Interior painting costs $350 to $850 per room on average in 2026, by national published figures, and $1,200 to $3,600 for a 600 square foot apartment. We do not publish a Bronx price list, because the walls set the price: plaster or drywall, how many cracks and old patches, ceiling height, and what your building asks of a contractor.
Price ranges on this page are national figures published by HomeGuide for 2026. They are not our quotes. New York City labor, building rules, access and the state of your own walls move the number up or down. Last checked October 2026.
How much does it cost to paint the interior of a house?
It costs $3,500 to $10,000 on average to paint the whole interior of a house, by the national figures. HomeGuide gives a national average of $7,500, a low of $2,000 and a high of $15,000.
Most Bronx homes are apartments, so HomeGuide's apartment figures are the closer match. They are $2 to $6 per square foot of floor space.
| Apartment size | National range |
|---|---|
| Studio (400 to 600 sq ft) | $800 to $3,600 |
| 1 bedroom (600 to 800 sq ft) | $1,200 to $4,800 |
| 2 bedrooms (800 to 1,200 sq ft) | $1,600 to $7,200 |
| 3 bedrooms (1,200 to 1,500+ sq ft) | $2,400 to $9,000 |
Where a Bronx job falls in those ranges depends on the prep. A pre-war apartment with cracked plaster and thick old paint on the trim takes more hours than a newer unit with smooth drywall.
How much does it cost to paint a room?
It costs $300 to $1,000 to paint one room, by the national figures, with a national average of $750. Painters also have a minimum project fee, published as $250 to $500 or more.
| Room | National range |
|---|---|
| Bathroom | $150 to $400 |
| Kitchen (walls) | $150 to $250 |
| Bedroom | $350 to $850 |
| Primary bedroom | $650 to $1,400 |
| Living room | $600 to $2,000 |
| Dining room or hallway | $300 to $1,000 |
How much does it cost to paint a 1,500 or 2,000 square foot house inside?
A 1,500 square foot home costs $4,500 to $6,000 to paint inside and a 2,000 square foot home costs $6,000 to $8,000, by HomeGuide's interior painting page. Those figures go by floor area.
| Home size | National range |
|---|---|
| 800 sq ft | $2,400 to $3,200 |
| 1,000 sq ft | $3,000 to $4,000 |
| 1,200 sq ft | $3,600 to $4,800 |
| 1,500 sq ft | $4,500 to $6,000 |
| 2,000 sq ft | $6,000 to $8,000 |
| 2,500 sq ft | $7,500 to $10,000 |
A two family brick house in Morris Park or Pelham Bay often has 1,000 to 1,200 square feet on each floor, so each floor can be read as its own row in the table.
How much does it cost to paint a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house?
HomeGuide publishes $1,200 to $8,500 for the interior of a 3-bedroom house. The range is wide because it covers everything from walls only in a small home to walls, ceilings and trim in a large one.
You can also build the number room by room from the published figures. Three bedrooms at $350 to $850 each come to $1,050 to $2,550. Two bathrooms at $150 to $400 each come to $300 to $800. Add a living room at $600 to $2,000, kitchen walls at $150 to $250 and a hallway at $300 to $1,000. The total is $2,400 to $6,600. That is arithmetic on national figures, not a quote.
How much do painters charge per square foot?
Painters charge $1 to $3 per square foot of wall and ceiling surface, or $3 to $7 per square foot of floor space, by the national figures. Walls only are $1 to $2 per square foot of surface. Hourly, the interior page lists $20 to $50 per hour, and labor is 70% to 85% of the total.
Be sure which square foot a quote means. A 12 by 12 bedroom has 144 square feet of floor but about 400 square feet of wall.
Do painters charge by the room or by the square foot?
Both are used, but most apartment and house repaints are priced by the room or as one price for the job. Square foot pricing is more common for large, empty or commercial spaces.
We look at each room, count doors and windows, check the walls and give one written price that lists what is included. That is clearer than a rate you have to multiply yourself.
Does it cost more to paint ceilings as well as walls?
Yes, ceilings cost extra. The national figures add $1 to $2 per square foot for ceilings on top of the wall price. By room, a bedroom ceiling is $100 to $300 and a living room ceiling is $300 to $800 on HomeGuide's ceiling page.
In older Bronx apartments the ceiling is often the surface in the worst shape. Leaks from the unit above, steam from radiators and old calcimine paint all cause peeling. A ceiling like that needs scraping, patching and a stain blocking primer before it is painted.
How much extra for trim, doors and baseboards?
Trim and baseboards cost $1 to $4 per linear foot to paint, or $25 to $200 per room, by the national figures. An interior door is $75 to $150, and a door with its frame is $80 to $250. A window frame is $25 to $100.
Pre-war buildings have a lot of trim: tall baseboards, picture rails, wide door casings and panel doors. They also carry many coats of old paint, which can hide the detail. Tell us if you want the trim only freshened or properly prepped, because the hours differ.
How much extra for high or vaulted ceilings and stairwells?
High ceilings add 10% to 50% or more to the price of a room, by the national figures. That is for ceilings over 10 feet. No dollar figure is published.
Vaulted ceilings are rare in the Bronx, but 9 and 10 foot ceilings are normal in pre-war apartments and row houses. Stairwells are priced by length and height. HomeGuide lists $16 per linear foot for a stairwell 8 to 13 feet high and $20 for 13 to 17 feet.
Does it cost more to go from a dark color to white?
Yes, it usually costs more, because covering dark walls with white can take a primer coat or a third coat of paint. No published figure exists for this, so the extra is priced after we see the color and the wall.
The same is true the other way. Deep reds, blues and greens often need a tinted primer under them to look even.
How much more if the walls need a lot of prep?
A lot of prep can add as much as the painting itself. The national figures list sanding and patching at $1 to $3 per square foot, and skim coating a wall at $1.00 to $1.30 per square foot.
This is the line that matters most in the Bronx. Plaster in a building from the 1920s to the 1940s has settlement cracks, old patches that show, and paint that lets go in sheets where an earlier coat did not bond. We point out these areas at the estimate and price the repair in writing, so it is not a surprise later.
Does the price include moving furniture and covering floors?
Covering floors and furniture is part of our job and our quote. Moving furniture is included for normal pieces: we shift them to the middle of the room and cover them. We ask you to put away small and fragile things.
If a home is very full, or heavy items must go to another room, say so at the estimate. HomeGuide lists furniture moving at $35 to $60 per hour when a painter bills it as a separate line.
Why are my painting quotes so far apart?
Painting quotes end up far apart because they rarely cover the same work. One includes two coats, ceilings, trim and plaster repair. Another is one coat on the walls only.
- Number of coats, and whether primer is included.
- Walls only, or walls, ceilings, doors and trim.
- How much patching and sanding is allowed for.
- The grade of paint.
- Whether the painter carries insurance, which many co-op and condo buildings demand.
- Lead safe prep in buildings from before 1978.
Put the quotes side by side and compare line by line. The cheapest one often leaves out the prep.
How do I know if a painting quote is fair?
A painting quote is fair when it is written, specific and in line with other detailed quotes for the same scope. It should name the rooms, the surfaces, the prep, the number of coats, the paint and the price.
Check it against the national ranges on this page as a rough guide only. A quote far below the others usually means less prep or no insurance. Ask each painter what they would do about the worst wall in the apartment and compare the answers.
A free estimate with a written quote is the only way to get a real price for your job. Call or text (718) 866-3263.