Exterior House Painting Cost in St. Louis: What Exterior Painters Charge and Why
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Exterior house painting cost in St. Louis runs about $5,000 to $7,000 for a conventional repaint of 2,500 square feet of exterior surface, based on the comparison we publish. That's roughly $2.00 to $2.80 per square foot. Stories, siding type, repairs and the product you choose push any single bid up or down from there.
Treat that as a starting range, not a quote. A one-story ranch in St. Charles with sound siding and a tall brick home in the city with soft sills and old caulk can share a square footage and still land far apart. Here's what exterior painters are actually pricing when they write up your house.
Do exterior painters charge by the hour, by the square foot, or by the job?
Most exterior painters bid residential work by the job. You get one total price for a defined scope, not an hourly rate. Crews estimate their labor hours internally, but that number rarely shows up on the bid itself.
That's why searches for an hourly rate don't turn up much you can use. An hourly figure means nothing until you know how many hours a house needs, and that depends on everything covered below.
Per-square-foot math is a better rough check, as long as you know what's being measured. Using the published range for a 2,500-square-foot exterior:
- $5,000 ÷ 2,500 sq ft = $2.00 per sq ft
- $7,000 ÷ 2,500 sq ft = $2.80 per sq ft
One catch. That's square feet of wall surface, not the floor area on your listing. Gables, dormers and a walkout basement add wall without adding living space, so a 2,000-square-foot house can easily carry more than 2,000 square feet of exterior.
What drives the cost of painting a house exterior?
Six things do most of the work: surface area, height and access, siding type, prep and repairs, the product, and lead-safe requirements on older homes. Trim detail and big color changes add on top.
- Surface area. More wall means more labor and more material. Simple.
- Stories and access. A single-story house painted from the ground is the cheapest setup there is. Two or three stories, steep lots, decks over walkouts and tight side yards mean taller ladders, lifts or staging, and more hours moving them.
- Siding type. Bare brick soaks up product and needs a masonry primer. Rough cedar drinks paint. Stucco hides hairline cracks that need attention. Aluminum and Hardie plank need their own cleaning and prep steps.
- Prep and repairs. Washing, scraping, caulking, replacing rotten boards and fixing mortar joints are often the biggest swing on a bid. Our step-by-step application process shows how much happens before any topcoat goes on.
- Product and film thickness. Better paint costs more per gallon, and thicker systems use more of it. Conventional paint goes on at about 1 to 2 mils, using around 10 gallons for 2,500 square feet. A ceramic elastomeric coating like Rhino Shield goes on at 8 to 10 mils and takes around 40 gallons for the same area.
- Lead-safe work. Homes built before 1978 may have lead paint. Under the EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, certified contractors have to contain and clean up dust from disturbed paint, which adds time and materials.
Why do two bids on the same house come in so far apart?
Usually because they aren't bidding the same job. Lay the written scopes side by side before you compare prices.
Check whether each one includes the same surfaces (soffits, fascia, gutters, garage door, porch ceilings), the same prep, and the same repair allowance. Check the product names and coat counts. A bid that's $2,000 lower and skips the rotten trim isn't cheaper. You'll pay for that trim later, plus whatever the water did behind it.
Is a ceramic coating cheaper than paint over the long run?
Over a long enough stretch, often yes. Paint costs less on day one, but you'll pay for it again every 5 to 7 years. A coating that lasts 25+ years costs more once.
The table below uses only the figures on our Rhino Shield cost comparison page. It's illustrative, not a quote. It doesn't account for inflation, and it ignores the fact that repaints usually get more expensive each time.
| Illustrative, 25-year horizon | Conventional exterior paint | Rhino Shield ceramic coating |
|---|---|---|
| Up-front cost | 1 paint job ($5,000–$7,000 per 2,500 sq ft) | About 2 to 2.5 paint jobs |
| Expected life | 5–7 years | 25+ years |
| Jobs needed in 25 years | About 3.6 to 5 (25 ÷ 7 to 25 ÷ 5) | 1 |
| Total over 25 years | 3.6 to 5 paint jobs, or about $18,000–$35,000 at today's range | 2 to 2.5 paint jobs |
| Cost per year of protection | 14% to 20% of a paint job per year | 8% to 10% of a paint job per year |
| Warranty | Often 1 year | 25-year transferable warranty |
How we got there: one paint job spread over 7 years is about 14% of its cost per year, and over 5 years it's 20%. A coating at 2 to 2.5 times the cost spread over 25 years comes to 8% to 10% a year. Plug your own paint bid in and the math holds.
The horizon matters. Selling in two years? The cheaper job probably wins. Staying fifteen or twenty? The repaints add up fast.
How much does Rhino Shield cost compared to paint?
Rhino Shield typically costs about 2 to 2.5 times a traditional exterior paint job up front. Rhino Shield of Missouri doesn't publish a flat price, because the same drivers listed above apply to every house, and the honest number comes from an on-site estimate.
Customers tend to notice how the estimate itself is handled. One recent one wrote:
"Reasonable price. Darrin Crook was great to work with, he explained everything. Juan and his team were amazing and funny. They did an excellent job, and the end result was fantastic."
— Audrey O.
"He explained everything" is the part we'd point to. You should understand every line on the bid before you sign it. If you're gathering quotes from St. Louis exterior painters, ask each one to walk you through theirs the same way.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do exterior painters charge per hour?
Most don't quote an hourly rate for residential exteriors. They bid by the job, with a total price for a written scope. If someone does quote hourly, ask for an estimated total and a not-to-exceed figure so you aren't writing a blank check.
How much do painters charge per square foot for exterior work?
Working from the published range of $5,000 to $7,000 per 2,500 square feet, a conventional repaint comes to about $2.00 to $2.80 per square foot of exterior surface. That's wall area, not floor area. Height, siding type and repairs move it.
Does painting brick cost more than painting siding?
It often does the first time. Bare brick is porous, so it needs thorough cleaning, mortar repair where joints have failed, and a masonry primer before the finish goes on. Previously painted brick in good shape can be closer to siding in cost.
How much more does Rhino Shield cost than regular paint?
About 2 to 2.5 times a traditional exterior paint job up front. It's designed to last 25+ years against 5 to 7 for paint, and it carries a 25-year transferable warranty. Your actual price depends on your house and comes from an on-site estimate.
Get a real number for your house
We'll measure, look at the siding and trim, and write out a detailed scope with the price attached. Request your free estimate or call us at (314) 239-7947.
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