How Much Does It Cost to Paint Baseboards in 2025?
The average cost to paint baseboards is $1,000
Painting your baseboards costs an average of $1,000, with most homeowners spending between $700 and $2,500.
Your total costs depend on the length of your baseboards, the type of trim, and local labor rates.
A fresh coat revitalizes your home’s look and helps protect trim from everyday wear and tear.
Regular upkeep keeps the paint durable and looking sharp for years.
Hiring a professional painter saves you time and helps you avoid costly mistakes.
This article was updated using automation technology and thoroughly reviewed for accuracy by HomeAdvisor Editor Ryan Noonan.
Painting your baseboards is a crucial step in maintaining a polished interior. Expect to spend an average of $1,000, with most homeowners spending between $700 and $2,500, or $1 to $4 per linear foot. Factor in trim size and whether you’ll do it yourself or hire a professional to stay on budget and achieve crisp, cost-effective results.
Baseboard Painting Cost Factors
Painting your baseboards costs $1 to $4 per linear foot, or $1,250 total for most homes, with an average range of $500 to $2,000. Trim size and style play a significant role in determining where your project falls on that range. A seasoned professional delivers crisp lines quickly, saving you hours of prep and brushwork.
Linear Footage
While the going rate to paint trim ranges from $1 to $4 per linear foot, your final tab depends on the amount of trim your home has. Both the width and the run of your trim dictate how much paint and labor you’ll need. Remember, a single gallon covers 350 to 400 square feet.
Labor
Painting pros quote either an hourly rate or an all-in flat fee for the job. Most charge between $20 and $50 per hour to tackle interior trim.
Plan on five to 25 hours of labor, depending on the prep work, access, trim size, and the number of coats your boards require. Hard-to-reach trim or heavy prep can increase both the schedule and the price.
Cost to Paint Interior Trim by Type
Repainting all the interior trim of a standard home costs an average of $500 to $2,000, but the cost of different types of trim varies.
| Trim Type | Average Cost per Lin. Ft. |
|---|---|
| Baseboards | $1–$4 |
| Crown molding | $1–$5 |
| Doors and windows | $1–$4 |
Baseboards
Painting baseboards costs $1 to $4 per linear foot. Because painters need to protect your floors and work close to the ground, it can take more time. Due to their wider width, baseboards require more paint to cover them. If you're installing new baseboards, you’ll spend $262 to $414 for 46 linear feet on installation.
Crown Molding
Crown molding, which connects your ceiling to the walls, requires extra prep time to protect surrounding areas. Painting crown molding costs $1 to $5 per linear foot, but the price increases in rooms with ceilings higher than eight feet. When installing new crown molding, expect to spend between $4 and $23 per linear foot.
Doors and Windows
The casements around doors and windows cost between $1 and $4 per linear foot to paint. Some painters prefer to remove the doors before painting to reach the inside of the frame without dripping on the door.
DIY Baseboard Painting vs. Hiring a Pro
You can paint trim yourself if you're an experienced DIYer, but the process requires time, thorough prep work, and a steady hand with a paintbrush. You'll need to use painter's tape and drop cloths meticulously to prevent paint from bleeding onto walls or other parts of your home. Tools and materials, including paint, cost between $25 and $50 on average.
While you save on labor, professional painters often have access to better paint prices and can help you avoid costly mistakes. Accessing high trim, such as crown molding or exterior soffit trim, can be dangerous if you're not comfortable working on a ladder. For these tasks, it's best to hire an interior painting professional.
If you’d rather skip the ladders and taping, hire a pro and enjoy top-quality results without the stress.
Budgeting for Baseboard Painting
To keep your baseboard painting project cost-effective, consider the following tips:
Use leftover paint from other projects to save on material costs.
Compare quotes from at least three painters to find the best rate.
Bundling baseboard painting with other projects to get better labor rates.
Do the prep work, like sanding and taping, yourself to minimize fees.
How HomeAdvisor Gets Its Cost Data
No place is more important than your home, which is why HomeAdvisor connects homeowners with local pros to transform their houses into homes they love. To help homeowners prepare for their next project, HomeAdvisor provides readers with accurate cost data and follows strict editorial guidelines. After a project is complete, we survey real customers about the costs to develop the pricing data you see, so you can make the best decisions for you and your home. We pair this data with research from reputable sources, including the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, academic journals, market studies, and interviews with industry experts—all to ensure our prices reflect real-world projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
Most homeowners opt for semi-gloss or high-gloss paint to make the baseboards stand out against the walls. If you’d rather keep things subtle, matching the wall sheen with eggshell or satin also works well. When your trim has nicks or dents, reach for a flatter, matte finish—it hides minor imperfections better than a shiny coat.
Stripping old paint from trim costs $1 to $3 per linear foot. Pros use specialized tools and techniques to lift away existing layers without gouging the wood, then prep the surface for a fresh finish. While it adds to your budget, proper removal protects the molding and sets the stage for a smoother, longer-lasting paint job.
Tackling the baseboards first often leads to crisper lines. Painting trim first lets you tape off the boards instead of the walls, so you’re less likely to splatter color where you don’t want it. Any stray marks on the wall get covered when you roll on the final coat, making the whole process faster and tidier.
You can absolutely paint baseboards in place. Leaving them installed avoids the risk of cracking or misaligning the boards when they’re reattached. With thorough cleaning, light sanding, and careful taping, a pro—or an experienced DIYer—can achieve a sharp, factory-smooth finish while saving you the hassle of prying off and reinstalling trim.
Painting almost always beats replacement in cost. Swapping out baseboards runs about $150 in DIY materials or roughly $1,100 with a pro, while repainting costs about $50 in supplies and $1 to $5 per square foot for labor. Unless the boards are warped or severely damaged, a fresh coat delivers the same visual upgrade for a fraction of the price.
Paintable caulk and wood filler are the go-to fixes for nail holes in baseboards. Wood filler sands flush for a glass-smooth surface, while caulk provides a flexible seal that won’t crack as the house settles. Either way, patching those tiny divots before you prime ensures your finished baseboards look seamless.
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