How much does whole house painting cost in 2026?
That is the modeled cost to deliver plus a fair contractor margin for whole house painting in the United States, not a sales quote. Built from BLS wage data, Craftsman bills of materials, and verified permit fees. 2026-07-11
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The margin is the gap between break even and a typical quote, not a markup we invent. Margins float by trade and city, with most fair jobs at a 15 to 22 percent margin on the bid, about 18 to 28 percent over the cost to deliver. Nobody works for free. Full methodology.
What whole house painting costs at your size.
Scales with project area at this metro's rate. The calculator lets you dial in your exact size.
| Size | Typical | Range |
|---|---|---|
| 1,500 sq ft | $6,409 | $5,866 to $7,759 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $7,924 | $7,253 to $9,594 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $9,440 | $8,640 to $11,428 |
| 3,250 sq ft | $11,713 | $10,721 to $14,181 |
| 3,750 sq ft | $13,229 | $12,108 to $16,015 |
Scaled from TheFatBook's per-size cost model, the same one behind the calculator.
What the 2026 data shows.
- The 2026 U.S. average whole house painting cost is $9,440, with a typical range of $8,640 to $11,428.
- Across the 20 metros TheFatBook tracks, Houston is the lowest at $8,419 and New York is the highest at $14,024.
- Figures are modeled from BLS wages, Craftsman labor hours, FRED material indices, and verified permit fees, not survey self-reports or scraped quotes.
TheFatBook models painting from Craftsman labor hours, BLS regional wages, burden, PPI-adjusted materials, permit data where available, and contractor overhead benchmarks. Cost index version: 2026-07-11. Updated Jul 2026.
Tracked markets.
| Metro | Average | Range | vs National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | $8,419 | $7,623 to $9,856 | -11% vs national |
| Dallas | $8,449 | $7,654 to $9,966 | -10% vs national |
| Miami | $8,472 | $8,010 to $10,379 | -10% vs national |
| Springfield, MO | $8,533 | $8,099 to $10,845 | -10% vs national |
| Austin | $8,706 | $7,785 to $9,967 | -8% vs national |
| Atlanta | $8,939 | $8,094 to $10,481 | -5% vs national |
| Kansas City | $9,205 | $8,612 to $11,291 | -2% vs national |
| Phoenix | $9,301 | $8,422 to $10,877 | -1% vs national |
| St Louis | $9,715 | $9,207 to $12,268 | +3% vs national |
| Portland | $9,728 | $8,947 to $11,934 | +3% vs national |
| Minneapolis | $10,065 | $9,333 to $12,472 | +7% vs national |
| Denver | $10,133 | $9,214 to $12,139 | +7% vs national |
| Las Vegas | $10,285 | $9,361 to $12,381 | +9% vs national |
| Seattle | $10,448 | $9,500 to $12,481 | +11% vs national |
| San Diego | $10,450 | $9,474 to $12,691 | +11% vs national |
| Los Angeles | $11,079 | $10,066 to $13,165 | +17% vs national |
| Philadelphia | $11,163 | $10,346 to $13,531 | +18% vs national |
| Boston | $11,372 | $10,376 to $13,764 | +20% vs national |
| Chicago | $12,076 | $11,352 to $14,675 | +28% vs national |
| New York | $14,024 | $12,797 to $16,428 | +49% vs national |
Common questions about whole house painting costs.
How much does whole house painting cost in 2026?
The U.S. average is $9,440, with a typical range of $8,640 to $11,428, modeled by TheFatBook's cost index from BLS wages, Craftsman labor hours, material price indices, and verified permit fees.
Which city is cheapest and most expensive for whole house painting?
Of the 20 metros TheFatBook tracks, Houston is the lowest at $8,419 and New York is the highest at $14,024.
Citing these numbers? Here is the source line.
Free to cite with attribution. Copy a formatted citation, or grab the HTML credit line to link back to the live data.
Source: <a href="https://thefatbook.com/painting/stats/">Average Whole House Painting Cost (2026 Data) | TheFatBook</a>- Independent FatBook v3 cost index for Whole House Painting cost data.
- BLS OEWS wage inputs (https://www.bls.gov/oes/) and FRED PPI material inflation (https://fred.stlouisfed.org/) references.
- Craftsman labor-hour references and contractor overhead benchmarks.
- Verified permit/source data from PermitCalculator.com and permits_compiled where available.