How Much Does a Painter Charge Per Square Foot?

Please note that the price information in this article was based on data from 2018 and may now be outdated. 

Painting is one of the quickest and easiest ways to give your home’s interior or exterior a facelift — and it is one that can produce dramatic results as well. Unfortunately, many homeowners feel overwhelmed when tasked with choosing between painting the house themselves or hiring a professional painter to do it.

Before you make the decision, use an online directory tool like Service Seeking to quickly get some ballpark numbers for your painting job – then make a short list to get more accurate estimates through onsite visits from the selected painters.

How Do Painters Calculate Their Rates?

A painter will usually quote for the entire job, and this is typically calculated on a per square metre basis. In most cases, the job quote includes paints and all other supplies. The per square metre charge is deceptive as it takes into account all the work that goes into a painting job.

For interiors, factors they take into account include:

• Is there any surface preparation or repairs required?
• Are there architraves and trim?
• How many doors need to be painted?
• How high is the ceiling?

For exteriors, factors they take into account include:

• Is your house on a level block? How easy is it to access?
• Is it a multi-level house? If scaffolding is needed, the cost of the scaffolding and extra labour will need to be factored into the quote.
• Do exterior fascias require separate treatment?

How to Calculate Room Painting Costs

• The cost to paint an average size room (10’ x 12’) ranges from $380-$790, not including ceilings, trim or cost of the paint.
• If you do your own painting, paint can cost between $200-$300.
• When estimating the cost, painters will start with how much paint will be required to complete the job. To know this, they first need to see the size of the area to be covered.
• The easiest way to calculate the size of the paintable area is to add together the length of the wall and multiply it by the width of the room from floor to ceiling. The resulting amount is the room’s area.
• This total is a starting point, as it is not all paintable surface. The painters won’t paint the windows and doors, for example, and they must account for ceiling trim and baseboards as well. The next step is to subtract the area of the doors and windows — along with the area of the trim and baseboards — to get an average.
• Use the same calculation (length x width) on the windows, doors, trim and baseboards, and subtract all of those numbers. The result of this equation is the area of the room’s walls.
• Painters will typically add some square footage back into this amount to account for extra paint, which may be required.

What does interior house painting cost?

Based on a single undercoat and two finishing coats, the average cost of interior painting in Australia is about $20 – $30 per square metre (1 square metre is about 10.8 square feet), including the ceiling. The lower end of this estimate is based on using a single colour with minimal prep and trim work.

For a more difficult job that requires multiple colours, gloss architraves and a separate colour for the ceiling trim, a quote might be $30 or more per square metre. Expect to pay even more for unique finishes like wallpapering and crackle or sponged effects.

• For a two bedroom unit with one bathroom and a laundry expect to be quoted in the region of $2,500 – $3,500.
• If you only want a few rooms painted, say two bedrooms and the kitchen/dining area expect to be quoted in the region of $800 – $1,500.

What does exterior house painting cost?

For the exterior painting of brickwork expect to be charged anywhere from $15 to $45 per square metre, while timber surfaces could range from $12 to $60 per square metre. Expect to pay:

• $5,500 – 8,000 for a two-storey, three-bedroom house
• $10,000 – $20,000 for a two-storey weatherboard home, depending on the size of the home and the condition of the surfaces

These prices would include prep work and painting all previously painted surfaces.

What does roof painting cost?

Expect to pay in the region of $2,800 – $4,500 for roof painting, assuming a three-bedroom home with a metal, tile or terracotta surface. The existing condition of your roof will play a big part in the final cost. Roof repairs like repainting will add to the final cost. This is however best left to the judgement of a professional. You can find painters who specialise in roof painting at Service Seeking.

What are room painting cost factors?

Here are some other cost factors to consider when it comes to the cost of painting a room:

1. Size of Room to be Painted

The size of the room to be painted is the most important factor in determining the cost of professional painting. It will take a painter longer to cover a large room than a small room, and this means higher labour costs in addition to supplies and time.

When estimating the paint for such a job, keep in mind that a gallon of paint (about 4.5 litres) covers about 400 square feet or around 37 square metres (though the label claims it will cover 450 square feet or around 42 square metres). You will be charged for the number of paint cans needed, among other factors.

2. Textured Walls

A textured wall will need more paint than a smooth wall. The texture adds more surface area, even though it doesn’t increase square footage. Determining the additional surface area depends on how much texture there is. Painters will probably estimate about 300 to 350 additional square feet of paint to account for texture. Factor additional surface area into your square footage calculations when seeking professional estimates.

3. Speed Factor

The speed with which a painter can complete the job will determine its final cost, but time is difficult to estimate. Some painters have more experience and cover a wall faster, but some are more methodical and take more time.

Most painters should be able to cover about 100 to 120 square feet of flat surface in an hour unless they are working on a very large wall. Wood or plaster might reduce that amount to 80 to 100 square feet. You should also consider the time required for a first coat to dry before a second coat may be applied. This will add time as well — anywhere from one to 48 hours depending on the paint.

4. Multiple Rooms or Whole House

If you decide to paint multiple rooms in your home, choose colours that relate to one another without being completely the same — unless uniformity is your goal, of course. Costs may vary based on differences in colour, gloss and room size. However, each room will flow depending on the trim’s colour — which should all be white or neutral — so they look connected.

A whole-house colour scheme presents the same cost factors as painting multiple rooms individually: colours you choose, the gloss, the size of the rooms and time/labour. You can choose to use the same colour throughout your entire home to save on money, or you can use a colour scheme with the same gloss throughout, though this isn’t recommended for selling purposes.