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🎨 Painting · New Orleans

Average House Painter Cost in New Orleans, LA

A house painter in New Orleans charges roughly $54/hour — driven by the BLS OEWS national mean hourly wage of $24.54 for SOC 47-2141, the LA cost-of-living index of 91.0, and the standard 2.4× contractor markup. Below: project-by-project pricing, then 7 licensed local pros.

House Painter prices in New Orleans, LA

ProjectTimeTypical costRange
Single room paint (10×12, walls only, 2 coats) 1 day $475 $390 – $570
Whole interior repaint (1700 sq ft, walls + ceilings) 4–6 days $4,080 $3,346 – $4,896
Exterior repaint (1700 sq ft, prep + 2 coats) 4–7 days $4,758 $3,901 – $5,709
Kitchen cabinet refinish (sand, prime, sprayed enamel) 3–5 days $1,846 $1,514 – $2,216
All trim + 6 interior doors (whole house) 2 days $1,165 $955 – $1,398
Ceiling paint refresh (avg 1500 sq ft) 1 day $663 $544 – $796
Deck stripping + restain (300 sq ft) 2 days $807 $662 – $968
Pre-paint pressure wash (whole exterior) half day $242 $198 – $290
Wallpaper removal + skim coat (one room) 1–2 days $537 $440 – $644

Local rate = BLS national mean × 2.4 markup × (LA COL 91.0/100). Materials adjusted by the same factor.

What a house painter in New Orleans 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 LA

  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.

7 licensed house painters in New Orleans

New Orleans Coat & Co

📍 3184 Lake Pkwy, New Orleans, LA 70139
★ 5.0 / 5 · 321 reviews · 24 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured 24/7 Emergency 24 yrs
Specialties: Deck staining, Exterior repaint, Pressure wash

New Orleans Color Co

📍 176 Madison Dr, New Orleans, LA 70163
★ 4.5 / 5 · 108 reviews · 21 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured 24/7 Emergency 21 yrs
Specialties: Deck staining, Interior repaint, Ceiling paint, Cabinet refinishing

New Orleans Painters

📍 2195 Cedar Ln, New Orleans, LA 70112
★ 4.9 / 5 · 139 reviews · 22 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A 24/7 Emergency 22 yrs
Specialties: Cabinet refinishing, Wallpaper removal, Color consultation

Coleman Color Co

📍 5220 Beach Ln, New Orleans, LA 70139
★ 4.8 / 5 · 234 reviews · 37 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A+ 37 yrs
Specialties: Wallpaper removal, Trim & doors, Pressure wash, Ceiling paint, Drywall prep

New Orleans Color Co Co.

📍 7385 Washington Pl, New Orleans, LA 70163
★ 3.8 / 5 · 271 reviews · 27 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A+ 24/7 Emergency 27 yrs
Specialties: Color consultation, Ceiling paint, Cabinet refinishing, Exterior repaint, Wallpaper removal

New Orleans Color Co Co.

📍 5473 Bay Dr, New Orleans, LA 70112
★ 3.6 / 5 · 265 reviews · 25 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A- 24/7 Emergency 25 yrs
Specialties: Color consultation, Cabinet refinishing, Interior repaint, Deck staining, Ceiling paint

Capitol Spectrum Painters

📍 1722 Cedar Dr, New Orleans, LA 70139
★ 4.1 / 5 · 208 reviews · 32 years in business
✓ Licensed ✓ Insured BBB A- 24/7 Emergency 32 yrs
Specialties: Wallpaper removal, Drywall prep, Pressure wash, Deck staining

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Seasonal painting checklist for New Orleans 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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