Most bids for work in the home improvement space are pretty straightforward, but a wallpaper installation estimate is different. We’ll explain what to expect and why it’s sometimes a two-part process!
The Multiple Parts of a Wallpaper Installation Estimate
A typical estimate to install wallpaper includes two things that you need to know: Your labor cost for the actual installation, and a specification for the amount of wallpaper you’ll need to order (depending on which wallpaper you’re getting). We’ll go into both parts in more detail below, but there’s one thing you won’t find on a wallpaper installation estimate: the price to purchase your wallpaper.
Paper not included!
When you want to get wallpaper installed in your home, you’ll have two separate expenses: the purchase price of the wallpaper itself, and the separate cost to install it. This is the first thing that comes as a surprise to many people. Your wallpaper installation estimate will not include the cost of your wallpaper itself. Unlike a painting estimate, which includes “materials” such as the paint, a wallpaper installation estimate does not. Well, it includes materials needed to hang the paper, like wallpaper paste or primer, but not the actual wallpaper.
Why is this? Because your wallpaper installer doesn’t sell wallpaper!
Wallcoverings are sold either in exclusive designer showrooms, or on the manufacturers’ own websites (which you might need a professional trade account to access), or in various online sources such as WallpaperDirect. Ideally you’re working with an interior designer who can find unique sources and help choose from among thousands of great wallpapers, but if not, be sure to evaluate any wallpaper you find online very carefully to make sure you’ll like the pattern when it is spread over your whole space.
Either way, your wallpaper hanger doesn’t carry various wallpaper lines and can’t sell you your wallpaper. So that will be a separate cost. Be sure to factor that into your wallpapering budget.
So what will your estimate to install wallpaper actually include? The labor cost for installation, and your “roll count” or yardage of how much paper you’ll need to buy for your space.
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Installation Labor Cost
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First will be the cost to install your wallpaper, specifically for your space. We’ll base this on the dimensions of your space, the existing texture on your walls, and other considerations such as whether we’ll need scaffolding for higher spaces. When you fill out our Wallpaper Estimate Form, we gather all this information, so that we can provide you with a labor cost.
By the way, your labor cost includes any prep work we have to do on your walls. Whether we have to float the walls smooth, correct any imperfections, or prime your walls, any and all “prep” work is covered. Your labor cost is all-inclusive.
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Have you made your final wallpaper selections yet?
This is very important to clarify, and we ask this question on the Wallpaper Estimate Form. If you’ve already selected your wallpaper(s), then we can provide you with an exact labor quote, no problem.
But what if you’re still in the research phase and haven’t picked a wallpaper yet, or are undecided?
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Why you’ll need to finalize your wallpaper choice
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If you still haven’t made a final wallpaper choice, that’s okay – we can still provide you with a wallpaper installation estimate. But that labor cost will be generalized for “single standard American rolls”, which are 27″ wide and 16.5 feet long. (European, or “Euro rolls”, are narrower, at 21″ typically.) This is a fairly standard unit of measurement that we can use to get you a ballpark labor cost.
Once we’ve given you a wallpaper installation estimate for standard American rolls, you’ll have a ballpark idea for budgeting purposes, but the estimating process isn’t over yet! It’s critical that you send us a link to your ultimate wallpaper selection, once you’ve made your final choice. This is because your wallpaper might have special considerations that will affect the installation cost. Perhaps it is a peel-and-stick wallpaper, or a mural, or it’s a hand-painted chinoiserie wallpaper that needs special handling. We need to know this, so we can revisit your labor estimate and get your final, accurate installation numbers.
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Your Wallpaper “Roll Count”
The other item you’ll find on your estimate is commonly called the “roll count”, which tells you how much wallpaper to order. You’ll need to know this before you can buy your paper.
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Why your “roll count” may vary
Sometimes it feels like the wallpaper industry has colluded to make the process as confusing as possible, because there are so many ways that wallpaper is printed and sold. Your wallpaper might come in widths ranging from 20.5″ to 54″ (usually for double-width commercial wallpapers), and in lengths of 16.5′ (for “single rolls”), 33′ (sometimes quoted as 11 yards, for “double rolls”), or not in rolls at all but in yards (sometimes with a yardage minimum).
And of course, wallpaper isn’t actually sold in single rolls. It may be priced that way, but it is only packaged and sold in double rolls or Euro rolls. So if your space calls for 9 single rolls, we quote you the labor to hang those nine rolls, but you’ll need to actually order 5 double rolls!
That’s why it’s so helpful to have your wallpaper selections already made when you give us the information we need for your estimate. Unless you have a wallpaper selected, the best we can do is quote you the labor and roll count for single, standard American rolls. But as soon as you have that selection finalized, get us that selection post-haste, so we can fine-tune your labor cost (if needed) and give you an accurate roll count or yardage measurement, for when you go to purchase your wallpaper.
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Putting it all together
When you’re planning your wallpaper project, you (or your interior designer) will need to know three things: your cost to install the wallpaper, your roll count or yardage, and the cost of the wallpaper itself (depending on how many rolls you need).
We will help you with two of those on your wallpaper installation estimate: the labor cost, and the roll count or yardage.
Don’t forget to factor in the cost of buying your wallpaper when planning your project. And if there are any terms on your wallpaper estimate that you need help with, just reach out, we’ll be happy to answer any questions!
