The average cost to paint the interior of a house or room is $1 to $3 per square foot. Painters charge $1,200 to $3,900 to paint the walls in a house interior, and the cost to paint a room is $350 to $850. Prices increase when including the ceilings, baseboards, and trim. Get free estimates from interior painters near you or view our cost guide below.
One important consideration when comparison shopping for interior paint is the manufacturer’s available palette. One brand of latex paint may be significantly less expensive than others, but the tint options can be limited. There can also be a noticeable difference between one manufacturer’s “midnight blue” and another’s “Prussian blue.” There is no universal standard, so this is why sample cards and test paints are so important.
Prep the house. Wash the walls, remove wallpaper, patch, spackle, seal stains, dry and sand before you attempt to paint. Now is also the time to apply painters tape for trimming, lay drop cloths, etc. Remove all outlet and light switch face plates, collecting screws in a zip-top bag (good opportunity to wash the face plates all at once as well).[4] You can also buy your paint at this time. Don't wait until the last minute. It can take hours to mix many gallons of all your colors. Remember that traffic triples at your home-supply and hardware stores on weekends. Buy on a weekday if possible.
Even if you hire a professional, you may need to play a small role in your house painting process. This could be anything from moving your furniture to the center of the room to removing switch plates and outlet covers. Ask your painter how much prep work is expected of you before hiring. The amount of work you’re willing to do could help you narrow down the right painter for the job.
There are a number of measures you can take to prevent mold on the exterior of your home. Anti-mold paint works to stop mold from spreading. Still, anti-mold paint does deteriorate when exposed to prolonged sunlight and moisture. To prevent mold damage from spreading, it’s best to act fast. In order to ensure that all the mold is eradicated, we recommend calling a professional mold removal company.
Stripping – $54–$151/100 sq. ft.. “The principle of paint strippers is penetration of the paint film by the molecules of the active ingredient, causing its swelling; this volume increase causes internal strains, which, together with the weakening of the layer's adhesion to the underlying surface, leads to separation of the layer of the paint from the substrate.”— Wikipedia. All the stripper will do is soften the paint. You’ll still have to scrub or scrape it off.
You might pay an additional $1 to $5 per square foot for optional repairs and updates. Consider having your molding, trim and baseboards checked while you have a professional in your home. This might be a good time to upgrade or repair any cracks, warps or other issues. Pros can usually touch up or replace these items for an affordable rate, and they may even package such fixups with your project.
Some paints are two-in-one paint and primer products, or so-called "self-priming paints." These paints are designed to seal and cover surfaces in one coat. But, here's the secret: though it's called a paint-and-primer-in-one product, there's actually no primer in the mix—what you're really working with is just a thicker paint that often doesn't perform as well as using separate primer and paint.
