How Much Does It Cost to Paint a House? (Price Guide)

Painting a house can mean the outside, the inside, or both, and the price changes a lot depending on which one you are asking about. The inside has more surfaces to cover, including walls, ceilings, trim, and doors. The outside has fewer surfaces but needs more prep, more equipment, and often more safety gear. Published guides rarely price the two together, so this page keeps them apart.

The tables below use figures from national cost guides, checked as of Oct 11, 2026. Home size is the starting point, then the room count, the condition of the surfaces, and the type of paint push the quote up or down. If you only need the outside, the separate guide to exterior painting goes deeper on siding types and stories.

Interior painting scales with floor space, because a larger home has more wall and ceiling area. NerdWallet reports a 1,000 square foot home at $2,000 – $6,000, a 2,000 square foot home at $4,000 – $12,000, and a 3,000 square foot home at $6,000 – $18,000. The spread inside each range is wide. A home with plain walls, one color, and empty rooms sits near the bottom. A home with many colors, high ceilings, heavy trim, and furniture to move sits near the top.

Exterior jobs run lower than interior ones in the same guide, mostly because there are fewer surfaces to cover.

For the outside, the guide reports $1,500 – $4,000 for a 1,000 square foot home, $3,000 – $8,000 for 2,000 square feet, and $4,500 – $12,000 for 3,000 square feet. These figures assume the siding is in decent shape. Rot, peeling, or old layers of paint that have to be scraped away add labor.

If you are not painting the whole house, pricing by room is more useful. This Old House lists common rooms separately.

A bedroom is on the low end, while a living room can cost well over double. Ceiling height, the number of windows and doors, and how much trim the room has explain much of the difference. Kitchens can come out cheaper than their size suggests, possibly because cabinets and tile cover much of the wall.

Some painters quote by area instead of by room. This Old House reports a whole-interior rate, plus separate rates for walls and ceilings.

Check what the square foot figure refers to before you compare quotes. One painter may measure floor space, while another measures the wall surface. A rate that looks low per square foot of wall can turn out higher than a floor-space rate once the area is multiplied out.

Labor is a large share of any painting job. This Old House reports professional painter rates per painter.

Hourly rates vary with the region and the painter's experience. Many contractors quote a flat price for the job instead, which bundles labor, paint, and supplies into one number. Ask for the quote itemized if you want to see how much goes to labor.

• Size and layout. More square footage means more paint and more time, and a house with many small rooms takes longer than an open plan.
• Surface condition. Cracks, peeling paint, stains, and damaged drywall or siding need repair before any paint goes on.
• Number of colors and coats. Switching from a dark color to a light one may need extra coats or a primer.
• Ceilings, trim, and doors. Each is priced separately by many painters, and detailed trim takes longer than flat walls.
• Paint quality. Better paint costs more per gallon but can cover better, which may save a coat.
• Height and access. Two-story exteriors, steep lots, and high interior ceilings call for ladders or scaffolding.
• Furniture and prep. Moving furniture, taping, and covering floors take time and may be billed.
• Older homes. Houses built before 1978 may contain lead paint, which has special rules for safe work. The EPA lead program explains what to expect.

The three sources below describe different jobs. NerdWallet reports a lower exterior range, while This Old House and Networx report higher ones. The differences may come from how each source defines a typical home, whether prep and power washing are included, and which regions the data covers.

Read the label on each source to see what it measures. A quote that includes repairs and two coats will land well above one that covers a single coat on sound surfaces.

Doing both at once can save a second mobilization fee with some painters, and a few offer a package price. Exterior work depends on the weather and the season, while interior work can happen any time of year. If budget is tight, the outside usually protects the home from moisture and sun damage, while the inside is more about appearance. Neither order is wrong, but peeling exterior paint tends to get worse the longer it waits.

Painting a single room is a common DIY project, and the main costs are paint, brushes, rollers, and tape. A whole interior takes much longer to do well, and the outside adds ladder work that carries a real risk of falls. Pros bring speed, equipment, and clean edges. Ask any painter you hire about their license or insurance where your state requires it, and get the scope in writing.

• Does the price include prep, primer, and the number of coats?
• Are ceilings, trim, doors, and closets included?
• Which brand and line of paint is quoted?
• Who moves the furniture and covers the floors?
• What warranty covers peeling or blistering, and for how long?