Work out what it costs to paint a room, a whole interior or the outside of your house. Enter the size, coats and paint grade, choose DIY or a hired painter, and get the gallons to buy plus a low-to-high cost range.
Last updated:
The job
What are you painting?
Measure by
ft
ft
ft
Average your rooms or add a room count.
Each deducts 21 sq ft (3 × 7 ft).
Each deducts 15 sq ft (3 × 5 ft).
ft
ft
ft
About 9 ft per story; 18 ft for two stories.
/12
Sets the height of the gable triangles.
sq ft
Walls (and ceilings) to paint, after removing doors and windows.
Paint
sq ft
Smooth walls 350–400; rough siding or stucco 200–300.
$/gal
$/gal
$
Rollers, brushes, tape, drop cloths, caulk, patching.
Labor
Who is painting?
$/sq ft
$/sq ft
Per sq ft of paintable area for a typical 2-coat job. Use local quotes if you have them.
Enter your values to see the result.
Advertisement
Advertisement
How to use the House Painting Cost Calculator
Choose interior or exterior and whether you want to measure by dimensions or type the paintable area.
Enter the sizes: room length, width and height, or the house length, width, wall height and gable ends, plus doors and windows.
Pick coats and paint grade, adjust coverage for rough surfaces and tick primer if the surface is new or stained.
Choose DIY or a painter and set the labor rate range and surface condition.
Read the estimate: gallons to buy, materials, labor and the total range, then compare paint grades in the table.
How house painting cost is calculated
A painting estimate has four parts: paintable area, paint, supplies and labor.
Interior area = 2 × (length + width) × wall height − 21 sq ft per door − 15 sq ft per window (+ length × width for the ceiling). A 14 × 12 ft room with 8 ft walls, one door and two windows: 2 × 26 × 8 = 416 − 21 − 30 = 365 sq ft.
Exterior area = 2 × (length + width) × wall height + gable triangles − openings. Each gable triangle is ½ × house width × rise, where rise = (width ÷ 2) × pitch ÷ 12. A 30 ft wide house with a 6/12 roof has 7.5 ft tall gables of 112.5 sq ft each.
Gallons = area × coats ÷ coverage per gallon, rounded up to whole gallons.
Labor = area × labor rate per sq ft × a surface-condition factor for patching or scraping.
Total = paint + primer + supplies + labor. DIY drops the labor line; hiring a painter shows a range from the low and high labor rates.
Paint coverage by surface
Surface
Typical coverage per gallon
Notes
Smooth painted drywall
350–400 sq ft
Most interior walls
New drywall (primed)
300–350 sq ft
Prime first with a drywall primer
Smooth siding (vinyl, fiber cement)
300–350 sq ft
Check the manufacturer's paint guidance for vinyl
Rough-sawn wood, cedar shingles
200–300 sq ft
Absorbent; often needs primer
Stucco, masonry, brick
150–250 sq ft
Heavy texture; use a thick-nap roller or sprayer
Spraying uses more paint than rolling because of overspray. If a painter will spray, add 20–30% to the gallons or lower the coverage figure.
Tips for a tighter painting estimate
Trim, doors and cabinets are usually priced separately per item or per linear foot. Add them to your quote request.
Prep is the hidden cost. Peeling exterior paint, wallpaper removal and drywall repair can add more than the painting itself. Use the "Poor" condition setting as a starting point.
Older homes built before 1978 may have lead paint. In the US, contractors who disturb it must follow EPA lead-safe (RRP) practices, which adds cost.
Get two or three quotes and compare them with this estimate. Ask whether paint is included and which product line the painter plans to use.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to paint a house?
It depends mostly on the paintable area and labor. Multiply the area by the labor rate (often roughly $1.50 to $3.50 per sq ft of paintable surface for a 2-coat job), then add paint, primer and supplies. A 1,200 sq ft interior with standard paint and a painter typically lands in the low thousands, while DIY costs only the materials. Get local quotes, since rates vary a lot by region.
How many gallons of paint do I need to paint a house?
Divide the paintable area by the coverage per gallon and multiply by the number of coats. At 350 sq ft per gallon, 2,000 sq ft of siding with 2 coats needs 2,000 × 2 ÷ 350 = 11.4, so buy 12 gallons (two 5-gallon buckets plus two gallons). Rough siding, stucco and brick soak up more paint, so use 200 to 300 sq ft per gallon for those.
Why is the paintable area smaller than the floor area?
For interiors it is usually larger: a 12 × 12 ft room has only 144 sq ft of floor but 384 sq ft of wall at 8 ft high. The calculator uses the wall perimeter times the height, minus 21 sq ft per door and 15 sq ft per window, and adds the ceiling only if you tick it.
Is it cheaper to paint a house yourself?
Yes, DIY removes labor, which is usually the largest part of a professional quote. You still pay for paint, primer and supplies such as rollers, brushes, tape and drop cloths. Exterior work on two-story walls may also require ladder or scaffold rental and carries a fall risk, which is why many owners hire out exteriors and paint interiors themselves.
How many coats of paint do I need?
Two coats are standard for even color and durability. One coat can work when repainting the same color over a sound surface. Three coats, or a primer plus two coats, are common for big color changes, bare drywall, raw wood or stained surfaces.
Does paint quality change the total much?
Paint is usually a smaller share of the total than labor, so moving from standard to premium paint often adds only a modest amount to a hired job while improving coverage and durability. The comparison table shows the same job at each grade so you can see the difference.
Are the default prices current?
The paint grade prices and labor rates are rough 2025–2026 US reference values. Paint prices vary by brand and sale, and painter rates vary by region and season, so replace them with your local prices or quotes for a tighter estimate.
Are all the tools on FreeToolCabin tested for quality and accuracy?
Yes! Every tool on our site undergoes automated Q/A testing in real browser environments to ensure high precision, correct output, and zero errors. If you happen to spot a bug or have a suggestion, please contact us at [email protected] and our team will review it right away.