How Much Does It Cost to Plane a Door? [2025 Data]
The average cost to plane a door is $95, with most homeowners paying between $55 and $250. Labor costs are the biggest contributing factor, depending on the type of pro you hire, with the door’s condition and material also affecting the cost.
Planing a sticking door costs an average of $95, but depending on the type of pro you hire or if you decide to DIY this project, costs can range between $55 and $250. Hiring a handyperson costs an average of $55 to $75 per hour, while a carpenter costs $100 or more per hour.
This straightforward repair can ease the inconvenience of a sticking door and prevent damage to the door, door jamb, or floor. Shaving off a thin portion of the edge of the door can get it opening and closing with ease again—as long as it’s done right.
Door Planing Cost Factors
This is a straightforward project with only one major cost factor: labor. Depending on your area, you can hire either a handyperson or carpenter to complete the project for you. Other cost factors depend on any additional upgrades or changes you’d like to make at the same time.
Labor
This is a simple job that any handyperson can do. The cost to hire a handyperson is $55 to $75 per hour, and it will take no more than an hour to do this job. A carpenter could also take on this project if your door has additional details that you don’t want to risk removing. A carpenter’s hourly rate can be $100 or more.
Tools and Equipment
If you’re planning to tackle the job yourself, you’ll need to have the right tools and supplies on hand. A hand plane is the most important tool—both manual and electric options are available.
| Tools | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Manual hand plane | $15–$50 |
| Electric hand plane (optional) | $40–$250 |
| Painter's tape | $15–$50 |
| Paint | $15–$40 |
| Stain | $20–$120 |
| Sandpaper | $5–$20 |
| Pliers | $5–$20 |
| Hammer | $5–$15 |
Door Size
The size of your door can affect how much it costs to plane. Larger, thicker entry doors will cost more to plane than smaller, thinner interior doors, and double doors will cost more since they’ll take longer to plane.
Type of Door Material
Planing is a process that should only be used on wood doors. If you have a metal, composite, or fiberglass door, other methods are necessary to stop them from sticking. Sanding, grinding, or shaving non-wood doors will cost more than planing a wood door, since they’ll require specialized equipment and extra time.
Door Condition
A door that’s in poor condition may be more difficult—and more expensive—to plane. Weak, rotting, or damaged wood can be further damaged by planing, so the handyperson or carpenter will need to take extra care to maintain the integrity of the door.
Additional Repairs or Services
Once your door has been planed, you may want to add some additional services to get it looking as great as it’s working.
Repainting the door can cost between $135 and $300—less if you already have paint on hand and are just doing a quick touch-up.
Upgrading your doorknob and hinges can give your door a fresh look. Hinges average between $8 and $15 each, and doorknobs range from $15 to $150.
If the sticking door has damaged your floor over time, repairing the floor costs between $200 and $630, depending on the extent of the damage.
Should I Plane a Door or Replace It?
Unless you’re a skilled carpenter with the right tools on hand, it may be easier to replace a sticking door. If you plane too much of the door off, you risk having too wide of a gap between the door and the door frame. If it’s a front door, this could greatly reduce your energy efficiency and let in pests and bugs.
The average cost to replace a door is around $1,100 if you hire a professional door installer. If your door is already near the end of its lifespan, it may be worth higher replacement costs.
Additionally, if you try to plane a door and find months later that it starts to stick again, you may have larger issues with your door frame. You can attempt to shim the door yourself or call in a pro to inspect the issue.
DIY vs. Hiring a Pro to Plane a Door
If you decide to plane your door yourself, you'll spend between $70 and $280 if you use a manual hand plane, although the cost could be much lower than that if you already have paint as well as basic tools like a hammer and pliers. In that case, all you'd need to buy is the manual hand plane.
You could also go the electric hand plane route, which will make the job even easier, though at a higher price. In this case, your cost range is $95 to $480. But again, that is only if you also have to purchase a whole gallon of paint and stain, too. (Obviously, you won't need the whole gallon to repaint the bottom of the door, but you normally can't buy paint by the ounce.)
While this is a project you could do yourself, we recommend having a local handyperson or general contractor near you do it instead.
Tips to Reduce the Cost to Plane a Door
This is already an inexpensive project, but there are a few ways to cut costs even more. For one thing, you can use a manual hand planer instead of an electric hand planer. An electric hand planer will save you a lot of work, but this is the most straightforward way to save money.
Another way to save is to use paint or stain you already have rather than buy a new gallon.
Finally, if you’ve already got a construction project going on, you could have the contractor take care of the door in the meantime.
How Angi Gets Its Cost Data
Home is the most important place on earth, which is why Angi has helped more than 150 million homeowners transform their houses into homes they adore. To help homeowners with their next project, Angi provides readers with the most accurate cost data and upholds strict editorial standards. We extensively research project costs to develop the pricing data you see, so you can make the best decisions for you and your home. We rely on reputable sources, including the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, academic journals, market studies, and interviews with industry experts—all to ensure our prices reflect real-world projects.
Want to help us improve our cost data? Send us a recent project quote to costquotes@angi.com. Quotes and personal information will not be shared publicly.
Frequently Asked Questions
The job is relatively simple, but it does require some skill. When planing a door, you run the risk of splintering it if you don't do it correctly. You’ll need to remove the door from the hinges in order to properly plane it, and removing and rehanging a door can be a two-person job. While planing a door is a straightforward repair, you’ll want to ensure it’s done right to avoid damaging your door.
You should generally cut between 1/8-inch and 1 inch when planing a door. If you cut off more than that, you risk damaging the door. Planing too much from the bottom of your door can cause noticeable gaps, so it’s always better to start with as thin of a section as possible and work in thin layers until your door no longer sticks.
You can open up more space between the door and the floor by sanding the bottom of the door, but it will take longer compared to using a hand planer. However, you could use a belt sander, which some believe is even better than a hand planer for planing a door. Also, it could leave a smoother finish on the bottom of the door.
