Typical prices for exterior house painting
These are consumer-facing figures from 2026 cost guides, not rules. They show where the market sits so you can tell whether your price is far above or below it. All include labor and materials unless noted.
| What is priced | Published range |
|---|---|
| Whole exterior per sq ft of paintable area (HomeGuide / Angi) | $1.50 – $5.00 / $1.50 – $4.00 |
| Whole exterior, average 2,000 sq ft home (HomeGuide / Angi) | $3,000 – $10,000 / $3,000 – $8,000 (other Angi pages: $1,800 – $6,000 and $1,900 – $4,500) |
| Wood siding (HomeGuide / Angi) | $1.50 – $5.00 / $1 – $3 per sq ft |
| Vinyl siding (HomeGuide / Angi) | $1.50 – $4.50 / $1.25 – $3 per sq ft |
| Stucco (HomeGuide) | $2 – $5 per sq ft (fog coat $2 – $8) |
| Brick (HomeGuide / Angi) | $1.50 – $4.50 or $2.50 – $5 / $1.50 – $4.50 per sq ft |
| Exterior trim (HomeGuide / Angi) | $1 – $4 per linear foot (Angi: eaves, fascia, soffit $3 – $6; gables $5 – $6) |
| Front door (HomeGuide) | $100 – $225 per door |
| Garage door (HomeGuide) | $1 – $4 per sq ft |
| Paint stripping (Angi) | $0.50 – $2 per sq ft |
| Power washing prep (Angi) | $0.15 – $0.75 per sq ft |
| Primer (Angi) | $15 – $80 per gallon |
| Lead paint removal, pre-1978 homes (HomeGuide / Angi) | $6 – $17 / $8 – $17 per sq ft |
| Painter labor per hour (Angi / HomeGuide) | $25 – $100 / $25 – $75 (Angi trim page: $20 – $50) |
| Painter labor per day per worker (HomeGuide) | $200 – $500 |
The sources overlap but disagree at the edges. Angi's pages give three different totals for a typical house, which shows how much size, height and condition matter. Check several sources and your local competitors before you set a rate.
Per square foot, per hour, or per day
- Per square foot of paintable area. The usual method. Angi says painters multiply the length and height of each wall to paint, add the areas, then multiply by the rate. Windows and doors are not subtracted separately by everyone, so say which way you measure.
- Per hour or per day. HomeGuide lists $25 to $75 per hour and $200 to $500 per day per worker. Hourly pricing suits repairs and small jobs; customers prefer a fixed total for a full repaint.
- Crew time check. HomeGuide says an average home takes 2 to 4 days with two to three workers, and Angi says an experienced crew might finish a 2,400 sq ft house exterior in one or two days while a less experienced one needs three to four, weather permitting.
- Labor share. Angi (via a cost aggregator, not read directly) puts labor at 70% to 90% of the bill, so a labor misjudgement moves the margin more than a paint-price change.
What moves the price
- Stories and access. HomeGuide says multi-story homes need more paint, labor and equipment, and up to 50% more on a multi-story brick home. Add ladders, scaffolding or a lift as a separate line.
- Siding material. Stucco and brick usually cost more per square foot than vinyl or wood, and need different primer and paint.
- Prep and repairs. Peeling or flaking paint needs stripping, and a lighter color over a dark one may need primer. Angi lists repairs at $1,300 to $6,000, so inspect first and quote repairs as their own lines.
- Trim and colors. A second trim color or detailed trim adds time. Price trim by the linear foot.
- Age of the house. Pre-1978 homes may contain lead paint. Testing and removal are a specialist job, so quote them separately or decline.
- Weather and season. Paint needs dry weather and temperatures within the label range, so allow for weather days in the schedule.
Check the price against your costs
Add paid labor including drive time, paint and primer, caulk, tape, sprayer and ladder wear, insurance, fuel and overhead. See how to calculate labor cost and your overhead rate, and use the hourly rate calculator to find your floor. For the walls inside, read how to price interior painting.
A worked quote
A two-story house with 1,600 sq ft of paintable wall area and 220 linear feet of trim, using example rates (yours will differ): $2.50 per sq ft for walls, $2.50 per linear foot for trim, power wash at $0.30 per sq ft, and 300 sq ft of scraping and stripping at $1.00 per sq ft.
| Wall painting, 1,600 sq ft × $2.50 | $4,000.00 |
| Trim, 220 lf × $2.50 | $550.00 |
| Power wash prep, 1,600 sq ft × $0.30 | $480.00 |
| Scrape and strip, 300 sq ft × $1.00 | $300.00 |
| Total | $5,330.00 |
|---|
Check it against the market: $2.50 per sq ft is inside both HomeGuide ($1.50 – $5.00) and Angi ($1.50 – $4.00), $2.50 per linear foot is inside the $1 – $4 trim range, $0.30 is inside the $0.15 – $0.75 power-wash range, $1.00 is inside the $0.50 – $2 stripping range, and the total works out to $3.33 per sq ft of paintable area, inside both whole-exterior ranges. These figures are examples, not recommended prices.
Common mistakes
- Quoting from the floor area of the house instead of the paintable wall area.
- Leaving out height, repairs and prep, then absorbing them on site.
- Skipping a written estimate. Read how to write a contractor estimate for what to include.
- No deposit or change-order line. Read how to price a change order.
Turn the numbers into a quote
Build the quote with the free painting estimate maker: list walls, trim, prep and repairs as separate lines, add a deposit and save a PDF. No sign-up.
Sources
- Angi, How Much Does It Cost to Paint the Exterior of a House? [2026 Data], How Much Do Painters Charge? and Cost to Paint Trim (angi.com).
- HomeGuide, How Much Does It Cost to Paint a House Exterior? (2026), How Much to Charge for Painting and Cost to Paint a Brick House (homeguide.com).
- Labor-share and home-size table figures as summarized by a cost aggregator (exteriors.twupro.com), not read directly.
Prices are published averages read in November 2026 and vary by region. Read from search excerpts, not full pages. For planning only. This is not accounting, tax or legal advice.