Loan Painting Cost Estimator
Every other painting tool makes you choose: a cost number OR the paint quantity. This one gives both — the pro quote range for interior or exterior work, and the gallons the job actually drinks, so the DIY-vs-pro decision happens on one honest screen.
Interior size is the home's floor area (painters price walls + ceilings from it). Exterior size is wall area — perimeter × height minus big openings; a typical 1-story home has 1,100–1,300 sq ft of wall.
How it works
Interior pro pricing runs per square foot of floor: $3.00–$5.50 standard, $4.50–$7.50 premium (walls and ceilings, two coats, normal prep). The paintable surface behind that number is about 2.6× the floor area — which is where the gallons come from: surface ÷ 350 sq ft per gallon, adjusted for coats. Exterior pricing runs per square foot of wall: $2.50–$5.00 standard, $4.00–$6.50 premium, with gallons at wall area ÷ 350 × coats × 0.75 (siding texture and spraying losses are real). The mid-band is the number to budget; quotes cluster there when prep is ordinary.
Method & worked example
Method: Interior: price per sq ft of FLOOR area ($3.00–5.50 standard, $4.50–7.50 premium); paintable surface ≈ 2.6 × floor area; gallons = surface ÷ 350 × (coats ÷ 2 + 0.5). Exterior: price per sq ft of WALL area ($2.50–5.00 standard, $4.00–6.50 premium); gallons = wall area ÷ 350 × coats × 0.75.
Worked example: A 1,500 sq ft interior at standard finish: $4,500–$8,250 pro cost, about 16.71 gallons across roughly 3,900 sq ft of walls and ceilings.
When to use this
- You are collecting pro painting quotes and need the fair band first.
- You are deciding DIY vs pro and want gallons and quote on one screen.
- You are budgeting a whole-home repaint, inside or out.
How to use it, step by step
- Choose interior (by floor area) or exterior (by wall area).
- Enter the size in the matching unit — the label matters.
- Set coats and finish level honestly.
- Read the pro range AND the gallons; price DIY paint against the labour gap.
What the inputs mean
| Input | What it is | Typical values |
|---|---|---|
| Size | Floor sq ft (interior) or wall sq ft (exterior) | 1,500 sq ft home typical |
| Coats | Paint coats planned | 1 refresh; 2 standard; 3 colour change |
| Finish level | Standard or premium prep/finish | Premium adds roughly 40–50% to the band |
Another worked example
An exterior repaint, 1,800 sq ft of wall, two coats, standard finish: pro cost $4,500–$9,000 (mid-band $6,750) and about 7.71 gallons of paint. The paint itself is a few hundred dollars of the job — the other thousands are ladders, prep and arms, which is the honest DIY calculation.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to paint a 1,500 sq ft home's interior?
$4,500–$8,250 professionally at standard finish — mid-band $6,375. The job uses about 16.71 gallons across its roughly 3,900 sq ft of walls and ceilings, which is the DIY comparison: paint and supplies for the same rooms run a few hundred dollars against days of labour.
How much to paint a house exterior with 1,800 sq ft of wall?
$4,500–$9,000 professionally, mid-band $6,750, using about 7.71 gallons of exterior paint across two coats. Single-story ranch exteriors price at the kind end; three-story Victorian detail prices beyond the premium band.
Why is interior priced by floor area?
Because wall area tracks floor area in normal rooms (about 2.6× with ceilings at 8–9 ft), and floor area is the number everyone knows. Great rooms with 14-ft ceilings break the ratio — tell the painter, and expect the quote to follow the walls, not the floor.
One coat or two?
Two is the standard the bands assume: one-coat refreshes in the same colour can work over sound paint (the gallon math here adjusts), but colour changes, stains and new drywall need two plus primer. A quote promising one-coat colour change is promising to show you the old colour faintly forever.
Is premium finish worth it?
In living spaces with raking light and dark colours, yes — premium is mostly prep hours: filling, sanding, caulking, better paint. In bedrooms and rentals, standard work with good paint is the value play; the paint line matters more than the painter's label.
🧹 New paint deserves a clean house?
Fresh walls make the rest of the room look tired. The House Cleaning Cost Estimator prices a one-off deep clean or recurring service for your square footage.
How often should a house be repainted?
Exterior wood: 5–7 years; fiber-cement: 10–15; stucco: 7–10. Interiors run 5–10 years by room wear — kitchens and halls sooner, ceilings longest. South and west faces age fastest outdoors.
Does paint brand tier matter?
Mid-tier and premium paints cover in fewer coats and resist scrubbing — at 2 coats the labour dominates anyway, so the $15/gal saving on bargain paint is the most expensive economy in the project.