DATA-BACKED GUIDE · UPDATED JULY 2026
Exterior house painting cost in the UK: render, masonry and woodwork
A fresh coat on the outside of the house lifts the whole street view and protects the walls from British weather at the same time. Exterior work costs differently from interior because you are paying for access, weather-grade paint and a lot of careful prep on render, masonry and tired woodwork. The real prices below come from full exterior repaints, so you can see how the surfaces and the scaffolding shape the bill.
The quick version
- Access is a major cost, since scaffolding or a tower for a two or three storey house adds up before a brush is lifted.
- Prep is where the hours go, with cracks, flaking paint and rotten timber all needing attention first.
- Masonry, render and woodwork each need different paints and coats, so a mixed exterior costs more than plain walls.
- National firms tend to quote above local decorators for the same job, so it pays to compare both.
What people actually paid
Real prices, in people's own words
- £1,000“We paid about £1000 for hallway and landings up two flights of stairs one large bedroom and one bathroom ( including woodwork) Northwest.”
- £1,550“The work took 4 days and cost £1550.”
- £2,000“We've paid just over £2k for living room, hall stairs and landing, lots of doors. About 10 days work”
- £2,000“he's invoiced £2,000 as there were a couple of extras”
- £10,000“We recently paid £10K for four weeks' work (2 men).”
Genuine amounts posted publicly. We publish the price and the quote, never the person.
Why the price varies so much
No two houses weather the same way, and that is what makes exterior quotes vary so much. A single-storey bungalow that a decorator can reach from a ladder is worlds cheaper than a three-storey townhouse that needs scaffolding up for a fortnight. The state of the surfaces matters just as much, because sound render only needs a wash and two coats, while cracked or flaking walls need filling, stabilising and sometimes rendering repairs before any colour goes on. Rotten window frames and fascias push the price up fast, since the timber has to be cut out and made good. Add the number of windows to cut in around, the paint you choose and the weather window the job needs, and you can see why one street of similar houses gets very different numbers.
How to pay less
- Book the work for late spring or summer when dry weather means fewer wasted days and a smoother job.
- Tackle small repairs to render and timber early, before they grow into bigger and costlier fixes.
- Share scaffolding with a neighbour if you are both due a repaint, splitting the biggest single cost.
- Get three quotes and make sure each spells out the prep, the number of coats and the access method.
Common questions
How often does the outside of a house need repainting?
Masonry paint on render often lasts a good number of years, while exposed woodwork and south-facing walls that take the worst of the weather need doing sooner. A decorator can tell you which surfaces are due and which can wait when they quote.
Why is scaffolding such a big part of the cost?
For anything above single storey, safe access means scaffolding or a tower, which has to be hired, erected and taken down. On a tall or awkward house that can be one of the largest lines on the quote, which is why access is worth asking about upfront.
Can I just paint over old flaking masonry paint?
Not if you want it to last. Flaking and powdery surfaces need scraping back and stabilising first, otherwise the new coat lifts off with the old. Good prep is the difference between a repaint that lasts years and one that fails in a season.