When approaching your home, you and any other visitors will first look at the front of the house. As a result, it is essential to keep the beauty of the facade of the house in good condition.
This comprises the aesthetics of the front of the house, entrance, and other home components, such as gutters and walls.
It seems like taking on this project would be a huge and expensive undertaking. This article provides a detailed breakdown of the cost to paint the exterior of a house, including suggestions for improving your exterior appearance while staying within your financial means.
Factors Affecting The Cost to Paint The Exterior of a House
It costs about $1.50 to $4.00 per square foot and may go higher or lower depending on the location and condition of the home. Different houses are made of other materials in different states and areas, varying this cost significantly.
Some of the factors that may affect the final cost to paint the exterior of a house:
1. The amount of prep work
The amount of preparation work that goes into painting an exterior, like brick houses, is significantly higher than that of an interior.
It does not include the time-consuming process of draping things that you do not want to paint on, but you may need to if there are trees nearby or items around when there is a lot of wind.
If you do the majority of the preparation work yourself, you may be able to cut down on the cost of hiring a professional. This includes cleaning the surfaces that will be painted, caulking and filling in any cracks or crevices and removing anything from the area that could get paint on it.
2. The size of the house
The size of your house directly affects the cost since the price per square or linear foot increases with an increase in size. At a rate of $3 per square feet, a paintable surface of 1200 square feet, and another of 2000 square feet, the costs will be $3600 and $6000, respectively.
3. Method of application
If you use an airless sprayer for the project, they may require twice as much paint as brushes and rollers for the same surface coverage. They apply an equivalent of two coats of paint at one time, and they may cost you $100-$400 to buy and $40 to $100 per day to hire.
Your painting company may include the cost of using the paint sprayer in their quote, but if you are DIY painting, it is crucial to know whether buying or renting one is cheaper.
4. Condition of the house
If the house’s condition is poor, the surfaces must be cleaned and fixed before painting. The walls may also have to be primed to prevent water that may have seeped into the walls from damaging the paint coat.
The paint removal cost is $3-$10 per square foot for exterior paint.
For older houses that may have had lead paint, the cost is about $8-$16 per square foot to remove the paint.
5. Type of surface
Non-porous surfaces require less paint than porous surfaces, and surfaces in good condition require less paint. When painting a surface prone to wear and tear, such as brick or concrete, you may spend more money because the surface needs to be caulked or filled before painting can begin.
Priming is required for porous surfaces before painting them because it significantly reduces the amount of paint needed.
Calculating the Amount of Paint Needed:
To find the total paintable surfaces of your house exterior, you will have to find its total area and then subtract the parts that can’t be painted, like doors and windows.
A traditional door is about 20 square feet, while a standard window is about 15 square feet. The house’s perimeter multiplied by its common height gives the total area of the basic house shape.
You will have to calculate each face area for more complex houses with many surface shapes and then add them up. After doing so, subtract the area of the windows, doors, and other surfaces that won’t be painted.
The area you find is the total paintable surface, i.e., 1800 square feet. This article gives an estimated price per square foot, i.e., $2, which you will multiply by 1800 to get $3600, which will be the total cost of the activity.
The cost of painting the trim, gutters, sidings, and other exterior features may vary. If you use different paints for these areas, calculate their total areas and subtract them from the paintable surface.
So, how much does it cost to paint the exterior of a house?
The Costs to Paint The Exterior of a House:
Various factors come into play when painting your house exterior. These significantly affect the final cost as well.
- Price according to the type of paint
Exterior paints are available in different formulas and are distinguishable from interior paints. They cost more and have more pigment and binders to make them last longer in the exterior conditions.
They are available in solvent-thinned or water-thinned formulas with three lusters; Flat or matte, semigloss and gloss.
The paint chosen will depend on the initial paint coat; latex over latex and oil-based over oil-based. Latex paints are easier to deal with and clean up, while oil-based paints are tougher, take longer to dry, and require solvents to clean up.
| Paint Type | Description | Price per/gallon |
| Oil-based paints | They have more coverage and last longer but are more prone to yellowing or cracking | $20-$70 |
| Mineral Solvent | Commonly used as a paint thinner for oil-based paint. | $15 |
| Mineral Spirit | $8 | |
| Latex Paints | It is the best use for wood siding or trim and is environmentally friendly and easy to handle | $20-$50 |
| Acrylic Latex Paints | These are good for vinyl and other glossy surfaces. They are suitable for painting your vinyl siding as they are light and adhere well to the surface. They are, however, not as long-lasting and tend to chip away over time | $20-$50 |
- Price according to the type of primer
Priming is essential, especially for porous surfaces like brick and concrete. Because the paint will be able to adhere more evenly to the surface, you will use less paint overall because the paint will not be absorbed into the surface.
You will need to prime the surface if you are also painting surfaces made of cedar, which has sap that can bleed into paint and cause discoloration. Priming the surface will prevent this from happening.
Primers are also helpful for reducing the amount of paint needed when transitioning between two extreme shade transitions, such as going from dark to light, as they help smooth the transition.
As mentioned previously, you should use the same type of primer for the same paint.
| Primer Type | Price |
| Oil-based primer | $20-$50 |
| Latex Primer | $20-$80 |
| Shellac Primer | $20-$60 |
- Price per gallon of paint
Roughly 250 to 400 square feet can be painted with one gallon. To determine how much paint you will need for the exterior of your home, you will need to multiply the number by two because it is likely that you will need to apply two coats.
It is essential to use high-quality exterior paint to achieve a finish that will last, allowing you to go longer in between painting jobs. To get the most out of the quality and color, you should look for paints with a high concentration of binders and pigments.
A gallon of paint costs about $30-$80 for a coverage of 250-400 square feet.
- Price per type of material
The exterior of a house is made of different materials that require different paint types. You may spend the following prices per square foot to paint some of the materials listed below.
| Materials | Price |
| Wood | $1-$3 |
| Brick | $1.50-$4.50 |
| Vinyl | $1.25-$4.30 |
| Concrete | $1-$3.50 |
- Price per additional features
When determining the cost to paint the exterior of the house, precise calculations will help! The price of painting trim is a gallon for every 6 gallons of wall paint.
This can be accurately calculated if you have the area of the windows, doors, and shutters and may cost $1-$4 per linear foot.
Painting gutters cost about $0.5-$0.7 per linear foot. A linear foot is about the same as a square foot, and you may estimate 60 linear feet to be the equivalent of 60 square feet.
The cost to DIY-paint your house
Before you understand the cost to paint the exterior of a house, you’ll need to figure out if you’re going to do it yourself or hire a professional
If your house is huge, you may need to involve some help from friends and family if you want to paint it by yourself. Before indulging in this activity, keep in mind a few things:
Exterior painting isn’t the same as interior painting. Interior painting is easier due to the controlled environment and easy access.
When painting your house exterior, many factors come into place. You will have to choose a few good days to paint so that the weather doesn’t hinder your progress.
You may also need ladders and scaffolds to access higher areas of your home; thus, you should factor in safety. You should be ready for an intensive job if you plan to DIY paint your house exterior but worry not; here are a few tips to get you started!
How to Professionally Paint Your Houses Exterior
It costs less to DIY paint than hiring a professional since labor is expensive and varies with the workforce, house size, and location. This project shouldn’t cost you much if you have the necessary tools and equipment.
✅Paint early in the morning. The mid-day heat will exhaust you and cause the paint layers to dry faster than you are painting.
✅Use the afternoons and evenings to prep the equipment you will use for the following day when you are painting.
✅Hire qualified handypersons if you need some budget-friendly help; They may charge per hour, i.e., $20 an hour to paint about 1500 square feet, for a duration of maybe 40 hours, totaling to $800. Hiring a professional would have cost you $0.50-$3.50 per square foot, totaling $750-$5250.
✅When undecided on the color you want, paint a small inconspicuous area and watch how it interacts with the environment at night or day and different weather and if it looks good. If it does, go for the color to avoid spending more on paint removal or covering up.
The Cost of Hiring a Professional
A hired painter may charge about $25-$75 per hour. This is rare since most painters charge according to the total project and may charge approximately $0.50-$3.50 per square foot.
If you decide to DIY paint, you will be saving this labor cost, and you may spend less, provided your expenses on the necessary tools and equipment is lower than the cost you would have paid on labor.
The cost of painting supplies
Factor in your safety and the safety of anyone else helping you in this project. Apart from this, you will also need a few more pieces of equipment to get you started.
It may cost you about $200-$300 to get the necessary supplies, not including paint and primer.
How to Save Money on a Paint Sprayer
Along with other pieces of equipment you need to acknowledge when considering the cost to paint the exterior of a house, you shouldn’t forget paint sprayers.
To know whether it is cheaper to buy an airless paint sprayer on hire one, you will have to consider the number of days the project will need and the weather conditions since you are painting the exterior.
It will be cheaper to buy an air sprayer if the hiring rates are per day, and the total number of days will give more than the cost of buying one. It is also advisable to consider the days the paint will take to dry in between coats and the changes in weather conditions as you may not use the paint sprayer for the whole day.
Let’s say you spend $60 per day to hire one for a duration of 4 days, spending a total of $240. The same paint sprayer could be costing about $200, saving you $40 that could go on material costs.
FAQs
Should I paint my house?
You may be torn between the idea of painting your house and doing with it as it is. This can be a lot to handle since the cost to paint the exterior of a house is huge, with all the different surfaces and paints involved, among other variables.
Painting your house has some advantages:
- It raises the value of your home
- Improves the curb appeal
- Protects the house from the elements and pests
- Allows you to change your home to your liking
- Protects your house from mildew growth
How often should I paint my house?
On average, you will have to paint your house every 5 to 8 years. This depends on your climate, which may reduce every 4-6 years due to excess heat, moisture, or cold, but you can check out the guide, which delves a little deeper into how often you should paint your home!
When painting your house, ensure you have done some good prep work to extend the life of your paint coats. This can also be achieved using quality paint that properly adheres to the wall.
When is the best time to paint my house exterior?
When painting your house’s exterior, you should understand that the paint job will be affected by the elements. This means that the weather conditions will largely determine the quality of your paint finish.
If it is too hot, the paint will dry too fast before finishing the layer. Blemishes like paint drip marks will be harder to fix since they dry faster than they can be attended to.
A hot weather condition also causes air bubbles in the pores of the surfaces to expand and causes bubbling of the paint. This creates blemishes on the surfaces that cause the paint to peel.
If it is wet, the paint will be affected by the running water and the impact of the raindrops on the painted surfaces. It would help if you avoided painting on rainy days.
The paint will not dry fast enough between the layers when it is too cold. This makes the paint come out in patches when another layer is added.
Typically, paint doesn’t adhere well to surfaces during cold weather since expansion and contraction rates differ.
