Painting and decorating looks straightforward to price. You look around the room, take a rough mental measurement, multiply by your daily rate and add a bit for paint. Except the mental measurement is always slightly off, the paint calculation is usually based on generous manufacturer coverage claims that don't survive contact with a textured wall, the prep time is only half of what the room actually needs, and the customer's chosen colour is a deep charcoal that's going to need three coats to achieve proper coverage.
The result is that decorators — more than almost any other trade — consistently work for less per hour than they quoted. Not through any failure of skill, but through imprecise quoting on a job type where the details really matter.
AccuQuote was built with 200+ UK tradesmen — painters and decorators included — who were all making the same mistakes. This guide covers what you're missing, how to calculate paint jobs accurately, and how to get a professional quote in front of the customer before you leave.
Why Painters Underquote
The most common reasons decorating quotes come in lower than they should:
- Prep time is always underestimated. A room with existing gloss woodwork that needs flatting back, a couple of filled holes, a patchy ceiling from the old light fitting, and nicotine-stained walls will take twice as long to prep as a new-build room. Prep is where decorators lose money, because it's the unglamorous part and it's hard to quantify in a quote.
- Paint coverage on manufacturer tin labels is optimistic. Dulux states 17m² per litre on smooth, non-porous surfaces for some emulsions. In the real world, on textured walls or ceilings, you'll get 10–13m² per litre. If your quote assumes the tin's stated coverage and you need 40% more paint than calculated, that margin disappears.
- Deep colours need more coats. Going from magnolia to a deep teal or charcoal? Three coats, sometimes four. Going from dark to light? You might need a mist coat first, then two full coats. Quoting for two coats on a dark-to-light job is the single most expensive mistake a decorator can make.
- Woodwork is always more time-consuming than walls. Skirting boards, door frames, architraves, window boards — cutting in carefully takes time. A room with a bay window and two doors has far more linear metres of woodwork than a plain box room.
- Furniture moving and protection. If the customer's furniture is staying in the room, you're working around it. Sheeting up properly, moving a settee to get behind it, working carefully near the dining table — this adds real time and it's rarely priced in.
The prep rule: A good guide is that prep should take 30–40% of total job time. If your quote assumes prep is 15% and it turns out to be 40%, you've lost a day you didn't price for. AccuQuote builds prep time into every quote based on room condition, background type and existing finish.
How to Calculate a Painting Quote Properly
Here's the methodology a good decorator — or good quoting software — should use:
Step 1: Measure accurately
Wall area = perimeter of room × ceiling height, minus doors and windows. Ceiling area = floor area (approximately). AccuQuote's LiDAR scan captures these automatically. For a typical bedroom: 4.2m × 3.6m room with 2.4m ceiling height = roughly 53m² of wall and 15m² of ceiling = 68m² paintable surface.
Step 2: Adjust for coverage
Use real-world coverage figures, not tin labels. A 5L tin of Dulux Easycare at 10m² per litre covers 50m² — enough for one coat in the bedroom above. Two coats = two tins (plus overage). If going dark-over-light or vice versa, add a third tin. These are the numbers to put in the quote, not "some paint".
Step 3: Price labour by the component
Don't just estimate days — break labour into components. Prep: filling, sanding, masking. Ceiling: cut in and roll. Walls: cut in and roll (per coat). Woodwork: undercoat and top coat per length. This gives you a defensible, accurate figure rather than a guess.
Step 4: Charge for materials separately
Materials should be an explicit line item. Some decorators prefer to supply paint and charge a markup; others prefer the customer to supply. Either way, it needs to be clear in the quote. A 5L tin of Dulux Easycare Matt costs £35–42 at Dulux Decorator Centre or Brewers. A tin of Dulux Satinwood costs £30–38/2.5L. These are real costs that should be in the quote with specific products named.
How AccuQuote Helps Painters Price Jobs
AccuQuote's workflow for a typical decorating survey:
- Scan the room. LiDAR captures floor area, ceiling height, and identifies windows and door openings. Wall area, ceiling area and linear metres of woodwork are calculated automatically.
- Describe the scope. "Bedroom redecorate. Two coats emulsion to walls and ceiling. One coat satinwood to all woodwork including two doors and bay window boards. Prep required — fill and sand. Customer supplying Farrow & Ball paint — allow for extra coat." The AI parses this and builds the quote scope.
- Review paint quantities. Based on the scanned room dimensions and the described scope, AccuQuote calculates the number of tins required with real coverage figures — and flags where an extra coat is needed based on the background or colour type you described.
- Add prep time. Specify background condition: new plaster, existing painted, textured wallpaper over, or nicotine-stained. AccuQuote adjusts prep hours accordingly.
- Send the quote. PDF with itemised materials (paint tins, brushes, rollers, masking tape, filler, dustsheets) and labour by component. Professional, branded, ready to send from the site visit.
Example: Full Bedroom Redecorate Quote
A realistic quote for a master bedroom redecorate — walls, ceiling, all woodwork, two internal doors, bay window boards. Existing painted finish in reasonable condition. Customer supplying Farrow & Ball estate emulsion for walls (deep colour, requires three coats). Decorator supplying ceiling white and woodwork satinwood.
| Item | Supplier / Product | Qty | Unit Cost | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dulux Pure Brilliant White ceiling paint 5L | Dulux Decorator Centre | 1 | £32 | £32 |
| Dulux Easycare Satinwood 2.5L (white) | Brewers Decorator Centres | 2 | £33 | £66 |
| Zinsser Bulls Eye primer 1L (for knots/stains) | Toolstation | 1 | £18 | £18 |
| Polycell Fine Surface Filler 500g | Toolstation | 2 | £6 | £12 |
| Masking tape (25mm) | Toolstation | 3 | £3 | £9 |
| Roller covers (medium pile, 9") | Toolstation | 3 | £2.50 | £8 |
| Dustsheets (cotton, 3.6x2.7m) | Toolstation | 3 | £8 | £24 |
| Misc (sugar soap, brushes, tray) | — | — | — | £15 |
| Materials subtotal | £184 | |||
| Prep — fill, sand, sugar soap wash (0.5 day) | £110 | |||
| Ceiling — cut in and roll, 2 coats (0.5 day) | £110 | |||
| Walls — 3 coats F&B emulsion (1.5 days) | £330 | |||
| Woodwork — undercoat + satinwood, 2 doors + bay (1 day) | £220 | |||
| Total (ex. VAT) | £954 | |||
Note: customer is supplying Farrow & Ball walls paint (not included in materials above). This transparency matters — the customer knows exactly what the decorator is charging for and what they're responsible for buying.
FAQs About Quoting Painting and Decorating Work
How much should I charge per m² for painting?
Labour-only rates for painting (emulsion, two coats) typically run £3–6/m² for walls in most UK regions, £3.50–6/m² for ceilings. London and South East add 30–50%. However, these per-m² rates only work for large plain surfaces — always price small rooms, rooms with lots of features, or high-spec jobs at day rate instead.
Should I supply paint or let the customer buy it?
Both approaches work, but supplying paint gives you control over quality and quantity — and a legitimate margin. A decorator who supplies Johnstone's or Crown at trade price and charges retail price (or a modest markup) is doing nothing wrong. The alternative is the customer buying Homebase own-brand paint that behaves differently and takes more coats. Either way, make it explicit in the quote who is supplying what.
How do I quote for wallpapering?
Wallpapering labour is typically priced per roll hung — £15–25/roll for standard wallpaper in average rooms, rising to £30–40/roll for pattern-matching paper or awkward rooms. Always count drops carefully — a room with a pattern repeat of 64cm will waste significantly more paper than a plain-match design. Quote for the actual number of rolls required plus 10% waste, and supply these quantities to the customer when they're buying.
What day rate should a decorator charge in 2025?
Most experienced sole-trader decorators in England charge £180–260/day in 2025. London and the Home Counties typically run £260–350/day. Specialist work — lime wash finishes, coving and cornice painting, specialist glaze techniques — commands a premium above these rates. Whatever your rate, be consistent: charge it every day and don't discount it for small jobs, which invariably end up taking longer than large ones.
Start Quoting Accurately with AccuQuote
Decorating is detail work and your quotes should reflect that. An itemised, accurate quote in the customer's inbox before you've left the site visit wins more jobs — and it tells the customer you're serious about your craft. Built with 200+ UK tradesmen. Three free quotes — no card, no call, no salesperson.