Everyday & industry

Painting Estimate Calculator

Estimate paint quantity, materials, labor, total job cost and quote price. Compare markup, target-margin pricing and the impact of one additional coat.

Use this calculator to estimate a painting job from surface area, number of coats, paint coverage, labor, materials, overhead and your desired profit.

Actual paint coverage, preparation time and labor requirements vary by surface condition, paint type, application method and job complexity. Use your own assumptions. Job type is descriptive only.

The dollar sign is generic: use one currency throughout. Blank optional costs count as zero. Enter paintable surface area directly; this Tool does not derive area from room dimensions or preset local rates.

Calculations run locally in your browser. Your inputs are not saved.

Enter your painting assumptions and choose a quote mode.

Calculation Mode

Job details

Job Type

Descriptive only. Job type does not affect prices or hours.

Paint

Paintable Surface Area

Number of Coats

Paint Coverage per Gallon

Use the coverage rate you expect for the product and surface.

Materials

Paint Cost per Gallon

Paint

Material Waste %

Materials

Primer Cost

Other Materials / Supplies

Examples: tape, plastic, rollers, brushes, caulk, trays and consumables.

Labor

Number of Painters

Hours per Painter

Labor Cost per Painter per Hour

Use your loaded labor cost or internal labor-value assumption.

Additional direct costs

Travel / Vehicle Cost

Equipment / Rental Cost

Other Direct Cost

Overhead

Overhead Allocation Method

Overhead %

Pricing approach

Pricing Method

Markup %

Optional adjustments

Customer supplies paint

Paint quantity estimate shown for planning only; paint cost excluded from contractor cost when selected.

Sales Tax Rate %

Optional customer-total estimate only. Verify the tax treatment that applies to your business and jurisdiction.

Example: Interior Painting Estimate

Example only: 1,500 sq ft × 2 coats ÷ 350 sq ft per gallon = 8.5714 base gallons. With 10% waste, 9.4286 adjusted gallons round up to 10 whole gallons. At $45 per gallon, paint costs $450. Two painters × 16 hours = 32 labor hours; at $30 per hour, labor is $960. Add $75 in other supplies and $30 in travel for $1,515 direct cost. A 15% overhead allocation adds $227.25, giving $1,742.25 total job cost. A 30% markup gives an unrounded quote of $2,264.925 (displayed as $2,264.93), profit of $522.675 (displayed as $522.68) and approximately 23.08% margin.

About this calculator

How painting estimates work

Whole-gallon purchasing can create step changes in material cost even when calculated paint usage changes only slightly.

Markup and margin are different. This calculator supports both approaches.
This tool provides a planning estimate and does not determine local market pricing.
An additional coat changes paint requirements and overhead on direct cost. Labor changes only when you enter aggregate additional labor hours.

Customer-supplied paint and sales tax

Customer-supplied paint excludes only paint cost; primer and other materials remain in your estimate. Optional tax is a customer-total estimate, not revenue or profit. Verify the tax treatment that applies to your business and jurisdiction.

Planning estimate only, not a local market price, site assessment, supplier recommendation or tax/accounting advice. No customer records, saved quotes, accounts or external integrations are used.