring it over other duties? Great idea! But, before getting yourself busy asking painters for their quotes, you should give your painting project a little thought.

Getting quotes from selected painters is a safe bet since they’ll be able to give you accurate quotes. Provided that you know what info they need you to tell them. So, it’s vital to get into the workings of what is needed for a paint job and how painters work out their prices. That’s the path to getting the most accurate quotes possible so you could budget for your paint job and get the best possible deal.

Here are some guidelines to help you get the hang of the entire process.

How do painters come up with a price?

Essentially, the first question a painter will throw at you before they offer a quote is about the size of the rooms you want painted. That’s where they can generally work out how much paint, material and work hours they’ll need to invest in the project.

Painters will generally price their work using a square metre pricing method and will cover for all the paint and materials needed for the project. Experienced painters will be able to roughly estimate the quantity of paint a room of a certain size will require.

For the uninitiated, a standard living room of 40 square metres will require 4 litres of paint based on the industry median of 10 square metres per litre. Most manufacturers will label the coverage area for their product, too.

How much do painters charge?

The price per square metre will fluctuate greatly, for the simple reason that it includes the cost of paint, material and labour. All of these factors depend on the size of a room. But that’s just a part of it.

Each painting project is a story on its own. It’s not just plain square metre calculation. So don’t be surprised when you see pricing inconsistency when the initial quotes start coming in.

For the most part, experienced painters may offer higher quotes just because they’re able to factor in all the pricing factors to the quote. They will also be able to give you a detailed written estimate, so that’s what you’re aiming at when you want to hire a high-quality painter.

The final price will depend on loads of factors. For instance, you may have a different concept for each room that may require special painting techniques, so painters may ask you to pay different prices for two rooms of the same size.

How much does it cost to paint a room?

As we’ve already hinted, painters typically charge their paint jobs per square metre.

The average cost of interior painting in Australia for a average job that includes one undercoat and two finishing coats is roughly $20 – $30 per square metre. Ceilings included.

If you don’t want to experiment much with colour and your room needs only minimal prep the price will gravitate towards the lower end. Conversely, if you plan on going multi-colour, want a touch-up on your architraves and want all the trim work done, expect the price to be closer to the upper end.

• Depending on the complexity of the job, a standard living room (40 sqm) will cost you between $1,200-$1,800. Labour cost included in the price.
• For a 2-bedroom home unit with a bathroom and a kitchen expect to be quoted in the price range of $2,500 – $4,000.

You should keep in mind these prices are approximate, because painters will work in all the minutiae of their work to the price, and these are different for each paint job.

When you have a square metre rate, it’s a no-brainer to calculate the cost of any room you’d like to remodel. Just measure and multiply the length and the width of your room. That’s how you rack up your square metre calculation.

But you’re not quite there yet.

What about the surfaces that won’t be painted, let’s say, windows and doors, architraves and trim if you want to omit them? Measure those areas as well and subtract them from the total square metre result of the entire room.

Now you’ve got this, just multiply the result with the painter’s square metre rate.

How to get an accurate quote?

Now, let’s look at how prep work and your own choice specifics and preferences can influence the final price of your paint job. If you don’t provide enough information to painters, the best guess is the quotes they give you are going to be too vague with the amount not even coming close to what you will eventually have to fork out for the job.

Going for interior remodelling doesn’t only come down to choosing a paint colour. It raises a bunch of questions painters might fire at you. So you better get ready for them, because giving detailed answers will bring you as close to the real deal as possible.

However, painters will generally be able to provide you with a firm quote only after they make an on-site estimate.

So here are the specifics you should think about before asking painters for online quotes.

Prep work

Are your rooms in good condition? Do they need improvements? Painters will want to know this to figure out how time-consuming and expensive the job will be. So, make sure to be as precise as possible to get the most accurate price for your paint job.

If your walls are damaged they may need some of the following surface preparation or repairs:

• Repairing holes: if your walls have holes and cracks in it, they may need some filling and resurfacing
• Cleaning mould: if your walls have any
• Re-plastering: if your walls are substantially damaged, the plaster may need some repair
• Drywall repair: if you have halls in drywall, it may need repairs
• Sanding: peeling or cracked paint may call for sanding; it is also a segment of typical woodwork preparation

If you notice damp or bulging walls, it could be a red flag. Find out the cause of the problem before embarking on potentially costly repairs. https://t.co/piwXCgtbHX

— Home Quest Inspection (@quest_home) August 19, 2018

Multiple colours

Even the slightest of things like colours will affect the price of your house painting project. For instance, if you want to switch from dark to light colour and vice versa, this will require more paint and therefore more money.

This also goes for using different colours for an accent wall, ceiling or trim. The reason for this is the cost of different types of paint and the level of precision required to perform this work.

Woodwork, trim and moulding

Woodwork, trim and moulding are all additional surfaces and are to be counted in the square metre calculation if you want them painted. Also, woodwork typically requires more time since it is painted with smaller brushes and require more detailed painting techniques.

Textured walls and decorative finishes

If you want to give your room some extra touch-up, you can pick out textured or decorative finishes to your preference. But prepare to pay extra as well, because doing special painting effects require time and will drive up the total work hours. Moreover, the texture adds to the surface area as well, so more paint will be needed. Decorative painters will probably figure in about 30 square metres more to account for texture.

You can decide to give your feature wall some of the following decorative finishes:

• Crackling – makes for a cracked finish
• Sponging – covers the wall in two tones
• Faux finish – gives your wall an antique look
• Mural – makes your wall completely unique

Get quotes from professional painters

Figuring out the pricing factors for your paint job requires some effort on your part but trust us, it’s worth your while. Being prepared usually pays off, but knowing where you should and where you shouldn’t pay extra means having control over your interior remodelling project.

Now you have the technical know-how, it’s time to get some quotes from local painters. And they’re just a few clicks away! Use an online directory tool like Service Seeking to get some ballpark numbers for your painting job faster than ever before. Then make a short list to get more accurate estimates through onsite visits from the selected painters.

And remember, details, details, details! If you help painters fully understand your requirements and needs, you’ll get the most realistic estimates possible. Then you can compare them and get the most bang for your buck.