calcnet
All calculators

Home & DIY · Cost

House Painting Cost Calculator

Estimate what it costs to paint your house — interior or exterior — by floor square footage, prep level, coats, stories, and region. You get a low-to-high price range with labor and paint broken out.

Inputs

Home or room floor square footage — used as a proxy for paintable area.

Affects exterior access (ladders/staging) only.

Sets a low / average / high cost tier for your state. You can still change it below.

Result

Adjust the inputs to see your result.

How the estimate works

Painters usually price by the square foot, and for a homeowner the easiest input is your floor area — the same number you'd find on a listing. The calculator uses that floor square footage as a stand-in for paintable surface, then multiplies by a national installed rate (labor plus paint) that depends on what you're painting: walls only, a full interior with ceilings and trim, or an exterior.

From that base it applies a few real-world multipliers. Heavy prep — scraping, patching, priming — adds about 30%. A third coat for a big color change adds 25%. On exterior jobs, a second or third story raises labor 10–20% for ladders and staging. Finally your region scales the whole thing up or down. The result is an honest low-to-high range, because real painting bids vary that much.

What drives the price

  • Scope is the biggest lever — a full interior with ceilings and trim covers far more surface than walls alone.
  • Prep is the wildcard. Peeling, bare, or damaged surfaces turn a fast job into a slow one.
  • Coats and color matter — dark-to-light changes often need an extra coat to fully cover.
  • Region swings labor by 40% or more between rural areas and coastal metros.

Common mistakes

  • Underestimating prep. The cost difference between light and heavy prep dwarfs the cost of the paint itself.
  • Pricing walls but forgetting ceilings and trim. A "full interior" is a much bigger job — choose the right project type.
  • Assuming one coat covers a color change. Going lighter almost always needs two finish coats over primer.
  • Taking one bid. Painting bids for the same job routinely vary 30–40%. Always get three.

When this calculator is the wrong tool

Use a pro walkthrough for: cabinet refinishing, lead-paint abatement on pre-1978 homes, stucco or specialty-coating work, lots of intricate woodwork, or commercial scope. Floor area is a proxy, so very high ceilings, huge windows, or open-plan layouts will skew the estimate — this tool is for a standard residential repaint.

Recommended gear

Recommended for this job

We may earn a commission on qualifying purchases. Prices and availability are set by the vendor.

FAQ

Questions, answered

How much does it cost to paint a house?
For a typical 1,500 sq ft home, a full interior repaint (walls, ceilings, and trim) runs roughly $3,750–$9,000, while exterior painting lands around $2,250–$6,750 depending on prep and stories. Most jobs come in between $2 and $6 per square foot of floor area installed, including labor and paint. Heavy prep, extra coats, and high-cost metros push you toward the top of the range.
Is interior or exterior painting more expensive?
It depends on scope. Exterior work adds ladder, staging, and weather risk — and a second or third story raises labor 10–20%. But a full interior repaint that includes ceilings and trim covers far more surface than walls alone, so it often costs as much or more. This calculator prices each separately so you can compare.
Why is prep the biggest cost?
Light prep — washing, filling nail holes, a little caulk — is quick. Heavy prep means scraping and sanding peeling paint, patching damage, and priming bare or repaired surfaces, which is slow, skilled labor. We model heavy prep as a 30% bump, but on a badly weathered exterior it can be even more. Prep is also what makes the paint actually last.
Do I need two coats or three?
Two coats is standard and covers most repaints. Go to three when you're making a big color change — especially dark-to-light — or covering stains, bare drywall, or a deeply saturated color. Three coats adds about 25% to the job but prevents the old color ghosting through. When in doubt, ask your painter to spot-prime problem areas instead.
Is this an exact quote?
No — it's a planning estimate built from national average cost ranges. Painting prices swing widely by region, season, surface condition, and crew. Always get 3 written bids from licensed local painters before budgeting, and have them walk the actual space.