What Interior Decoration Costs in London: Room-by-Room Benchmarks
Realistic 2026 benchmarks for interior painting and decorating costs in London — by room type, what is included, what drives price variation, and how to budget realistically.
Setting realistic expectations
Interior decoration costs in London are often misquoted at both ends of the market — both by contractors who undercharge to win work and then over-run, and by websites that quote national average figures that bear no relation to London reality. This guide sets out what you should realistically expect to pay in 2026 for professional work in a London property, room by room, with notes on what is included and what drives variation.
All figures below assume professional contractor work with quality trade materials unless otherwise stated, and include both labour and materials.
Per-room benchmarks
Single bedroom (standard, approximately 12–16 square metres) Walls and ceiling in emulsion, woodwork in satinwood or eggshell: £350–£600. This assumes walls in reasonable condition, two coats on walls, one coat on ceiling, two coats on woodwork. Heritage paint brands (Farrow & Ball, Little Greene) add approximately £50–£100 to material costs for a room this size.
Double bedroom (approximately 16–22 square metres) Walls and ceiling, all woodwork: £450–£750. A principal bedroom with fitted wardrobes (painting the frames and surrounds) or a feature wall adds £80–£150 to the cost.
Living room or reception room (approximately 20–35 square metres) Walls, ceiling, all woodwork, fireplace surround: £600–£1,100. Victorian or Georgian reception rooms with cornice, picture rail, and dado rail add preparation and cutting-in time; budget the higher end for any room with significant plasterwork.
Kitchen A painted kitchen — walls and ceiling, ceilings and walls only, no units — runs £400–£700 for a typical London kitchen layout. If kitchen unit doors and carcasses are included in the scope, spray painting them adds £800–£1,800 depending on the number of doors and whether they require sanding and priming.
Bathroom Standard bathroom with walls in moisture-resistant paint, ceiling in moisture-resistant matt, all woodwork: £350–£600. Tiling is not a painting task and is excluded from these figures.
Hallway, staircase, and landing This is typically the most time-consuming and therefore most costly single area in a London period property. A typical Victorian terraced house hallway with ground floor to first floor staircase, first floor landing, all skirting, spindles, handrail, banister, and newel post: £900–£1,800 depending on the length of the staircase, the number of spindles, and the condition of the existing finish. Gloss spindles that need rubbing back and repainting in a different finish are particularly labour-intensive; budget toward the higher end for any scheme that changes finish from gloss to eggshell.
Whole house (typical three-bedroom Victorian terrace) Three bedrooms, living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, hallway and stairs, landing: approximately £4,500–£7,500 for quality trade specification. Heritage brand paints throughout add approximately £500–£900 to the material component.
What affects the final price
Surface condition. A room last decorated two years ago needs cleaning and a fresh coat. A room last decorated in 2001 with cigarette damage, hairline cracks, and layers of gloss paint over every surface needs extensive preparation. The preparation work is often where the real variation in cost sits — good contractors price this honestly; less experienced or less scrupulous ones skip it, and the finish reveals it.
Paint brand and finish. The material cost difference between Dulux Trade Vinyl Matt and Farrow & Ball Modern Emulsion in a double bedroom is approximately £60–£90. Over a whole house, this adds up to £400–£700. It is worth it in period rooms; it is a matter of taste elsewhere.
Finish level. A matt finish on walls is more forgiving of surface imperfections than an eggshell or satin. Specifying an eggshell wall finish requires a higher standard of surface preparation to achieve a clean result — which adds time and cost. If you are switching from matt to eggshell, budget for additional filling and sanding.
New plaster. Newly plastered rooms require a mist coat before decoration, and new plaster can take four to six weeks to dry sufficiently before painting. If you are combining replastering and decorating on a project timeline, this is the most common cause of delay and budget overrun.
Number of colours. A single wall colour throughout a house is cheaper to execute than individual colour schemes per room. Each colour change adds cutting-in time and the possibility of additional coats at colour interfaces.
Getting an accurate quote
Generic prices are a starting point — not a substitute for a site visit. The only reliable way to get an accurate figure for your specific property is for a decorator to see the rooms, assess the surfaces, and price the work as it actually stands. Request a free quote here and we will visit, assess, and provide a fixed written proposal.