What does a painter cost? Hourly rate or price per m²

What does a painter cost per hour?

A painter on an hourly rate costs €47.50 per hour with us. For a small job without materials, a day rate of €499.99 applies. Most jobs we price per m² or per item:

Prices exclude VAT. For renovation work on a home over 10 years old, 6% VAT usually applies; otherwise 21%. The VAT rate is stated in the quote. Prices from our 2026/2027 price list, valid from 1 September 2026.

Which way of charging works out better does not depend on the hourly rate itself, but on how many hours a job takes. That is why we check at the site survey how much work there really is, before the price is finalised.

We use the hourly rate for stand-alone tasks outside a fixed m² price, for example a small extra job during the same visit. For walls, ceilings, doors and window frames we almost always work with a fixed price per m² or per item. That is clearer for you in advance than an estimate in hours.

The difference lies in who knows what it costs. With an hourly rate, the total depends on how long the job takes, and you only notice at the end. With a fixed m² price, the amount is in the quote up front, and after the site survey the final price is set.

An hourly rate is therefore neither expensive nor cheap in itself. It is a way of charging that suits small, unpredictable work, and less so a whole wall or a complete home.

What does a painter cost per m²?

Painting walls costs €12.99 per m² for one coat in RAL 9010 or 9016, the two standard whites, including Sigma paint. A second coat or a different colour is a surcharge.

Spraying costs slightly more per m² than rolling. On large surfaces, such as a stairwell or several rooms in a row, it gives an even finish without roller marks. It does take more time to mask windows, floors and frames. When choosing between spraying or rolling latex paint, that masking therefore counts.

A ceiling costs slightly more per m² than a wall, because you work overhead and the light shows up every overlap.

If you have a lot of wall area painted at once, the price per m² drops. From 250 m² we deduct €1.00 per m², from 400 m² €2.00 per m².

We take care of the paint. You do not need to buy any paint or materials yourself, and our painters work with Sigma paint. We have worked out what painting walls costs per m² for a room and for a whole home, and painting walls is also done at fixed m² prices.

A second coat is mainly needed with a big colour change or a dark colour that does not cover in one go. We decide that at the site survey, not afterwards. If the wall is new or very absorbent, a primer goes on first; that is exactly when a wall needs priming.

Spray-applied textured coating (spackspuiten), a thicker layer with a light texture, we do on request. And if you are unsure about emulsion or paint, ask us during the phone consultation.

What does a painter cost for doors, window frames and staircases?

We price woodwork per item or per metre, because a door or frame is hard to express in m². These prices apply indoors, for wood, in RAL 9010 or 9016.

The outside of windows and doors, and other exterior painting, we always do on request. The price depends on how long ago the last maintenance was, whether there is wood rot and what condition the substrate is in.

If you have window frames and doors painted, the inside gets a fixed price, and exterior painting is always on request. Having a staircase painted and having skirting boards painted simply follow the table above.

For a facade or high-up frames, scaffolding is sometimes needed. We can arrange it. The scaffolding is hired in externally, and its cost is added.

Is a painter with a low hourly rate cheaper?

Not automatically. Anyone comparing painters by hourly rate is only looking at half the sum. The other half is the number of hours, and with an hourly price you only know that afterwards.

A painting job is more than putting paint on the wall. Masking, covering floors, filling holes, checking the substrate and priming where needed all take time before the first coat of paint goes on. On an hourly basis, all those hours count, even though you do not see them in the hourly price.

Then there is what can go wrong. A second coat applied too early gives an uneven colour that you only see once everything is dry. Roller marks and overlaps stand out as soon as low sunlight rakes across the wall. If that has to be redone, with an hourly rate those are more hours again.

So do not compare the hourly price, but compare painting quotes on the total amount for the same job: the same area, the same number of coats, the same colour and the same preparation. If the preparation is not listed, ask whether it is included.

What other costs come with a painting job?

The same price list contains a few items that do not apply to every job: a small-job surcharge of €249.99 and a one-off call-out charge of €99.99. The small-job surcharge applies to an order smaller than 50 m². Whether the call-out charge applies to your job, you will see in the quote.

The site survey and wall inspection is the moment when price and schedule become final. The phone consultation beforehand, in which a project manager goes through your job, is free, and the quote you receive within 24 hours is free.

If the wall first has to be repaired or levelled before the painter starts, that is extra. Paint does not make a wall flatter: holes, joints and imperfections stay visible, and under a new coat sometimes even more than before. In that case levelling walls before painting is the first step.

Who will come and paint for you?

One of our 25 painters. Argi and Chris, for example, have been painting for us for 6 years. They are permanently employed, in a team of 97 tradespeople that also includes 40 wallpaper hangers and 32 plasterers. If plastering or wallpapering has to be done first, we only schedule the painter once the wall is ready.

Interior painting carries a 1-year guarantee, exterior painting 3 years.

On the working day we mask, cover the floors, check the substrate and prime where needed. It is best if you move large furniture out of the work area beforehand yourself. At handover we go through the work together.

If you want the quote to be right straight away, give us the m² of wall and ceiling per room, the colour, the number of doors and frames, and whether you want interior doors sprayed or rolled. We then calculate with fixed prices per m² and per item, not with an estimate in hours.

If you want to hire a painter, with us you get a fixed price instead of an estimate in hours. That applies to all interior painting work, and every line of it is public on the prices page.