National price guides checked in October 2026 put the cost to paint a room professionally at roughly £250 to £600 for an average bedroom, from about £180 for a small room and up to £1,000 or more for a large living room. Doing it yourself costs about £50 to £190 for paint and tools, according to Screwfix. These are national averages, not our prices.
The figure that matters is the one for your room, and preparation moves it more than anything else. Below is what the main UK guides say, why two quotes for the same room can be hundreds of pounds apart, and how long a room actually takes.
What the national price guides say
We checked four widely used UK cost guides on 23 October 2026. They measure rooms differently and include different things, so read the last column before comparing.
| Guide | Small room | Average bedroom | Large room or living room | What the figure covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screwfix | £200 to £450 (2.2 x 2.2m) | £250 to £600 (3 x 4m) | £350 to £900 (5 x 4m) | Walls and ceilings only, minor preparation, you move the furniture |
| MyBuilder | £180 to £300 | £260 to £400 | £400 to £700 (living room) | Walls and ceiling, trade paint, room in reasonable condition |
| MyJobQuote | £175 to £300 (box room) | £250 to £400 (small bedroom) | £500 to £990 (large living room) | Based on quotes given through its platform |
| Checkatrade | £350 (8m²) | £450 (18m²) | £1,000 (30m²) | Labour and standard trade paint |
So the average cost to paint a room sits in the low hundreds for a bedroom in decent condition, and climbs from there. None of these guides gives a figure for Cambridge. MyBuilder says day rates in London and the South East run 20 to 35% above the national average, so treat any national number as a starting point rather than a local price.
| Small room (8m²) | £350 |
|---|---|
| Medium room (18m²) | £450 |
| Large room (30m²) | £1,000 |
Why two quotes for the same room can differ by hundreds
Screwfix estimates that labour makes up about 80% of the cost of hiring a decorator. That means the price is mostly a measure of time, and time depends on what the room needs before any colour goes on.
Published day rates vary too. Screwfix and MyBuilder quote £150 to £250 a day. MyJobQuote gives £150 to £250 outside London and £250 to £350 in the capital. Checkatrade puts the UK average at £300 a day, within a £250 to £350 range. A day rate tells you little on its own, because it says nothing about how many days a decorator will need.
These are the things that usually make the difference:
- Preparation. MyBuilder says preparation accounts for 40 to 60% of total labour on older properties. Filling cracks, washing down, sanding and stain-blocking all come before the first coat.
- Woodwork. Skirtings, door frames and windows are often priced separately. MyBuilder adds around £50 to £100 per room for them.
- Wallpaper. MyJobQuote puts wallpaper removal at £250 to £350, and stripping can reveal plaster that needs making good.
- New plaster. Freshly skimmed walls need a mist coat first, which MyBuilder budgets at £80 to £150 per room.
- Strong colours. Deep colours often need three coats, adding 15 to 25% to labour time, according to MyBuilder.
- Premium paint. MyBuilder says premium emulsions can add £100 to £300 to a room, and quotes an estate emulsion at around £59 for 2.5 litres against £20 to £30 for a trade equivalent.
- Ceiling height and access. Decorators generally find that period rooms with high ceilings take longer per coat and may need boards or taller access.
Older houses show this most clearly. In a Victorian house in Histon we decorated two bedrooms on their original sand and stone plaster. The walls were stripped and lined with lining paper where needed and the ceilings made good before two coats of emulsion went on, which is far more work than repainting a sound modern wall. A customer in an older Cambridge property, credited on our site as A and J, described the same thing:
It's an older property and a number of the walls required more preparation than we realised, but the team kept us informed throughout, so there were no surprises.
How long does it take to paint a room?
For a room in good condition, the guides agree on one to two days. MyJobQuote puts a standard two-coat job at one day, or two days if wallpaper has to come off first. MyBuilder says a standard bedroom takes a professional one to two days, and two to three days or more with significant preparation. It also estimates that most decorators cover around 40 square metres of wall a day.
Drying time sets the pace between coats. Little Greene's data sheet for its Intelligent Matt Emulsion gives a surface-dry time of 30 minutes and a minimum recoat time of one to four hours, and says complete cure can take three to seven days. It also advises against placing heavy objects against the surface for at least a week. Other paints differ, so check the tin.
Our own reviews show the range. Thomas Horsten, a Cambridge landlord, needed a room ready quickly:
In the evening the job had been done to my complete satisfaction, including stripping wallpaper, making good marks from shelves, and repainting the room to a very high standard.
Another Checkatrade customer, who had large cracks repaired and two rooms and an en-suite painted, wrote:
The work was carried out meticulously. I wouldn't have imagined it would take 6 days, but that was due to the thorough preparation work needed.
The difference was the size of the job and the condition of the walls.
Is it worth painting a room yourself?
Often, yes. Screwfix puts DIY materials at £50 to £110 for a small room, £65 to £140 for a medium bedroom and £90 to £190 for a large living room, and says people can save around 80% by doing the work themselves. MyBuilder's DIY breakdown for a standard bedroom comes to £65 to £135.
DIY works well when the walls are sound, you're keeping a similar colour and there's little woodwork. It gets harder when:
- cracks keep coming back, or stripped wallpaper has left the plaster loose
- nicotine, smoke or water stains need sealing so they don't bleed through
- the walls are newly plastered and need a mist coat
- you're going from a dark colour to a light one
- the room is a stairwell or has a high ceiling that needs safe access
Cutting in neatly around coving and skirtings is the skill that shows most once a room is furnished. If you're unsure, a decorator can tell you at the visit whether the room is a straightforward repaint or needs more.
What to check on a decorating quote
Two quotes are only comparable if they describe the same job. Before choosing, check:
- Which surfaces are included: walls, ceiling, skirtings, door frames, doors, windows.
- What preparation is described, as well as how many coats.
- Which paint brand and finish, and who supplies it.
- Whether moving furniture is included. MyJobQuote notes that quotes usually assume you'll clear the room, and MyBuilder says some decorators charge £20 to £50 per room for it.
- Whether the figure is fixed or an estimate that could grow.
- Whether VAT is included. A business only has to register for VAT once its taxable turnover passes £90,000 a year, according to GOV.UK, so one quote may include VAT and the next may not.
Our guide to painter and decorator costs goes into day rates versus fixed quotes in more detail, and preparing for a decorator covers what you can do beforehand to save time.
How we'd approach pricing your room
We don't publish prices, because the condition of the walls changes the cost so much. Graham visits at a time that suits you, looks at the plaster, the woodwork and the light, and sends a detailed written quotation, usually by email. We stick to it. If something unexpected turns up once paper is off, we explain it and agree any extra cost before carrying on.
On the job we sand with Mirka dust-free sanders, seal stains with Zinsser before the colour goes on, and tidy up at the end of every day. You can see finished rooms in our gallery and read what customers say on our reviews page. And you don't pay until you're happy with the finished work.
If you'd like a figure for your own room, have a look at our interior decorating service and ask Graham for a free written quotation. We work across Cambridge and the surrounding villages, including Histon and Impington.
Questions people also ask
How much does it cost to paint a ceiling?
Checkatrade's national figures put ceiling painting at £10 to £20 per square metre, with an average of £15 (checked October 2026). Most decorators include the ceiling when quoting for a whole room, so ask whether it's in.
Is it cheaper to have several rooms painted at once?
Usually per room, yes. Checkatrade notes that decorating several rooms in one go is often more cost-effective because the decorator is already on site, and MyBuilder says many decorators reduce the per-room price for several rooms in one visit.
How many coats does a room need?
Two coats is standard on a previously painted wall. New plaster needs a mist coat first, and a big colour change can need a third coat. Little Greene recommends two to three coats of its Intelligent Matt Emulsion.
Does premium paint make a big difference to the price?
It can. MyBuilder lists mid-range trade emulsion at £10 to £18 a litre and premium brands such as Farrow & Ball and Little Greene at £40 to £70 a litre. Labour stays much the same, so the difference is mainly in materials.
Can I buy my own paint?
Yes. You're welcome to supply your own materials, or we can supply everything. We'd ask that you choose good-quality paint.
Talk to Graham about your interior decorating
Graham visits free of charge, looks at the job with you and sends a detailed written quotation. You don't pay until you're happy with the finished work. We work across Cambridge and the towns and villages around it: find your area.
Sources
- How Much To Paint A Room: 2026 Cost Guide, Screwfix (checked 23 October 2026)
- Cost to Paint a Room in the UK, MyBuilder (checked 23 October 2026)
- How Much to Paint a Room? Painter & Decorator Cost Guide 2026, MyJobQuote (checked 23 October 2026)
- Painting and decorating: Cost Breakdown 2026, Checkatrade (checked 23 October 2026)
- Intelligent Matt Emulsion product data sheet (Feb 2024), Little Greene (hosted by Wood Finishes Direct) (checked 23 October 2026)
- Register for VAT: when to register, GOV.UK (checked 23 October 2026)
Written by Graham Halpenny Decorators. Third-party prices, product data and regulations are credited to their source with the date we checked them; they are not our prices. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.