There is no honest single price for painting a room, because two rooms of the same size can need very different amounts of work. The only exact figure is a fixed written quote given after someone has seen the job, and this guide explains what goes into that number so you can budget and compare quotes with confidence.
PDS Painting Birmingham is a local painter and decorator in Birmingham, and every job we take on is priced the same way: we visit, measure, check the condition of the surfaces and send a fixed quote in writing. Below you’ll find what drives the cost of each type of job, how day rates compare with fixed prices, what a good quote should contain and a few honest ways to keep the bill down.
How Much Does It Cost to Paint a Room in Birmingham?
The cost of repainting a single room comes down to labour time, and labour time comes down to three things: how big the room is, what you want painted, and the state it’s in. Painting walls and a ceiling is one job; adding the skirting, door, frame and window board can add a surprising amount of time, because woodwork is slow, careful brush work.
Here’s where the time usually goes, room by room.
| Room | What usually takes the time | What tends to add to the cost |
|---|---|---|
| Box room or small bedroom | Cutting in around a small space, the door and window | Built-in cupboards, a colour change |
| Double bedroom | Walls, ceiling and a run of skirting | Wardrobes to work around, cracks to fill |
| Living room | Larger wall area, often two windows or a bay | Picture rails, coving, chimney breasts, alcoves |
| Kitchen | Cutting in around units, tiles and appliances | Grease to wash down, stains to seal |
| Bathroom | Cutting in around tiles, fittings and the bath | Mould to treat first, moisture-resistant paint |
| Hallway | Lots of doors and frames in a narrow space | Heavy wear and scuffs to fill |
| Stairs and landing | Height over the stairwell needs proper access | Spindles, banisters and long skirting runs |
That’s why a hallway, stairs and landing often costs more than a much bigger living room. If you’re planning one room or several, our page on interior painting and decorating in Birmingham explains how we work inside occupied homes.
How Much Does It Cost to Paint the Inside of a House?
A whole-house price is built up room by room, then adjusted for the things that only show up across a full property: the hall, stairs and landing (always check whether a quote counts them), how many doors, frames and skirting runs there are, and whether you want ceilings and woodwork included or just walls.
Property type matters less than you might think. A Victorian terrace in Moseley or Kings Heath with high ceilings, deep skirting and a steep stairwell can take longer than a larger, plainer 1930s semi. A modern flat with flat walls and few period details is usually the quickest per room.
Doing several rooms in one booking tends to be more efficient than separate visits, because there’s one set-up and the work runs in sequence while earlier coats dry. A whole house usually means several days on site, and we’ll give you a timescale with your quote.
How Much Does Exterior House Painting Cost?
Outside work is priced on the area of masonry or render to be painted, plus any exterior woodwork such as fascias, soffits and timber windows and doors. The size of the walls is only part of the story, though.
Access is often the biggest single variable. A bungalow or ground-floor bay can be done from ladders; a three-storey gable may need a tower or scaffolding. Always ask whether access equipment is included in the quote or priced separately.
Condition comes next. Bare, chalky or very porous masonry may need a stabilising coat and an extra topcoat, and cracked render or rotten timber can be found once work starts. A good quote says how that kind of extra work will be agreed before it’s done. Weather also plays a part, because exterior paint can only go on in dry conditions above the minimum temperature on the tin.
For more on how we plan and carry out outside work, see our page on exterior house painting in Birmingham.
Painter and Decorator Day Rates: Per Day, Per Room or Per Job?
We price per job. After a visit, you get a fixed written quote for the work described, so the figure you agree is the figure you pay unless you ask for something extra.
Some decorators work on a day rate instead. A day rate normally covers one decorator for a standard working day; materials, travel and parking may or may not be included, so ask. Hourly rates are rare in decorating because most tasks - a coat on a wall, a set of skirting - don’t fit neatly into hours, and drying times mean work has to be planned in blocks.
A day rate can look cheaper on paper, but the risk sits with you. If the job takes an extra two days because of filling, an extra coat or bad weather, you pay for those days. With a fixed quote, the decorator carries that risk, which is why it pays them to survey the job properly before pricing it. For most homeowners, a fixed price is the safer way to buy.
Landlord and Commercial Painting Costs
Rental and business jobs are priced differently from a family home, because the turnaround time and the disruption matter as much as the square metres.
End-of-Tenancy and Rental Repaints
A typical between-tenancy repaint covers walls and ceilings in a neutral colour, stain block over marks, and touching up or repainting woodwork. The cost depends on the size of the property and how much has to happen before painting can start.
Heavy marking, nicotine staining that needs washing down and sealing on every surface, and mould that has to be treated first all add time. So does a tight deadline between one tenant leaving and the next moving in. Our page on end of tenancy and landlord painting explains how we fit work around changeovers.
Offices, Shops and Commercial Premises
Commercial work is quoted per job after a survey. The main drivers are floor area and ceiling height, whether work has to happen in the evenings or at weekends, and whether it needs phasing so you can keep trading.
The specification matters too: high-traffic corridors may need more durable coatings, and some premises need specialist finishes. Access to high ceilings, stairwells and shopfronts adds to the plan. For more detail, see our page on commercial painting and decorating in Birmingham.
Prices for Wallpapering, Woodwork, Coving, Fences and Floors
These jobs are priced in different units, so it helps to know what a decorator is counting when you ask for a quote.
| Job | How it is usually priced | What changes the price |
|---|---|---|
| Wallpaper hanging | Per room, per wall or by the number of rolls | Stripping old paper, lining first, pattern matching, feature walls |
| Timber window and door painting | Per door or per window, or as part of a room | Sash windows, panelled doors, bare or flaking timber |
| Coving installation | Per metre or per room | Corner mitres, uneven ceilings, profile size |
| Fence and decking painting and staining | Per panel, per run or by area | Old flaking finish, plants and access, stain or paint |
| Industrial floor coatings | By area after a site survey | Floor preparation, existing coatings, the coating system |
Every one of these is quoted in writing after we’ve seen it.
What Affects the Price of Painting and Decorating?
Two rooms of the same size can be priced very differently, and preparation is usually the reason. Here’s the full list of what moves a quote.
- Size and ceiling height. More wall means more paint and time. High Victorian ceilings and stairwells need platforms or towers, which take time to set up safely.
- Surface condition. Cracks to fill and sand, gaps to caulk and old flaking paint to scrape back all come before any colour goes on.
- New plaster. Freshly plastered walls need a mist coat on new plaster before the topcoats, which adds a coat to the job.
- Stains. Water marks, smoke and nicotine bleed through emulsion, so they need a coat of stain block first.
- Wallpaper. Old paper has to come off or be properly sealed - our guide to painting over wallpaper or removing it explains the choice.
- Colour change. Going from dark to light, or to a strong colour, often needs an extra coat or a basecoat.
- Paint grade and number of coats. Trade-quality paint costs more per tin but covers and wears better; two coats is normal.
- Woodwork. Spindles, panelled doors and sash windows take far longer than flat doors and plain skirting.
- Furnished or empty. Moving, covering and working around furniture adds time to every room.
- Out-of-hours working. Evening or weekend work for businesses is planned and priced accordingly.
What Should a Painting Quote Include?
The cheapest quote often leaves out the preparation, and that’s the part that decides how long the finish lasts. A clear quote should cover:
- Each room and surface to be painted (walls, ceilings, woodwork, doors)
- The preparation: filling, sanding, caulking, stain blocking, mist coats
- The products and finish for each surface
- The number of coats
- Who supplies the paint
- Whether VAT is included or added, and the total either way
- The start date and how long the work should take
- How furniture and floors will be protected
- How any extra work found on the day will be agreed before it’s done
Ask at least three decorators to price the same list of work. If one quote is far lower, check it against this list before assuming it’s better value. Our guide on how to choose a painter and decorator covers the other questions worth asking.
DIY or Hire a Decorator? Comparing the Real Cost
DIY isn’t free. Alongside the paint, you’ll need brushes, rollers and trays, dust sheets, masking tape, filler, caulk, abrasive paper and sometimes a ladder or platform. Then there’s your time, which is usually several evenings or weekends for a single room.
DIY makes sense for:
- A single bedroom in good condition
- Repainting in the same or a similar colour
- Walls and ceiling only, with little woodwork
- No deadline
It’s worth paying a decorator for:
- Stairwells, landings and high ceilings
- Rooms with lots of woodwork, panelled doors or spindles
- New plaster, or water, smoke and nicotine stains
- Big colour changes
- Tight deadlines before a move, a sale or a new tenancy
Mistakes cost money too. Paint that peels off new plaster, stains that bleed back through, or a stairwell finish full of lap marks usually means buying paint twice and doing the job again.
Simple Ways to Keep the Cost Down
- Clear the room yourself. Take down curtains, pictures and shelves, and move what furniture you can.
- Group rooms into one visit. One set-up for several rooms is more efficient than separate bookings.
- Stay with similar colours. Keeping close to the existing shade can save a coat.
- Decide finishes before the quote. Knowing the colours and sheen you want avoids changes once work has started.
- Book early. You’ll have more choice of dates, especially for exterior work in spring and summer.
One thing not to do is buy cheap paint to save money. Budget paint often needs extra coats to cover and marks more easily, so it rarely saves anything once labour is counted.
How Long the Job Takes Affects the Price
Labour time is the largest part of most painting quotes, so anything that adds hours adds cost: extra preparation, more coats, drying time between them, and access set-ups. If you’d like a feel for realistic timescales, our guide explains how long it takes to paint a room or a house.
Get a Fixed Written Quote in Birmingham
We’ll visit, take measurements, look at the condition of every surface and send a written quote listing what we’ll paint, the preparation, the products and the finish. Call 0121 752 9229 to request a free written quote.
Our painters are DBS-checked and insured, and we hold a 5.0 rating from 21 reviews on Google - you can read our customer reviews before you decide.
Related Painting Guides
- How long it takes to paint a room or a house - realistic timescales for single rooms and whole properties.
- How to choose a painter and decorator - what to check and what to ask before you book.
- Paint finishes explained - matt, silk, eggshell, satin and gloss, and where each one works.
Browse all painting and decorating guides for more advice.
Painting and Decorating Price Questions
How much does a painter and decorator charge per day in Birmingham?
Day rates vary between decorators and depend on what's included, such as materials, travel and working hours. We don't work on an open-ended day rate: we price each job as a fixed amount, set out in writing after a visit. That way you know the total before we start, and if the job takes longer than planned, that's our risk rather than yours.
How much does it cost to paint a 3-bedroom house in Birmingham?
It depends on whether you want walls and ceilings only or the woodwork too, the condition of the surfaces, any colour changes and whether the house is furnished. A three-bed semi with a tall stairwell and plenty of doors and skirting takes far longer than the room count suggests. We'll measure up and give you a fixed written quote.
How much does it cost to paint the outside of a house?
The biggest variables are access (ladders, a tower or scaffolding), how much timber woodwork there is, the condition of the masonry or render and any repairs found once work starts. The size of the walls matters, but access often moves the price more. Our exterior house painting page explains how we approach outside work.
Do painting quotes include the paint?
Not always, so ask. Most decorators prefer to supply the paint because trade-quality products cover better and wear harder than many retail tins, and they know how much the job needs. Whoever supplies it, a good quote names the products and finish for each surface. Our written quotes list the products we plan to use.
Why do decorators' quotes vary so much?
Usually because they are not pricing the same job. One quote may include filling, sanding, caulking and two full coats; another may assume one coat over unprepared walls. Product grade, woodwork and who supplies the paint also differ. Use the quote checklist on this page to put quotes side by side on equal terms.
Is it cheaper to paint an empty house?
Usually, yes. With no furniture to move, cover and work around, decorators can work continuously from room to room, and labour time is the largest part of most quotes. Empty houses also make it easier to paint ceilings and skirting in one run. If you're between tenants or about to move in, that's often the most efficient time.
Do you charge for a quote?
No. We visit, look at the rooms or outside walls, take measurements and talk through finishes, then send a written quote listing the surfaces, preparation, products and finish. Call 0121 752 9229 to arrange a visit anywhere in Birmingham, including Sutton Coldfield.