How Much Does Wallpaper Cost?

April 7, 2021 by Team HomeServe

Wallpaper Costs at a Glance

Average cost per roll: $25-$50
Average cost per square foot: $1-$2.50
Average installation cost: $30-$60 per roll

Wallpaper is a great way to dress up a room or give a space an instant makeover. There are so many designs to choose from, and they can infuse a little more personality into your home than paint alone. If you know how to hang it, you can get the walls of an entire room papered in one day. Peel-and-stick wallpaper makes this wall covering an option for renters, too.

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If you're contemplating a drastic interior design change, cost is an important factor to consider. Here’s what you need to know.

Average Wallpaper Cost

The price of wallpaper depends on the type of product you purchase. Basic wallpaper runs $25 to $50 per roll on average, for example, while designer and custom wallpaper can run as high as $5,000 per roll. One roll of wallpaper covers about 30 square feet, so expect to pay about $1 to $2.50 per square foot.

According to HowMuch.net, the type of paper you choose also plays a role in pricing. Here are some common types of wallpaper:

Standard paper: $1.25 per square foot
Vinyl: $1.71 per square foot
Vinyl-coated: $1.60 per square foot
Foil: $2.07 per square foot
Grasscloth: $2.39 per square foot

Is Wallpaper Cheaper Than Painting?

Even if you need multiple coats, it's typically cheaper to paint than to wallpaper a space. Labor costs are also lower. Where you can put a new coat of paint on top of an existing one, you have to remove the existing wallpaper before you can put up more. This also increases the overall cost.

The final cost really comes down to the materials. If you want to add a decorative finish or another custom type of paint job to a wall, it may cost more than wallpaper.

Details That Can Impact the Cost of Your Wallpaper Job

The prices listed above are for wallpaper alone — but wallpaper isn’t going to hang itself. There are several other factors that may drive up the price of your project:

Size of the Space

The bigger the room or wall you want to wallpaper, the more material you’ll need to cover it— and the more it’s going to cost. To estimate how much wallpaper is required, you’ll need to do some measuring. Here’s what to do:

1. First, calculate the square footage of the area you want to cover. Measure the height and width of every wall you want to wallpaper. Multiply those dimensions to get the surface area of the wall in square feet. Add the surface area of each wall together.

2. Measure each window, door or other area that you won't need to cover. Subtract the surface area of spaces you won't cover from the total area of the wall.

3. Add 10% to the total to account for trimming and lining up wallpaper correctly. If you’re covering a wall with a surface area of 80 square feet, for example, you’ll want to factor into your total an extra 10%, which is 8 square feet. In total, you’d want to purchase at least 88 square feet of wallpaper.

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Wallpaper Preferences

Depending on what's printed on the paper, costs may vary. For example, 3-D wallpaper costs more than wallpaper with simple or traditional designs. You’ll also have to consider how hard it will be to align the wallpaper. If you have a specific pictorial design or something like stripes, you may need to purchase more material to give yourself enough room for lining up the paper.

Prepping the Walls

You may need to strip existing wallpaper from the walls or prep walls by patching small holes and cracks. This involves extra materials, which can increase the cost of the job.

Hiring a Professional to Hang Wallpaper

If you hire out the job rather than do it yourself, the total cost more than doubles. Professionals can charge as much as $30 to $60 just to hang a single roll. The more prep work and custom cutting that needs to be done, the higher the price.

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