Cost & hiring
What drywall contractors charge: per sheet, per square foot, by finish level
Drywall is priced per sheet or per square foot of board, and the finish level moves the price more than anything but the region. These are the sourced ranges.
How drywall is priced
Contractors price drywall in one of three ways: per square foot of board hung and finished, per sheet, or per job. Per square foot of board is the most useful for comparing, because it does not depend on the sheet size. Floor area is used by builders for whole houses, and it is not the same thing: a house has about three and a half to four square feet of board for every square foot of floor.
Most quotes split into hanging, which is fast and physical, and finishing (taping and mudding), which is slow and skilled. Many contractors employ separate hangers and tapers, and some owners hire only the finishing.
The published ranges
The site’s cost calculators use these ranges, taken from consumer cost surveys and adjusted to a split the surveys support:
| Item | Range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Hang and finish, installed | about $1.50 – $3.50 per sq ft of board | Fixr ($1.50–2.50 standard), HomeAdvisor, HomeGuide (2024–2025) |
| Board, 1/2 in 4 × 8 | $10 – $20 per sheet | HomeGuide |
| Screws, tape, compound, bead | $0.08 – $0.20 per sq ft | Our estimate from supply prices |
| Hanging labour | $0.50 – $1.00 per sq ft | Split of the survey ranges |
| Finishing to Level 4 | $0.80 – $1.50 per sq ft | Split of the survey ranges |
| Level 5 skim | + $0.50 – $1.50 per sq ft | ThePricer |
| High-cost metros | × 1.4 – 1.6 on labour | Our reading of regional ranges |
| Lower-cost regions | × 0.8 on labour | Our reading of regional ranges |
For scale, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics put the median pay of drywall and ceiling tile installers at $58,140 a year and of tapers at $64,700 in May 2024. A contractor’s price adds overhead, insurance, equipment, travel and margin to the wage.
What a job costs
40 sheets (1,280 sq ft of board), Level 4, 30% ceilings, labour only
- National average: $1,764 – $3,392, or $44 – $85 per sheet, $1.38 – $2.65 per sq ft
- Hanging $678 – $1,357, finishing $1,085 – $2,035
- In a high-cost metro: $2,469 – $5,427, $62 – $136 per sheet
The hang and finish labour calculator adds the ceiling premium and region.
1,000 sq ft of board with materials, Level 4, national average
- Board: 35 sheets at $15 = $525; small materials $80 – $200
- Hanging $500 – $1,000, finishing $800 – $1,500
- $1,905 – $3,225, or $1.91 – $3.23 per sq ft of board
A 2,000 sq ft house, 8 ft ceilings, Level 4
- About 7,400 sq ft of board, 259 sheets with waste
- $14,097 – $23,865, or $7.05 – $11.93 per sq ft of floor
The whole-house budget estimates the board from the floor area; a take-off from the plans can differ by 15% either way.
The drywall cost estimator builds the total from your board price, level and region.
What moves the price
- Finish level. Level 3 under texture costs about three quarters of Level 4 finishing; Level 5 adds a skim coat. See the guide to levels of drywall finish.
- Ceilings. Harder work; many contractors add 15 to 25%. The calculators use 20%.
- Height. Walls over 9 or 10 ft need scaffolding or stilts.
- Cut-up rooms. Closets, stairwells, soffits and angles take more time per sheet.
- Small jobs. A minimum charge applies; a single room can cost more per square foot than a house.
- Access. Upper floors without a boom delivery, long carries, tight stairs.
- Texture. Spraying adds about $1.00 to $2.25 per sq ft.
- Region. The single largest factor after the scope.
Checking a quote
Divide the quote by the square feet of board, not the floor area or the room count, and compare with the ranges. The cost per square foot calculator does it and says where a quote falls. The guide to reading a drywall quote covers what a good quote includes.
Per sheet or per square foot
Some contractors quote per sheet, hung or hung and finished. To compare a per-sheet price with the ranges above, divide by the sheet area: $64 per 4 × 8 sheet is $2.00 per sq ft, and the same $64 per 4 × 12 sheet is $1.33. A per-sheet price that does not say the sheet size cannot be compared. Per-sheet pricing also hides the room’s complexity: a sheet in an open great room and a sheet cut into pieces for a closet count the same, which is why some finishers quote a higher rate for cut-up rooms.
Hiring half the job
Hanging is the easier half to do yourself; finishing is where skill shows. Hiring only a taper is common and saves part of the labour. The guide to hanging it yourself and hiring the finish works through the numbers.
How these figures are kept
The ranges are reviewed every year against the latest published surveys and BLS data, and every calculator that uses them shows the date it was last reviewed. Each source is named on the methodology page. They are national ranges for planning, not quotes; local prices can sit outside them.