How Much Does It Cost to Remove Wallpaper? [2024 Data]
Normal range: $422 - $1,190
While the average cost to remove wallpaper from your home is $790, prices go from $200 to $2,000. Ultimately, what you pay will depend on the size of the room and how easy the wallpaper is to remove.
So you found a house in your budget, but the walls come fully furnished with someone else’s taste in wallpaper. Don’t worry—your dream home is still there, under the layers of floral and striped wallpaper. Homeowners pay an average of between $422 and $1,190 to remove wallpaper from their homes.
- Average
- $790
- Low end
- $200
- high end
- $2,000
Cost to Remove Wallpaper per Square Foot
The cost to remove wallpaper can range from $0.60 to $3 per square foot. All in all, you can expect to pay about $535 for a 12-foot-by-12-foot room, on average. A wallpaper removal contractor in your area will need to take a good look at the condition of the wallpaper and the size of the room before giving an estimate.
Although it may be a cool find, if your removal professional starts the job and uncovers unexpected layers of wallpaper or particularly ancient paper, they may bump up the price per square foot. If they need extra time to take down the wallpaper, the price per square foot increases.
| Square Footage | Average Cost to Remove |
|---|---|
| 100 | $60–$300 |
| 200 | $120–$600 |
| 300 | $180–$900 |
| 400 | $240–$1,200 |
| 500 | $300–$1,500 |
Wallpaper Removal Cost Factors
When you hire a professional wallpaper removal service, you are mostly paying for intensive hands-on time to scrape and clean the walls. A contractor may also need to repair the damage that could happen during the removal process. You are also paying for the use of their equipment and supplies, as well as the oh-so-important disposal of the mess.
Labor
Labor costs depend on the size of the space from which you are removing wallpaper. On average, you can expect to pay anywhere from $0.60 to $10 per square foot of space, at a minimum of $30 to $40 per hour. That equals out to an average cost of $500 to $700 per room.
You should also consider the ease of removal and the number of layers that need removing, along with any physical challenges that workers may face, such as tall ceilings, staircases, or wall damage. Any of these issues could affect the price.
Materials
You are likely to spend between $50 and $100 on the materials you need to remove wallpaper. That can include scrapers, steamers, glue-dissolving solvent, sponges, a perforator, and skim material. If you hire a professional, they would likely include the materials needed in the total cost of their service.
Wall Type and Condition
Finding out whether your walls are plaster or drywall is the first step in calculating how much it will cost to remove the wallpaper. Contractors usually start at $3 per square foot for wallpaper that is fast and easy to remove from drywall or plaster, but this can rise to $10 if the walls are in bad condition or if it takes a lot of elbow grease to get the job done.
Plaster Walls
Contractors usually work a little more quickly with plaster walls because it does not absorb as much water during removal; however, plaster is often old and finicky and requires someone with experience to avoid incurring damage that could lead to costly repairs later on.
Drywall
If your home is a relatively modern build, there is a good chance the walls are drywall. Hopefully, the bare drywall had primer applied before someone hung the wallpaper because, otherwise, this material soaks up water quickly and makes the wallpaper difficult to remove. You might even find old water damage on the drywall.
"Wallpaper also works best in lower-traffic rooms that don’t get very much moisture. Rooms like kitchens and bathrooms are not ideal for wallpaper since those are considered high-moisture areas and can cause the paper to peel."
— Gregory Pittman, Director of Commercial Painting Services at Five Star Painting
Type of Wallpaper
Some wallpaper made from materials like vinyl and other nonporous materials are more difficult to remove and will take longer and cost more. Traditional porous wallpaper is easier and faster to remove, while peel-and-stick wallpaper is the fastest.
Type of Room
Where your wallpaper is installed can affect how much it costs to remove it. Rooms like bathrooms and kitchens have cabinets, fixtures, and appliances that will need to be moved or removed, and these rooms are more prone to mold due to higher humidity. Bedrooms and living rooms are easier to remove wallpaper from, since furniture can be easily moved and there are usually few fixtures to work around.
Height of Walls or Ceilings
Rooms with high walls and vaulted ceilings require extra equipment for wallpaper removal like ladders or scaffolding, so they’ll be more expensive to remove wallpaper from. Average height rooms that only need a stepladder for removal will fall on the lower end of the cost range.
Number of Layers
As you begin to remove your wallpaper, you may find that your home’s former owners didn’t bother with that step before adding another layer. It’s not uncommon to find multiple layers of wallpaper in older homes, and they’re not always easy to remove. Expect to pay a higher price if you have two or more layers of wallpaper to remove before you uncover your actual walls.
Paint on Wallpaper
Some homeowners prefer paint versus wallpaper, but don’t do the proper preparation in between. Wallpaper that has been painted over will be more difficult to remove. If it was painted with oil-based paint, some removal methods may not be possible. Expect the project to cost more if your wallpaper is underneath a layer or more of paint.
Wallpaper Removal Cost by Method
Luckily, there is more than one way to strip away wallpaper memories of homeowners past. Do not be surprised if you or the contractor use a combination of methods to get the job done.
Stripping
The easiest and most efficient way to take down wallpaper is by stripping. Stripping wallpaper costs between $90 to $220 for a 144-square-foot room. To get a clue if the job is more or less labor intensive, try to strip a corner and see if it comes down easily.
Soaking and Scraping
If luck was not on your side and stripping did not work, the next level of labor is to soak and scrape the wallpaper with multiple tools like a putty knife and a perforator that pokes tiny holes for the wallpaper removal concentrate to seep in.
After the soaking and scraping, contractors use a sponge to remove lingering paste and residue. There is also a possibility that the contractor will add a skim coat and sand it to perfect the drywall finish. Rates for this removal type are between $0.60 and $1.50 per square foot.
Steaming
For about $50 more, your pro could bring in an electric steamer to help the removal process move faster. After perforation, the steamer heats the adhesive and releases the wallpaper. There might be some hand scraping if bits and pieces linger.
| Removal Method | Average Cost Range (per Sq. Ft.) |
|---|---|
| Stripping | $0.60–$1.50 |
| Soaking and Scraping | $0.60 + $1.50 |
| Steaming | $50 |
Common Wallpaper Removal Add-Ons
It may be more time- and cost-effective to have other services at the same time as wallpaper removal. Common wallpaper removal add-ons include:
Installing new wallpaper: Labor and materials for installing new wallpaper can average between $800 and $4,000.
Painting a room: Painting a room can cost between $2 and $6 per square foot.
Skim coating walls: Refinishing damaged drywall with skim coating averages between $1.10 and $1.30 per square foot.
DIY vs. Hiring a Pro to Remove Wallpaper
DIY vs. Hiring a Pro
If you are on a tight budget and have enough time and patience to give wallpaper removal your best shot, then going the DIY route is not a bad idea. In fact, depending on the size of the space or if you’re just removing a wallpaper border, this could be a simple weekend home decor project. This can be time-consuming, but it is budget-friendly if you do not run into problems like crumbling plaster. Just make sure to factor in the cost of materials as you plan your project and make sure you have everything you need in case you run into expected (or unexpected) challenges along the way. You’ll need these supplies for DIY wallpaper removal:
Bucket
Drop cloth
Sponge
Wallpaper removal kit
Electric steamer
Many people find removing wallpaper to be too complicated, tedious, or challenging to take on themselves, and that is when hiring a professional to remove wallpaper is the right way to go. Ask around, read reviews, and talk to local wallpaper removal pros to see who is the best fit for the job. That means understanding what they bring to the job, what influences the price, and what else you may need to provide.
How to Save Money on Wallpaper Removal Costs
Tackling wallpaper removal as a DIY project is your best bet for saving money on removal costs. Just remember that what you save in money, you’ll spend in time and effort. If the job is too much for you to take on yourself, you may be able to save on removal if your wallpaper or painting pro is also installing new wallpaper or painting. Sometimes, contractors will offer a discount when these services are done together.
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’ve surveyed thousands of real Angi customers about their project costs to develop the pricing data you see, so you can make the best decisions for you and your home. We pair this data with research from 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
It can take a professional anywhere between several hours and a full day to remove wallpaper in one room. How long wallpaper removal takes depends on the type of adhesive, the wallpaper’s age, the condition of the walls, and more.
Small amounts of wallpaper can be thrown away in your household trash. If you’re removing a whole home’s worth of wallpaper, you may need to contact a waste removal company, rent a dumpster, or schedule a special pick-up with your municipality’s waste removal service. Wallpaper isn’t recyclable, so no matter which method you choose to dispose of it, make sure it doesn’t get mixed in with the recycling.
You can usually tell if you have plaster or drywall by touch (plaster is harder, colder, and smoother than drywall) or by tapping on it (drywall sounds hollow, plaster does not). If you still cannot tell, peek under an outlet cover and check the cut edges. The rough edges show the composition of the wall. You will see either drywall (two paper sheets sandwiching gypsum material) or only plaster material (no paper sheets).
Mixing fabric softener into water is a low-cost way to remove wallpaper that has been passed among DIYers for years, but it has limited success. It works on some wallpaper, but not likely on vintage styles. Also, be careful, as it could interfere with the new wallpaper’s grip power.