Paint
Paint a room
Wall area, doors, windows, coats, and paint grade for one room.
Paint cost follows wall area, not the floor. Length, width, and height become four walls. Each door removes 21 square feet and each window removes 15, a typical 3-by-7 door and a 3-by-5 window. Count a picture window as two so you are not buying paint for glass.
Coverage is 350 square feet per gallon on smooth drywall with a normal roller. Two coats is the default. Use one coat only when the new color is close to the old one. Use three for a dark-to-light change or a patched wall that still looks thirsty.
Gallon prices are 2026 US national shelf averages. Economy is a big-box can, standard a paint-store acrylic, and premium a higher-hide brand. Supplies are tape, a sleeve, a tray, and plastic, with a small minimum. Labor is optional and is priced per square foot for two coats, then scaled for one or three. Ceilings, trim, primer, and repairs are not included.
2026 US national average
Typical total
$1,197
Materials $157Labor $1,040
- Low
- $737
- Typical
- $1,197
- High
- $1,836
Breakdown
Each line is the typical column, rounded to the nearest dollar. The low and high totals use the low and high price of every line.
Paint
2.09 gal of standard · 365 sq ft
$129Mat $129 · Labor $0
Supplies
Tape, roller sleeve, tray, and plastic
$28Mat $28 · Labor $0
Labor
365 sq ft · two-coat rate
$1,040Mat $0 · Labor $1,040
- Walls are 416 sq ft before openings. Doors take 21 sq ft each and windows take 15 sq ft each.
- Coverage is 350 sq ft per gallon. Ceilings, trim, primer, and repairs are not included.
- Labor is a 2026 US national average for brushing and rolling, not a local bid.
Worked example
A 12-by-14-foot bedroom with 8-foot walls has 416 square feet of wall. One door removes 21 and two windows remove 30, leaving 365 square feet. That is the starting input on this page.
Two coats at 350 square feet per gallon need 2.09 gallons. Standard paint at $62.00 a gallon becomes $129 after rounding. Supplies are $28, which is the minimum because the variable amount is smaller. Labor at $2.85 per square foot is $1,040.
Materials $157 plus labor $1,040 give a typical total of $1,197. The low total is $737 and the high total is $1,836. Those are the figures in the result panel when labor is on. Turn labor off and the total drops to the materials column.