How to Bid a Paint Job: A Step-by-Step Pricing Method for Painters

Every accurate bid starts on site. Walk the whole job with the customer before you measure, and write down what will change your hours, not only your square footage.

For commercial work, read the bid documents first: scope, specification, schedule, labor terms and insurance. Our guide on how to bid commercial painting jobs covers specifications, prevailing wage and bid documents in detail.

Measure each surface separately, because each one has its own coverage and production rate. Keep one line per room or elevation so the estimate can be checked later.

Put the lines straight into a sheet. Our free painting estimate template has one row per area and surface, and works for residential jobs as well as commercial ones.

Gallons come from coverage. Sherwin-Williams gives the rule of thumb for its paint calculator: “A gallon of paint typically covers about 350-400 square feet”, and “A gallon of primer covers about 200-300 square feet”. It also notes that “Product requirements will vary according to factors such as application method and surface type or condition.”

The calculation is the same for every line: gallons equal the area times the number of coats, divided by the coverage per gallon. Use the low end of the range for rough or porous surfaces such as stucco, new drywall and bare wood, and the spread rate on the product data sheet whenever you have it. Add a small waste allowance for cutting in, rolling and touch-up, then round up to whole gallons or five-gallon pails.

Work labor out from production rates: how many square feet, linear feet or doors one painter finishes in an hour, for one coat, on that surface. Labor hours equal the quantity times the coats, divided by the rate. Add prep, setup, masking and cleanup as their own hours rather than hiding them in the rate.

Then price the hours at a loaded rate. For a reference point on wages, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports median pay for construction and maintenance painters of $23.75 per hour: “The median annual wage for painters, construction and maintenance was $49,400 in May 2025.” That is the wage alone, before your costs. Your loaded rate adds payroll taxes, workers’ compensation, insurance, benefits and paid time, and uses your own crew’s pay rather than the national median.

• Use your own crews’ past jobs for production rates wherever you can. Time a few rooms if you have no records.
• Slow the rate for height, heavy prep, cutting in many colors, and occupied rooms.
• Count travel and daily setup on small jobs; they are a large share of a one-day job.

Direct costs are labor, paint, primer, sundries (caulk, tape, plastic, patch, rollers) and equipment rental. Overhead is what it costs to run the company whether or not this job happens: the truck, the office, insurance, software, marketing and your own salary. Spread it over your jobs as a share of direct cost, worked out from last year’s books.

Profit comes last, and it is not the same as markup. Margin is profit as a share of the price; markup is profit as a share of cost. Pricing with a markup when you meant a margin underprices every job. The worked example below shows both.

Our free commercial painting cost calculator does this step for you: enter area, coats, production rate, coverage, your labor rate, overhead and target margin, and it returns labor hours, gallons, total cost and a bid price. It works one surface at a time, for residential lines as well as commercial ones.

Here is a full bid for a small residential interior repaint, step by step. Every input is made up; swap in your own.

For a commercial line, the steps are the same at a larger scale: run walls, ceilings, doors and frames as separate lines in the painting bid calculator, then add them up in the estimate template.

Send the number in writing, the same day if you can. A clear written proposal wins jobs that a text message with a price does not, and it settles arguments about scope later.

• Scope: each room or elevation, and each surface: walls, ceilings, trim, doors.
• Prep: what you will patch, sand, caulk, scrape and prime.
• Products: the paint line, sheen and number of coats, and who picks colors.
• Exclusions: what is not included, such as wallpaper removal, rot repair or furniture moving.
• Schedule: start date, working hours and how long the job takes.
• Price and payment: the total, any deposit and when the balance is due.
• Change orders: how added work is priced and approved.
• Warranty and insurance: what you stand behind, and proof of coverage on request.

For larger commercial bids, use the commercial painting proposal outline.

The math does not change between the two; the inputs do. Commercial jobs carry more conditions, so read every document before you measure.

Finding jobs to bid is a separate problem. Residential painters often test how Facebook ads charge contractors or what Nextdoor ads cost contractors alongside lead services; before you pay for leads, compare pay per lead against a monthly retainer.

A good bid only matters if you are asked to quote. Sourci helps painting contractors get found and get asked: website, SEO and AI-search visibility, and outreach to commercial buyers.

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• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Painters, Construction and Maintenance. Checked November 11, 2026. Quoted: “2025 Median Pay | $49,400 per year $23.75 per hour” “The median annual wage for painters, construction and maintenance was $49,400 in May 2025.”
• Sherwin-Williams, How to Use Paint Calculator (FAQs). Checked November 11, 2026. Quoted: “A gallon of paint typically covers about 350-400 square feet” “A gallon of primer covers about 200-300 square feet” “Product requirements will vary according to factors such as application method and surface type or condition.”

Every outside figure on this page links to the page it came from, checked on November 11, 2026. Prices and terms change; confirm them with each company before you sign.