Cost & hiring
Drywall vs veneer plaster: cost, time and finish
Veneer plaster is the modern plaster: hard, smooth and decorated the day after it goes on. It costs more than drywall, and here is how much more.
Three kinds of wall
Traditional plaster is two or three coats of lime or gypsum plaster on wood or metal lath, about 7/8 in thick. It is hard, solid and slow: each coat cures for days, and the whole takes weeks. It survives in older houses and in restoration work.
Veneer plaster is a system: a special gypsum base board, often called blueboard, hung like drywall, then covered with one or two thin coats of hard gypsum plaster, about 1/16 to 3/32 in in all. It sets in about 45 to 90 minutes and can usually be decorated the next day.
Drywall is gypsum board with taped joints, finished with joint compound to a level from 0 to 5, each pass with a day of drying.
Compared
| Drywall, Level 4–5 | Veneer plaster | |
|---|---|---|
| Installed price | about $1.50 – $3.50 per sq ft (Level 4) | about $3.50 – $5.00 (JourneymanHQ) to $5 – $10 (Fixr) |
| Finishing time | a day per pass, 4–5 passes | one or two coats, decorated the next day |
| Surface hardness | soft; dents easily | hard; resists dents and scuffs |
| Look | Level 5 is uniformly smooth | uniformly smooth; can be trowelled to a polish |
| Repairs | easy, with compound | needs plaster, or compound with care |
| Availability of trades | everywhere | fewer plasterers in many areas |
| Base | regular gypsum board | blueboard or a bonding agent |
The cost difference
The site’s comparison prices drywall with its cost estimator and veneer plaster at $3.50 to $7.50 per sq ft installed, spanning JourneymanHQ’s range into Fixr’s and capped below Fixr’s top, which reflects specialty work. Two-coat veneer is estimated at 15% more than one-coat.
A whole house: 2,000 sq ft, Level 5 drywall against two-coat veneer
- Drywall to Level 5: $4,795 – $9,435
- Two-coat veneer: $8,050 – $17,250
- Veneer costs $3,255 – $7,815 more; finishing takes 2 days against 6
One room: 1,200 sq ft of board, Level 5 drywall against one-coat veneer
- Drywall to Level 5: $2,886 – $5,670
- One-coat veneer: $4,200 – $9,000
- Veneer costs $1,314 – $3,330 more; finishing takes 1 day against 6
The drywall vs plaster comparison runs the same numbers for your area, level, region and board price.
Comparing like with like
Level 5 drywall is the closest finish to veneer plaster: both give a uniformly smooth surface under gloss paint and raking light. Comparing veneer with Level 4 or Level 3 drywall flatters drywall on price and undersells veneer on finish. The guide to levels of drywall finish explains the difference, and the finish level planner gives the passes and days for each level.
When veneer is worth it
- Hard-wearing walls: hallways, stairwells, children’s rooms, rentals.
- A fast finish: a room usable days sooner, which matters more on one room than on a house.
- Restoration: in an old house with plaster walls, veneer over blueboard matches the feel of the originals far better than drywall.
- Gloss paint and strong light, where drywall would need Level 5 anyway.
When drywall is the better choice
- Budget: drywall is the cheaper surface at every level.
- No plasterer nearby: in many areas, availability decides before price does. Ask for a plasterer’s quote early.
- Textured finishes: drywall at Level 3 under texture is far cheaper.
- Frequent changes: drywall is easier to patch, cut and modify.
How veneer goes on
The blueboard is hung exactly like drywall, with the same screws and spacing, and its joints are taped with fibreglass mesh. The plasterer then trowels on the base coat, and for two-coat work the finish coat once the base has set, working one wall or ceiling at a time so each is finished in one session. The surface is trowelled until it is smooth and hard. Because the plaster sets chemically in under two hours, there is no drying day between coats; the wall only needs to dry enough to take primer, usually by the next day in normal conditions. One crew can often hang, plaster and leave a room ready for paint in two or three days, against a week or more for drywall finished to Level 5.
Living with each
Veneer resists the dents and scuffs that mark drywall in hallways and children’s rooms, and its joints rarely show. Drywall is easier to change: new outlets, a moved doorway or a patched hole are routine, while patching veneer neatly takes plaster and a practised hand. Both take paint the same way once primed.
Plaster-like walls with drywall
A skim coat of joint compound over the whole surface of finished drywall, Level 5, gives the smooth look of plaster without its hardness. The skim coat calculator counts the compound. Some finishers also apply veneer plaster over regular drywall with a bonding agent; follow the plaster maker’s system if you do.
Replacing old plaster
When old plaster walls fail, the choice is repair, overlay with drywall, or remove and replace with drywall or veneer. Removal is heavy and, in pre-1980 houses, needs testing first; the guide to removing old drywall and plaster covers it. Drywall costs and how contractors build their prices are in the guide to what drywall contractors charge, and the cost estimator prices the drywall side on its own.