Staining cedar siding costs on average $3,300, but can increase depending on the size of your project and type of stain used.
Cedar siding adds a natural beauty to homes, offering a timeless blending effect of the home with nature. Staining cedar will make it appear more vibrant and alive, and can also increase the wood’s natural lifespan. Expect to pay around $3,300 to stain all of your siding. If you have the time, you can do it yourself, which will bring that number down significantly.
Assuming you have already installed the cedar siding, the cost to stain cedar siding depends mainly on the square footage of the area and local labor costs.
You should expect to pay between $2 and $4 per square foot for the materials and labor. Consider that larger projects have the benefit of scale, which means you can use larger containers of staining material, and the tools you use will become a small aspect of the overall cost.
| Size in Square Feet | Materials Cost | Total Project Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 200 | $90 | $400–$800 |
| 400 | $190 | $800–$1,600 |
| 1,200 | $420 | $2,400–$4,800 |
| 1,600 | $680 | $3,200–$6,400 |
| 2,200 | $1,100 | $4,400–$8,800 |
Labor is by far the most expensive part of staining cedar siding. The good news is that the work isn’t particularly specialized, so expect to pay between $25 and $65 an hour when you hire a painting pro. The project may need significant prep work, so discuss with a painter if that’s something you can do yourself to save on the project’s cost.
Local exterior painting professionals can apply the stain, wipe away excess, and repeat as necessary. While sealant isn’t required, many painters seal everything they stain because it greatly enhances the cedar’s weather resistance, natural color, and lifetime.
Cedar stains are all similarly priced, so the real choice you need to make is whether you want to use natural, semitransparent, or opaque stains. Many choose to side their houses with cedar to reflect the nature surrounding them, which is why natural and semi-transparent stains are more popular as they allow the natural wood grain to shine through.
You can save on the cost of labor by staining your cedar siding on your own because you’ll just have to pay for the materials. For almost all staining jobs, you’ll need the items listed below. You can use many of them for the majority of the project regardless of size, which just means the more square footage you stain, the less expensive the materials are.
| Tool or Material | Cost |
|---|---|
| Container of cedar stain | $49 |
| Stain brush | $18 |
| Rags | $26 |
| Goggles or safety glasses | $9 |
| Gloves | $11 |
Before you decide to stain your entire house, buy a cedar plank and practice on it first. This gives you a chance to test your stain and determine how many coats you want to add. It also gives you an idea of whether you are up for the physical demands of the project. Remember, you can always hire a painting pro to tackle this job for you. You’ll pay a bit more, but you’ll save yourself the time and energy of doing the job yourself and you may be happier with the finished product.
Saving money when staining cedar siding comes down to the size of the work being done and whether or not you can do it yourself. You may be able to shave small expenses, but nothing will make as big of a difference as DIYing the job or working alongside a pro. Some ways to save money are:
Buy the stain in bulk.
Do the work yourself.
Get multiple quotes.
Hire in the off-season.
Prepare the surface yourself.
Wait to buy stain until it’s on sale.
Use leftover stains from previous projects.
Cedar is a beautiful wood with a tight grain, so many different stain types look good on it, but the most common types will be transparent, light stains. There aren’t many reasons why you’d want to cover up the wood’s natural texture with an opaque stain. Some cedar has a strong color, so it’s best to pick a stain that won’t affect it too much.
Oiling and staining and cedar aren’t the same thing, even if they may end up with a very similar appearance. Oil replenishes the wood's natural oils, while staining, in a way, seals them in. Because of this, over time, stained cedar begins to look more dull and loses its sheen and richness. Oiling cedar is generally considered the better option.
If you buy new cedar, the process of cutting it usually roughs up the surface enough that it doesn’t require sanding. However, if you buy older cedar or you’re repurposing it from another application, it’s a good idea to sand it. This helps the stain settle into the grain, and results in a more uniform appearance.
The general consensus is that two coats of stain are required and since the cedar is siding, a third coat of sealant is always a good idea. This helps protect the wood and stain, so you won’t need to resand and restain for at least a decade. Each stain after the first will darken the wood, so be aware of that when choosing a colored stain.
