The house
Start from a common job, then replace every figure with your takeoff. Changing job type never overwrites a rate you already typed.
Your crew rates
A $36/h painter loaded at 32% is $47.52. Quoting the raw wage on a published $3,999 house special is how a two-story colonial that looked fine turns into a loss after the first extra story.
Hand the customer a proposal
The price above is for you. This is the page you print or save as a PDF and give to the homeowner — your details, their details, the scope, the deposit split, and a line for them to sign. Your business details are saved on this device so you only type them once; the customer’s details are never saved.
Everything on the printed page is text you typed or a number this calculator worked out. It contains no warranty, lien, or cancellation wording — those depend on your jurisdiction and your contract, and this tool is not the place to invent them.
Your bid
- Elevation, stories, and trim
- Access and extras
- Crew hours
- Loaded labor
- Paint + primer + caulk
- Travel + equipment
- Overhead
- Total cost
- Profit at this price
- Price per elevation sf
- Effective hourly rate
- Walk-away price
Where the hours go
Where the cost goes
Transparent arithmetic from your own inputs. Starting hours and paint rates are common ballpark figures, not an industry standard, a lead-paint determination, or a building-code inspection — replace them with your own takeoff.
Common questions
What does this exterior paint estimate include?
Base setup, extra hours for elevation and stories beyond your included allowance, a scrape and prime pass if you flag them, trim beyond the included footage, shutters, occupied-home protection, hard-access time, paint, primer, and caulk from your coverage and coat count, travel and equipment, and overhead and margin on top.
What’s the difference between this and a flat house-special price?
A flat price treats every house as the same job. This tool splits out a base allowance for elevation, stories, and trim from what goes beyond it, so a two-story colonial with extra trim, a scrape-and-prime pass, and hard second-story access prices differently than a one-story ranch with sound existing paint, instead of both landing on one number.
Does changing the job type overwrite my own hourly rates?
No. Picking a job type only suggests a starting setup time, paint cost per gallon, and coat count, and it will not replace a rate you have already typed over that suggestion. Every hour and dollar figure stays something you can edit.
Does this cover interior painting or cabinet refinishing?
No, this prices an exterior paint job specifically: elevation, stories, scrape and prime, and trim. Interior rooms and cabinet doors are a different scope with their own labor and material patterns and are not part of this calculation.
Does it check for lead paint or the condition of the existing paint?
No. Scrape and prime are flags you set from your own inspection, and the tool does not test for lead paint, assess paint condition, or perform any building-code check. Confirm those separately before starting work, especially on an older home.
Is my data uploaded anywhere?
No account and no network requests — the calculator runs entirely in your browser. A share link encodes only the inputs you choose into the address bar and is never sent to us; your business and contact details for the printed proposal are saved locally on this device, and job numbers are not otherwise kept between visits.