Interior painting costs $3,500 to $10,000 for a whole house and $350 to $850 for an average room, by national figures published for 2026. We do not publish a Detroit price list, because the walls set the price. Old plaster, tall stairwells and wide wood trim are common here, and each one changes the hours.
Price ranges on this page are national figures published by HomeGuide for 2026. They are not our quotes. Local labor, paint prices and the condition of your own surfaces move the number up or down. Last checked October 2026.
How much does it cost to paint the interior of a house?
Nationally, it costs $3,500 to $10,000 to paint the interior of a house, with a national average of $7,500. HomeGuide lists a low of $2,000 and a high of $15,000. Its figure per room is $350 to $850.
A lot of Detroit houses sit on the harder side of that range for the same floor area. A 1920s foursquare has plaster walls with cracks to repair, nine foot ceilings, a stairwell, deep baseboards and many doors and windows to cut around. A 1950s ranch with flat walls and simple trim is quicker. We cannot say where your house falls until we have walked it.
How much does it cost to paint a room?
It costs $300 to $1,000 to paint one room on average, by HomeGuide's room page, with a national average of $750. The price depends on the kind of room.
| Room | National range |
|---|---|
| Bathroom | $150 to $400 |
| Kitchen walls | $150 to $250 |
| Bedroom | $350 to $850 |
| Primary bedroom | $650 to $1,400 |
| Living room | $600 to $2,000 |
| Dining room or hallway | $300 to $1,000 |
| Open basement | $800 to $2,500 |
The same source says painters often have a minimum project fee of $250 to $500 or more. That is why one small bathroom can cost more per square foot than a whole floor.
How much does it cost to paint a 1,500 or 2,000 square foot house inside?
For a 1,500 square foot house the national range is $4,500 to $6,000, and for a 2,000 square foot house it is $6,000 to $8,000. Those figures come from HomeGuide's interior painting page and go by floor area.
| House size | National range |
|---|---|
| 1,000 sq ft | $3,000 to $4,000 |
| 1,200 sq ft | $3,600 to $4,800 |
| 1,500 sq ft | $4,500 to $6,000 |
| 1,800 sq ft | $5,400 to $7,200 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $6,000 to $8,000 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $7,500 to $10,000 |
| 3,000 sq ft | $9,000 to $12,000 |
HomeGuide's separate page on room painting gives a lower and wider range for a 2,000 square foot house: $1,600 to $5,600. The two pages do not agree, which tells you how much the scope matters. Walls only is one job. Walls, ceilings, trim and doors is another.
How much does it cost to paint a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house?
A 3 bedroom house costs $1,200 to $8,500 to paint inside, by the national figures. The same table gives $1,000 to $6,400 for a 2 bedroom house and $2,000 to $10,000 for a 4 bedroom house.
The range is wide because bedrooms are only part of the house. You can build a rough figure from the room table above: three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, a kitchen and a hallway each have their own published range. Add them for your own list of rooms, then remember that those are national numbers and not our quote.
How much do painters charge per square foot?
Painters charge $1 to $3 per square foot of wall and ceiling surface, or $3 to $7 per square foot of floor space, by the national figures. Be sure which one a quote uses. A 12 by 12 room has 144 square feet of floor but about three times that in wall area.
| What is painted | National figure per square foot of surface |
|---|---|
| Walls only | $1.00 to $2.00 |
| Add ceilings | plus $1.00 to $2.00 |
| Add texture work | plus $0.80 to $2.00 |
HomeGuide lists painter labor at $20 to $50 per hour on its interior page and says labor is 70% to 85% of the total. Paint is the smaller part of the bill.
Do painters charge by the room or by the square foot?
Both. Most painters measure the surfaces, work out the hours and then give you one price for the job or a price by the room. Few bill by the hour for a whole house.
A price by the room is easy to compare. A price by the square foot is fairer when rooms are very different sizes. Either is fine as long as the quote says what is included: walls, ceilings, trim, doors, closets, repairs and the number of coats.
Does it cost more to paint ceilings as well as walls?
Yes. Painting ceilings costs extra, at $1 to $2 per square foot by the national figures. HomeGuide's ceiling page lists a bedroom ceiling at $100 to $300 and a living room ceiling at $300 to $800.
Textured and popcorn ceilings cost more, at $1.00 to $3.50 per square foot, because they soak up paint and cannot be rolled quickly. Many older Detroit homes have plaster ceilings with cracks or old water stains, and those need repair and a stain-blocking primer first.
How much extra is it to paint trim, doors and baseboards?
Trim and baseboards cost $1 to $4 per linear foot to paint, or $500 to $2,000 for a house, by the national figures. Interior doors are listed at $75 to $150 each.
| Item | National figure |
|---|---|
| Baseboards and trim | $1 to $4 per linear foot |
| Crown molding | $1 to $5 per linear foot |
| Interior door | $75 to $150 each |
| Interior window frame | $25 to $100 per window |
| Window with sash and mullions | $50 to $120 per window |
Trim is a big part of the job in a prewar Detroit house. Wide casings, picture rails, built-ins and old wood windows take far longer than the flat walls beside them. Turning stained trim into painted trim also needs sanding and a bonding primer, so it costs more than a repaint.
How much extra do high or vaulted ceilings and stairwells cost?
High ceilings add 10% to 50% or more to the price of a room, by HomeGuide's figure for ceilings above 10 feet. It publishes no dollar amount, so we price tall rooms after we see them.
For stairwells the same source prices by the linear foot of wall and by height: $16 for walls 8 to 13 feet high, $20 for 13 to 17 feet, $24 for 17 to 19 feet and $30 above 19 feet. A two-story stairwell needs planks or staging, and setting that up safely is where the time goes.
Does it cost more to go from a dark color to white?
Usually yes, because it takes more coats. No published dollar figure exists for a color change. HomeGuide only notes that going from light to dark or dark to light may need extra coats, which adds paint and labor.
Covering a dark color with white often takes a tinted primer and two finish coats. Deep reds, navy and dark green are the hardest. Tell the painter the old and new colors when you ask for a quote so the extra coat is priced in from the start.
How much more does it cost if the walls need a lot of prep?
A lot of prep can add a real share to the bill. The national figure for sanding and patching is $1 to $3 per square foot of the area repaired, and drywall repair is listed at $300 to $1,500 or more as a separate job.
In Detroit the usual prep items are plaster cracks, loose plaster at ceilings, old wallpaper, nail pops and stains from past roof or plumbing leaks. Surface prep such as patching, sanding, caulking and priming is part of our quotes. Heavy repair, such as re-fastening plaster or skim coating a whole wall, is listed as its own line so you can see it.
Does the price include moving furniture and covering floors?
With us, yes. We move and cover furniture and protect floors, and we ask you to put away small and fragile items first. Check this point on every quote you get, because not every painter includes it.
HomeGuide lists moving furniture at $35 to $60 per hour where it is charged as an extra. A room that is empty on the day is always quicker to paint than a full one.
Why are my painting quotes so far apart?
Painting quotes end up far apart because they are rarely for the same job. One painter prices two coats, repairs and trim. Another prices one coat on the walls and nothing else.
- How many coats, and whether primer is included.
- Walls only, or ceilings, trim, doors and closets too.
- How much patching and sanding is allowed for.
- The grade of paint.
- Whether furniture is moved and floors are covered.
- Lead-safe work on a home built before 1978.
- Whether the company carries insurance.
Put the quotes side by side and compare them line by line. The lowest total usually leaves something out.
How do I know if a painting quote is fair?
A painting quote is fair when it is written, complete and close to other complete quotes for the same scope. It should list the rooms, the surfaces, the prep, the number of coats and the paint.
You can set it against the national ranges on this page as a rough check only. A quote above the range is not wrong if the house has tall plaster walls and a lot of trim. A quote far below all the others deserves questions about coats and prep.
A free estimate with a written quote is the only way to get a real price for your job. Call or text (313) 209-8467.