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. 2026-07-21
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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 | $6,722 | $6,152 to $8,138 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $8,310 | $7,606 to $10,061 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $9,899 | $9,060 to $11,984 |
| 3,250 sq ft | $12,282 | $11,241 to $14,869 |
| 3,750 sq ft | $13,871 | $12,695 to $16,792 |
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 $9,899, with a typical range of $9,060 to $11,984.
- Across the 25 metros TheFatBook tracks, San Antonio is the lowest at $8,361 and New York is the highest at $14,801.
- 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: 2026-07-21. Updated Jul 2026.
Tracked markets.
| Metro | Average | Range | vs National |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Antonio | $8,361 | $7,647 to $10,026 | -16% vs national |
| Tampa | $8,679 | $8,077 to $10,547 | -12% vs national |
| Charlotte | $8,718 | $7,934 to $10,436 | -12% vs national |
| Raleigh | $8,789 | $7,922 to $10,322 | -11% vs national |
| Houston | $8,810 | $7,977 to $10,319 | -11% vs national |
| Dallas | $8,840 | $8,008 to $10,432 | -11% vs national |
| Miami | $8,869 | $8,384 to $10,868 | -10% vs national |
| Springfield, MO | $8,943 | $8,488 to $11,366 | -10% vs national |
| Austin | $9,107 | $8,144 to $10,431 | -8% vs national |
| Atlanta | $9,356 | $8,472 to $10,974 | -5% vs national |
| Kansas City | $9,657 | $9,035 to $11,844 | -2% vs national |
| Phoenix | $9,750 | $8,829 to $11,402 | -2% vs national |
| Columbus | $9,795 | $8,931 to $11,332 | -1% vs national |
| Portland | $10,200 | $9,381 to $12,512 | +3% vs national |
| St Louis | $10,213 | $9,679 to $12,897 | +3% vs national |
| Minneapolis | $10,566 | $9,797 to $13,088 | +7% vs national |
| Denver | $10,631 | $9,667 to $12,734 | +7% vs national |
| Las Vegas | $10,795 | $9,825 to $12,991 | +9% vs national |
| San Diego | $10,964 | $9,940 to $13,312 | +11% vs national |
| Seattle | $10,967 | $9,972 to $13,096 | +11% vs national |
| Los Angeles | $11,643 | $10,579 to $13,827 | +18% vs national |
| Philadelphia | $11,755 | $10,894 to $14,233 | +19% vs national |
| Boston | $11,956 | $10,909 to $14,461 | +21% vs national |
| Chicago | $12,723 | $11,960 to $15,444 | +29% vs national |
| New York | $14,801 | $13,507 to $17,313 | +50% vs national |
Common questions about whole house painting costs.
How much does whole house painting cost in 2026?
The U.S. average is $9,899, with a typical range of $9,060 to $11,984, 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 25 metros TheFatBook tracks, San Antonio is the lowest at $8,361 and New York is the highest at $14,801.
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.