PLAN YOUR PAINTING BUDGET
What house painting costs in Leavenworth in 2026
The ranges on this page are illustrative planning examples for comparing project scopes, not measured local averages or a record of recent quotes. Confirm the actual surfaces, preparation, products, coats, repairs, access and cleanup in your written quote. Major carpentry and specialist work should be identified separately.
If you want a number for your own interior right now, the instant interior painting estimate gives you a planning range in a couple of minutes. For anything else, the tables below will get you close.
Why two bids on the same house can be $6,000 apart
Consider a hypothetical comparison using $7,800 and $13,900 exterior bids. One might include a limited maintenance scope; the other might include more removal, repairs, access and detailed finishing. The totals alone do not establish which scope is appropriate or which will last longer.
Compare the preparation and repair lines before judging the price. Primers must suit the material, and joints should be sealed only where the assembly requires it. See how to compare painting quotes for the questions a written scope should answer.
Interior painting cost by room
For the estimator calculation, follow a 12 × 12 × 8 room through walls, ceiling and baseboards. Room scenarios and the calculator have different scope assumptions; compare the included surfaces and repairs.
Prices assume normal nail holes and hairline cracks, furniture moved to the middle and covered, and two coats of interior paint. Ceilings are flat white unless you pick a color.
| Room | Walls only | Walls + ceiling + trim |
|---|---|---|
| Small bathroom or powder room | $350–$600 | $550–$900 |
| Standard bedroom (10×12) | $450–$750 | $750–$1,150 |
| Primary bedroom (14×16) | $650–$1,000 | $1,000–$1,550 |
| Living or family room (15×20) | $800–$1,300 | $1,250–$1,950 |
| Kitchen (walls around cabinets) | $500–$900 | $800–$1,300 |
| Two-story foyer or stairwell | $900–$1,800 | $1,400–$2,600 |
Whole-house interior. For a 1,800–2,000 sq ft home, walls only usually runs $5,500–$9,000. Walls, ceilings and trim together run $8,500–$14,000. A quick rule of thumb is $3–$5 per square foot of floor for walls only and $5–$8 for everything.
Bathrooms cost more per square foot than bedrooms because there’s more cutting in around tile, vanities and toilets, and we use a moisture-resistant finish. Foyers and stairwells cost more because of ladders, planks and the long cut line where the stair wall meets the ceiling.
Trim, doors and ceilings on their own
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Ceiling, one room | $250–$500 |
| Baseboard | $1.50–$3.00 per linear foot |
| Interior door, both sides + frame | $90–$160 each |
| Window casing | $60–$120 each |
| Original double-hung sash, interior side | $150–$300 each |
Baseboard pricing swings with condition. New MDF base in a Lansing two-story is a quick caulk and two coats. Old pine base in an 1890s house with 10 layers of paint and a chipped edge needs sanding and a bonding primer first.
What adds to an interior price
- Plaster walls. Add 15–40% for crack repair, taping, skim coating, and a coat of Zinsser Gardz where we find old calcimine or torn paper.
- Dark to light. Going from navy or deep red to a light neutral usually needs a primer coat. Plan on 15–25% more on that room.
- Furniture-heavy rooms. A full bookcase wall or a piano we can’t move takes longer to protect and cut around.
- High ceilings. Ten- and twelve-foot ceilings in older Leavenworth houses need taller ladders and more wall area than the floor size suggests.
Here’s how our interior painting works, including what an occupied-home job looks like day to day.
Exterior painting cost by siding type
Exteriors are priced by paintable surface, not floor area. A wall with lots of windows has less siding but far more trim. These ranges cover body and trim, wash, scrape, spot priming, caulking and two finish coats.
| Siding | Per sq ft of paintable surface |
|---|---|
| Vinyl (compatible coating and approved color formula) | $1.50–$2.75 |
| Engineered wood, hardboard or fiber cement | $2.00–$3.50 |
| Wood clapboard, sound paint | $3.00–$6.00 |
| Wood clapboard, heavy prep or failing paint | up to $8.00 |
| Brick, first-time paint (masonry primer) | $2.50–$4.50 |
| Stucco | $2.00–$4.00 |
Whole-house exterior ranges
| House | Typical range |
|---|---|
| One-story ranch, 1,200–1,500 sq ft, vinyl or hardboard | $3,800–$6,000 |
| Two-story, 2,000–2,500 sq ft, hardboard or fiber cement | $5,500–$9,000 |
| Pre-1900 two-story wood house, about 2,000 sq ft | $9,000–$18,000 |
| Trim-only repaint (fascia, soffit, windows, doors) | $1,800–$4,500 |
| Front door, both sides | $250–$450 |
Vinyl repainting requires sound, properly installed siding, a compatible coating and the exact approved color formula. Check the siding manufacturer’s instructions and warranty before a color change. Engineered wood, hardboard and fiber cement also need their own material-specific preparation and coating specifications. See vinyl repainting and fiber-cement repainting for the distinctions.
Painting previously unpainted brick is a substantial maintenance and preservation decision. Assess moisture, mortar, surface condition and the proposed coating before proceeding. Future repainting depends on condition rather than a fixed 10–15-year promise.
What moves an exterior price
- Prep condition. Failed layers, damaged material and water problems can change preparation substantially.
- Stories and access. Height, roof geometry, slopes and equipment affect labor and should be itemized.
- Lead-related work. The $1,500–$4,000 planning allowance is an illustrative budgeting example, not a standard Kansas surcharge. Actual assessment, containment, preparation and cleaning requirements depend on the scope; see the lead-paint guide.
- Color changes. A big shift, like white to a dark green, can need a third coat on the body.
- Rot repair. We price carpentry separately, per board or per sill.
- Season. Our rate doesn’t change by month, but a late-October job loses more days to cold mornings and early dew, which pushes your finish date out.
More on how we prep and what we use on exterior painting in Leavenworth.
Two hypothetical planning examples
Hypothetical older-house planning example: a 1,900 sq ft four-square. The $11,000–$15,500 example illustrates a possible exterior budget for wood siding and original details; it is not a completed local job or a property-specific quote. Repair extent, preparation, access and applicable lead-related work must be assessed and itemized. See historic-home painting.
Hypothetical newer-house planning example: a 2,400 sq ft two-story. The exterior example is $6,500–$8,500 and the interior-wall example is $6,000–$8,500. These are early budgeting scenarios, not actual project records. Siding condition, measured paintable area, repairs and included surfaces determine the quote. See painting in Lansing for the existing service-area page.
Cabinet painting cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Per cabinet door | $100–$150 |
| Per drawer front | $50–$80 |
| Typical kitchen, 25–35 doors and drawers | $4,000–$7,500 |
| Large kitchen, 40–50 pieces | $6,500–$10,000 |
| Island, added | $600–$1,200 |
| Bathroom vanity | $500–$900 |
These are illustrative planning ranges, not a fixed per-door price or an approved coating specification. A written quote should identify door fronts and backs, drawer fronts, boxes and face frames, cleaning and repair needs, grain filling if selected, and the exact primer, finish and application method. Compare the same surfaces and preparation before comparing totals.
How painting compares with your other options:
| Option | Typical kitchen |
|---|---|
| Painting | $4,000–$7,500 |
| Restaining / refinishing the wood tone | $5,000–$9,000 |
| Refacing (new doors and veneer) | $9,000–$16,000 |
| Replacing with mid-grade cabinets | $18,000–$35,000+ |
The full process is on our cabinet painting process and timeline page.
Rental make-ready and PCS move-outs
| Job | Price |
|---|---|
| Touch-up make-ready, 3-bedroom | $900–$1,800 |
| Accent wall back to a neutral | $200–$450 |
| Vacant 3-bedroom, full walls (~1,600 sq ft) | $3,500–$5,500 |
| Vacant 3-bedroom, walls + ceilings + trim | $5,500–$8,500 |
The scheduling side of this, especially in June and July, is on make-ready painting for Fort Leavenworth moves.
How to get a firm number
The tables get you within range. A firm price takes a walk-through, because the things that move the price, like peeling under the eaves, plaster cracks or a bowed fascia board, don’t show in a photo. Our quotes are written line by line so you can drop items to fit a budget, like doing the south and west walls this year and the rest next spring.
Five ways to spend less without cutting corners
- Consider a partial exterior scope. Assess each elevation and component by condition. A local repair or one-wall repaint may be appropriate, with appearance and future maintenance tradeoffs.
- Keep the same color. Staying close to your current color often saves a coat, especially on a dark body.
- Clear the rooms yourself. Emptying shelves and moving small furniture before we arrive takes an hour or two off each room.
- Book interiors in winter. January through March is when we have the most open days, so it’s easiest to fit your schedule.
- Fix rot before it spreads. Replacing two soft clapboards now costs a fraction of replacing a whole corner board and sill in three years.
Every price on this page comes with the same two-year written warranty.
We’d rather build the job around your budget and calendar than lose it over a number.
Painting cost questions
How much does it cost to paint a bedroom in Leavenworth? A standard 10×12 bedroom runs $450–$750 for walls only, or $750–$1,150 with the ceiling and trim, two coats with patching and cleanup included.
How much does it cost to paint the outside of a house in Leavenworth? A one-story ranch with vinyl or hardboard siding usually runs $3,800–$6,000; a 2,000–2,500 sq ft two-story $5,500–$9,000; a pre-1900 wood house $9,000–$18,000.
Why do two painting quotes on the same house differ by thousands? Mostly prep. The lower bid usually skips scraping to a sound edge, priming bare wood and caulking, or quotes one coat instead of two.
Does lead paint make my job cost more? Applicable assessment, controlled preparation, protection, cleaning and records can change the scope and price. The $1,500–$4,000 figure above is an illustrative planning allowance, not a quote or a universal surcharge. Compare proposals using the same assessed work.
Is it cheaper to paint in the off-season? Interior work in January–March is easier to schedule, but our prices don’t swing much by season. Exterior jobs pushed into late October cost more in lost days, not in rate.
Do your prices include paint? Yes. Quotes include Sherwin-Williams paint and primer, materials, prep, two finish coats and cleanup.