Work out a painting bid in seconds: paintable area, gallons of paint, labor hours and the total price for an interior or exterior job, plus a quote line you can paste into your estimate.
For painters and painting contractors · updated October 2026
An estimate. Gallons are rounded up; trim, repairs and access equipment are not included.
How to use this painting cost calculator
- Pick Interior or Exterior, then measure by room or house dimensions, or type the paintable square feet if you already have them.
- Enter the number of doors and windows. The calculator takes out 21 sq ft per door and 16 sq ft per window. For a room, tick the ceiling box if it's in the job.
- Choose the number of coats, the coverage on the can and your paint price. Add primer if the surface needs it.
- Price labor your way: hours × your hourly rate (from your production rate), or a flat price per square foot.
- Add your materials markup, check the total bid and the price per square foot, then copy the quote line into your estimate or invoice.
How to estimate a painting job
Every painting estimate comes down to three numbers: how much surface you'll cover, how much paint that takes, and how long it takes you. The calculator works through them in that order.
Worked example: a 14 × 12 ft bedroom
Walls are 8 ft high, with one door and two windows. Two coats, paint that covers 350 sq ft per gallon at $40, a 20% materials markup, a production rate of 100 sq ft per hour, 2 hours of prep and cleanup, and $50 an hour.
- Wall area: 2 × (14 + 12) × 8 = 416 sq ft. Minus one door (21) and two windows (32) leaves 363 sq ft.
- Paint: 363 × 2 ÷ 350 = 2.07 gallons, so you buy 3 gallons. At $40 that's $120, or $144 with the 20% markup.
- Labor: 363 × 2 ÷ 100 = 7.26 hours, plus 2 hours of prep = 9.26 hours. At $50 an hour that's $463.
- Total bid: $144 + $463 = $607, which works out to about $1.67 per sq ft of paintable area.
Your production rate is the number that matters most. Rather than guessing it, time a few of your own jobs. Divide the wall square feet you painted by the hours it took, and average several rooms. One painting estimating guide that did this measured 140, 152 and 168 sq ft per hour, for an average of 153.
Painting price per square foot and other typical rates
These are national ranges from cost guides and pro pricing guides we checked in October 2026. Local prices vary a lot, so treat them as a sanity check for your own numbers, not a price list.
| Item | Typical range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Interior labor, per sq ft of wall area | $1 – $3 | HomeGuide |
| Interior, all-in per sq ft | $1.50 – $3.50 ($3 – $4 with trim and ceilings) | Jobber |
| Exterior, all-in per sq ft | $1.50 – $5 | HomeGuide |
| Painter hourly rate | $20 – $50 interior, $25 – $75 exterior | HomeGuide |
| Production rate | 80 – 120 sq ft per hour | HomeGuide |
| Paint coverage | 350 – 400 sq ft per gallon | Sherwin-Williams |
| Exterior paint coverage | 250 – 400 sq ft per gallon, one coat | Jobber |
| Primer coverage | 200 – 300 sq ft per gallon | Sherwin-Williams |
| Paint price per gallon | $15 – $50 interior, $20 – $80 exterior | HomeGuide |
| Minimum job price | $250 – $500 | HomeGuide, Housecall Pro |
Coverage drops on rough, porous or textured surfaces, so use the low end for stucco, bare wood or fresh drywall. Sherwin-Williams' own paint calculator uses the same 350–400 sq ft per gallon range for paint.
How much to charge for painting
There are two common ways to price, and the calculator does both.
- Hours × rate. Best when you know your production rate. It protects you on rooms with lots of cutting in, high walls or heavy prep, because the hours go up with the work.
- Price per square foot. Faster to quote and easy for clients to compare. It works when your jobs are similar. Check it against your hourly numbers now and then, because a low per-foot price on a fiddly job can leave you working for very little.
Whichever you use, cover your costs before you think about profit. Housecall Pro's painting price guide works backward from a target margin, commonly 20% to 40%:
With a break-even cost of $500 and a 30% target margin, the price is $500 ÷ 0.70 = $714.29. Jobber's painting guide cites a goal of 50% gross profit from a painting business coach. A markup is not the same as a margin: a 20% markup on materials is a 16.7% margin. The markup calculator converts one to the other.
Set a minimum charge for small jobs, too. Both HomeGuide and Housecall Pro put typical minimums at $250 to $500, because a single accent wall still takes a trip, setup and cleanup.
What homeowners usually pay for painting
If a client asks how your bid compares, these are the national ranges they'll see in cost guides. They include labor and materials.
| Job | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Bedroom | $350 – $850 |
| Living room | $600 – $2,000 |
| Whole interior, 2,000 sq ft house | $6,000 – $8,000 |
| Exterior, 2,000 sq ft house (about 1,700 sq ft paintable) | $2,600 – $8,500 |
| Exterior, per sq ft | $1.50 – $5 (wood $1.50 – $5, brick $2.50 – $5) |
Sources: HomeGuide's interior and exterior painting cost guides. Housecall Pro's 2026 guide gives $2 to $6 per sq ft for interiors and $1.50 to $4 for exteriors. HomeGuide also notes that labor makes up 70% to 85% of a typical interior paint job, which is why your production rate drives the price more than the paint does.
Common mistakes when bidding a paint job
- Pricing floor area instead of wall area. A 168 sq ft bedroom floor can mean 363 sq ft of walls. If you quote per sq ft, say which one you mean.
- Forgetting coats. Two coats means twice the paint and close to twice the rolling time. The calculator multiplies both.
- Leaving out prep. Moving furniture, masking, patching and cleanup take real hours. Add them as prep hours or build them into your per-foot price.
- Not rounding paint up. You can't buy 2.07 gallons. The calculator rounds up to whole gallons.
- Selling paint at cost. You pick it up, carry it and stand behind it. A materials markup covers that time and the leftover you can't use.
- One price for every surface. Ceilings, trim, doors and textured walls go slower. Price them as separate lines rather than averaging them into the walls.
How to put a painting estimate on an invoice
Quote first, then invoice the same lines once the job is done. You can send the quote as a regular document or message; our guide to estimates vs invoices explains the difference. Use the calculator's numbers as line items, each one quantity × rate:
- Interior painting labor, 14 × 12 ft bedroom, 2 coats: 9.26 h × $50 = $463
- Interior paint: 3 gal × $48 = $144
- Add primer, ceilings, trim or repairs as their own lines.
In Onigiri, add these line items to your invoice, apply any tax rate or discount, and send it by email, as a link or as a PDF. The free plan covers 3 invoices a month with no credit card. With PRO you can save painting services as item templates and take card payments through your own Stripe account. For a one-off, the free invoice generator makes a PDF without sign-up, and the contractor invoice template shows a clean layout for trade jobs.
Painting cost calculator FAQ
How do I estimate a painting job?
Measure the wall area, subtract doors and windows, and multiply by the number of coats. Divide by the paint's coverage to get gallons, divide by your production rate to get hours, then add materials, labor and your markup.
What is the painting price per square foot?
Cost guides put interior labor at about $1 to $3 per square foot of wall area and exterior painting at about $1.50 to $5 per square foot, labor and materials included. Your own price should come from your costs and production rate.
How many square feet does a gallon of paint cover?
Sherwin-Williams says a gallon of paint typically covers about 350 to 400 square feet, and a gallon of primer about 200 to 300. Rough or porous surfaces take more.
How many square feet can a painter paint per hour?
HomeGuide puts it at 80 to 120 square feet of flat surface per hour once furniture is moved and prep is done. Time your own jobs to get a rate you can bid on.
How much should I charge per hour for painting?
HomeGuide lists painter rates of $20 to $50 an hour for interior work and $25 to $75 for exterior work. Make sure your rate covers your overhead and profit, not just your wage.
Should I mark up paint on my estimate?
You can, and the calculator has a materials markup for it. Buying, hauling and storing paint takes time, and HomeGuide notes that professional painters get up to a 50% discount on paint. Show the paint as its own line at your marked-up price per gallon.
How do I subtract doors and windows from wall area?
A common rule of thumb is 21 square feet per door and 16 square feet per window. For large openings such as patio doors or picture windows, measure them and subtract the real size.
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Bid it, then invoice it
Add labor and paint as line items, send the invoice by email or link, and get paid by card with PRO.
