Cost Guide · Updated August 2026
Painting and Decorating Cost UK 2026: Painter & Decorator Day Rates
A painter & decorator charges £180–£280/day in 2026, with a typical 3-bed semi interior repaint and re-decoration coming in at £2,500–£5,500 for paint, wallpaper, prep and plaster repair. This guide covers day rates, per-room pricing, wallpapering and prep, and what the combined “painter and decorator” trade actually includes — distinct from a pure painting quote.
Get Free Quotes →Painting and Decorating Cost — UK 2026
| Job | Typical Cost | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Painter & decorator day rate | £180–£280/day | Per person |
| Single room repaint + minor decor (walls, ceiling, woodwork) | £380–£650 | 1.5–2.5 days |
| Single room with wallpaper hang (1 feature wall) | £520–£900 | 2–3 days |
| Room with full plaster repair + skim + paint | £750–£1,400 | 3–5 days |
| Hallway, stairs & landing decor (incl. high-level access) | £600–£1,200 | 2–4 days |
| 3-bed semi — full interior repaint + decor | £2,500–£5,500 | 10–18 days |
| 4-bed detached — full interior repaint + decor | £4,000–£8,500 | 15–25 days |
| Exterior decor (render paint, windows, fascias, doors) | £1,800–£4,500 | 4–8 days |
| Wallpaper hanging only (per roll, hung) | £25–£45/roll | ~1 day/room |
Prices include paint (Dulux Trade or equivalent), basic filler/caulk, dust-sheets, masking and a clean handover. Premium paints (Farrow & Ball, Little Greene) add £30–£60 per 2.5L tin over Dulux Trade. Wallpaper is typically supplied by the homeowner; the figures above are the hanging labour only.
Last updated: 5 September 2026. London & South East rates run 20–30% above the figures shown.
Painter & Decorator: What the Combined Trade Covers
A “painter and decorator” quote covers more than just brushwork. The full combined trade typically includes:
Preparation (40–55% of labour time)
- Filling, caulking & sanding — cracks, nail holes, gaps to skirting
- Minor plaster repair — up to 0.5m² patches without re-skim
- Stain-blocking & mist coats on new plaster or water marks
- Removing existing wallpaper (steam & scrape)
- Masking, dust-sheeting and protecting floors
- Lining paper for poor walls before paint or paper
Application
- Paint application — 2 coats walls, 2 coats woodwork, ceiling cut-in
- Wallpapering — pattern match, paste-the-wall & paste-the-paper hangs
- Specialist finishes — eggshell, lime wash, chalk paint, dead-flat emulsion
- Woodwork & trim — skirting, architrave, doors, dado rails
- Radiator removal & refit for painting behind
- Final clean and handover
Tip: a separate plasterer is needed for full re-skims or walls over 0.5m² of damage. A separate carpenter is needed for new skirting or architrave. A good painter & decorator will tell you upfront.
What drives a painting and decorating quote
Two quotes for the “same” repaint can land a long way apart, and it’s almost always about preparation rather than the paint. The state of your walls is the single biggest variable: sound walls that need only filler and caulk paint up quickly, while flaking paintwork, wallpaper that’s been painted over, or water staining all have to be stripped, stain-blocked or lined before a brush touches them. Prep is 40–55% of the labour time on a typical job, so a quote that looks noticeably cheap has usually trimmed it — and it shows within a couple of years.
After wall condition, the things that push a decorating price around are height and access (stairwells and landings need towers or poles, which is why they carry their own line), the number of colours and how much careful cutting-in that means, and the amount of woodwork — skirting, architrave, doors and dado rails all add brush time. Paint grade matters too: trade emulsion covers and wears better than budget retail tins, while premium ranges add roughly £30–£60 a tin without changing the labour. If a wall needs more than a patch repair, a full re-skim is a plasterer’s job rather than a decorator’s — our plastering cost guide covers that — and if you’re papering rather than painting, the wallpapering cost guide breaks the hanging labour down by paper type.
Painter & Decorator Day Rates by UK Region
| Region | Day Rate (1 P&D) | vs UK Average |
|---|---|---|
| London | £240–£320 | +30% |
| South East | £220–£300 | +20% |
| South West | £195–£260 | +5% |
| Midlands | £180–£240 | Baseline |
| North / Yorkshire | £165–£220 | −8% |
| Wales | £170–£225 | −5% |
| Scotland | £175–£230 | −5% |
Materials cost the same nationally; the variation is almost entirely labour. London is consistently 25–30% above the UK baseline for general decor work. PDA (Painting & Decorating Association) members tend to sit at the top of the regional range but carry workmanship guarantees.
Registered members: Painting & Decorating
10 businesses offering painting & decorating have a public profile with BestBuilders. Each listing is a business that registered with us directly; the details shown are the ones it declared at registration, and a Companies House number appears only where one was given.
All registered trades · Recent projects · Run a painting & decorating business? Add your free profile
What homeowners asked us for — Painting & Decorating (last 90 days)
537 homeowners started a quote request for painting & decorating through the BestBuilders quote tool between 3 Jul – 1 Oct 2026, UK-wide. These are their own answers to the tool’s questions, aggregated and anonymised — not a model, not an estimate.
What type of property is this for?
- 71% House
- 24% Flat or Apartment
- 2% Commercial Property
- 3% Other
264 answers
How many bedrooms does the property have?
- 44% 3 bedrooms
- 23% 4 bedrooms
- 18% 2 bedrooms
- 9% 5 or more bedrooms
163 answers
Which of the following do you require?
- 59% Painting only
- 21% External painting
- 11% Painting and decorating
- 4% Decorating only
135 answers
Do you require wallpaper?
- 93% No
- 3% Not sure
- 3% Yes
123 answers
Source: BestBuilders quote-tool answers, 3 Jul – 1 Oct 2026. Percentages are of the homeowners who answered each question; figures update daily. See the UK homeowner demand index for every trade.
Painting And Decorating Cost FAQs
How we produced these figures
The cost ranges on this page come from BestBuilders’ 2026 regional cost model: published national cost guides adjusted by a regional labour index and averaged across 519 UK towns, then reviewed against published trade pricing. They are indicative ranges for a typical specification, not quotes — access, finish level and the builder’s workload move real prices either way.
Regulatory points (planning, Building Regulations, grants and VAT) are checked against current UK government guidance. Last reviewed: 5 September 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us via the form above.
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Painter day rates — guides and detail
The detail behind the number: what changes the price, the planning position, and how to check a quote before you accept it.