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🎨 Painting · Honolulu

Average House Painter Cost in Honolulu, HI

A house painter in Honolulu charges roughly $110/hour — driven by the BLS OEWS national mean hourly wage of $24.54 for SOC 47-2141, the HI cost-of-living index of 186.9, and the standard 2.4× contractor markup. Below: project-by-project pricing, then 6 licensed local pros.

House Painter prices in Honolulu, HI

ProjectTimeTypical costRange
Single room paint (10×12, walls only, 2 coats) 1 day $976 $800 – $1,171
Whole interior repaint (1700 sq ft, walls + ceilings) 4–6 days $8,380 $6,872 – $10,056
Exterior repaint (1700 sq ft, prep + 2 coats) 4–7 days $9,772 $8,013 – $11,726
Kitchen cabinet refinish (sand, prime, sprayed enamel) 3–5 days $3,792 $3,110 – $4,551
All trim + 6 interior doors (whole house) 2 days $2,393 $1,962 – $2,871
Ceiling paint refresh (avg 1500 sq ft) 1 day $1,362 $1,117 – $1,635
Deck stripping + restain (300 sq ft) 2 days $1,657 $1,359 – $1,989
Pre-paint pressure wash (whole exterior) half day $496 $407 – $596
Wallpaper removal + skim coat (one room) 1–2 days $1,103 $904 – $1,323

Local rate = BLS national mean × 2.4 markup × (HI COL 186.9/100). Materials adjusted by the same factor.

What a house painter in Honolulu actually does

A pro painter's job is mostly prep, not paint: washing, sanding glossy/peeling areas, scraping, patching nail holes and drywall damage, caulking trim seams, masking floors and fixtures, priming bare or stain-prone areas, then finally rolling, brushing, or spraying two coats of finish. On exteriors, that prep includes a full pressure wash, scraping any peeling sections to bare wood, spot-priming with a bonding primer, and re-caulking every trim seam — typical exterior jobs are 3–5 days for a 1,700 sq ft home. The most common scope inflation is "spraying" cabinets without sanding/de-glossing first; it looks great for six months and then peels. Lead-paint disclosures are required for any pre-1978 home (EPA RRP rule) and a properly-trained painter will follow a containment protocol.

Questions to ask before you hire in HI

  1. How many coats of finish, and is the primer included or extra?
  2. What brand and product line are you using? (Sherwin-Williams Emerald, Benjamin Moore Aura, and Behr Ultra are all premium tiers.)
  3. Are you EPA RRP-certified for lead-paint work? (Required for pre-1978 homes.)
  4. How will you prep glossy or peeling surfaces — sanding, de-glossing, bonding primer?
  5. What's included in the prep (caulking, drywall patches, masking, removing outlet covers)?
  6. What's the workmanship warranty, and what triggers a re-do (peeling, cracking, drips)?
A bid that's 40% lower than competitors almost always means thinned paint, one coat instead of two, or skipping primer on patched areas — and it shows within a year.

6 licensed house painters in Honolulu

Honolulu Spectrum Painters

📍 7827 Garden Pkwy, Honolulu, HI 96850
★ 4.9 / 5 · 92 reviews · 35 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A 24/7 Emergency 35 yrs
Specialties: Color consultation, Deck staining, Ceiling paint

Hometown Finish Pro

📍 5885 Aspen Way, Honolulu, HI 96813
★ 4.1 / 5 · 409 reviews · 37 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A+ 24/7 Emergency 37 yrs
Specialties: Deck staining, Trim & doors, Pressure wash, Drywall prep

Honolulu Painters

📍 5045 Bay Ter, Honolulu, HI 96814
★ 4.3 / 5 · 107 reviews · 15 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A 24/7 Emergency 15 yrs
Specialties: Pressure wash, Cabinet refinishing, Trim & doors, Color consultation, Wallpaper removal

Wright Color Co

📍 9495 Maple Ln, Honolulu, HI 96850
★ 4.9 / 5 · 17 reviews · 18 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured 24/7 Emergency 18 yrs
Specialties: Cabinet refinishing, Deck staining, Drywall prep, Interior repaint

Local Hue

📍 7226 Willow Blvd, Honolulu, HI 96813
★ 4.7 / 5 · 22 reviews · 14 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A- 14 yrs
Specialties: Deck staining, Ceiling paint, Cabinet refinishing

Davis Brushworks

📍 3603 River Rd, Honolulu, HI 96814
★ 5.0 / 5 · 256 reviews · 16 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A+ 16 yrs
Specialties: Cabinet refinishing, Deck staining, Exterior repaint, Pressure wash, Trim & doors

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Seasonal painting checklist for Honolulu homeowners

Spring

  • Walk the exterior and mark any peeling, blistering, or chalking paint — these areas need scraping, sanding, and spot-priming before any topcoat goes on.
  • Check south- and west-facing walls first; they take 2–3× the UV exposure of north-facing walls and fail first.
  • Inspect trim caulk lines and re-caulk any cracked or pulled-away beads with a paintable acrylic-latex caulk before painting season starts.
  • Plan whole-house exterior repaints for late spring through early fall — surface temps must be 50–85°F with low humidity for proper film formation.

Fall

  • Touch up exterior trim and any spots where summer UV faded the topcoat — this extends the life of the coating system by 2–3 years.
  • Now is the best window for interior repaints (open windows for ventilation without summer humidity messing with cure times).
  • Stain or reseal wood decks every 2–3 years — fall is the safest window since deck wood needs 48 hours of dry weather after a clean.

Winter

  • Interior repaints are easiest in winter; just keep room temps above 60°F for 24 hours after each coat to allow proper film formation.
  • Use a low-VOC paint (Greenguard Gold-certified) for any room that will be sealed up overnight after painting; fumes accumulate fast in heated, closed homes.
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