Plasterer · Skim a room
How much does plastering a room cost?
What it costs to have a room skimmed in the UK in 2026, what changes the price, what a good plastering job looks like and how to get an accurate quote from a plasterer.
per average room, walls skimmed
Published UK trade day rates and merchant material prices, September 2026. Not yet based on Hard Hat Way quote data.
What changes the price
- Room size. Plastering is priced by area, so a box room is much less than a through lounge
- Walls only, or ceiling too. A ceiling is overhead work and is usually priced on top of the walls
- Skim or full plaster. A skim over sound plaster or new board is the baseline; hacking off and replastering from the wall is a bigger job
- Preparation. Removing wallpaper, old paint that's flaking, or Artex adds hours before any plaster goes on
- Condition of the existing surface. Blown or damp plaster has to come off and be replaced, not skimmed over
- Detail. Coving, reveals round windows, arches and lots of corners take longer than four flat walls
Plastering is the job that makes everything else look right. Flat, smooth walls make paint look expensive and hide decades of filled holes and patched-up wallpaper. It’s also one of the most skilled trades to do well and one of the easiest to spot when it’s done badly.
What drives the price
Area is the starting point. Plasterers price by the square metre or by the room, and a room is really just a rough measure of area. A small bedroom with four flat walls is the cheap end. A large living room with a chimney breast, alcoves, a bay window and a ceiling is the top end, because every corner, reveal and edge takes time to get straight.
Then it’s what you’re skimming over. New plasterboard is the easiest surface. Existing plaster that’s sound but tired needs a bonding agent and then a skim. Wallpaper has to come off first, and if there are several layers or it’s been painted over, that’s hours of stripping before the plasterer can start. Artex needs care and possibly testing.
Blown or damp plaster is the game-changer. If the old plaster is hollow when you tap it, or has been wet, it has to come off back to the brick and be replastered from scratch. That’s a full plastering job, not a skim, and costs more in both labour and materials. A plasterer will often only find this out at the site visit, by tapping the walls.
Ceilings are priced on top of walls, because working overhead is slower and harder.
What a good job includes
- Surfaces prepared properly: paper off, loose material removed, the wall sealed or bonded as needed
- Beads fitted to external corners and around openings so edges are straight and don’t chip
- Plaster applied to an even thickness and trowelled flat, with no ridges, hollows or trowel marks
- Corners and reveals sharp and true
- A clean, even finish that only needs a mist coat before painting, not sanding or filling
- Sockets and switches cleanly plastered around, with the plaster finishing tight to the box
- Floors and fittings protected and the room left clean
Sight along a freshly plastered wall towards a window. If you can see waves or ridges in the light, it’s not flat.
How to get an accurate quote
Photograph each wall and the ceiling with the lights on, and a close-up of any cracks, damp or peeling. Give the room’s rough dimensions. Say whether the walls are papered, painted or Artexed, whether you want the ceiling done too, and whether you’re replastering after building work. That’s enough for an honest starting price. The final price comes after a site visit, when the plasterer can tap the walls and check for anything blown.
No page can promise what your room will cost. Post the job with photos and get real quotes from local plasterers whose work is rated by other plasterers.
Common questions
What's the difference between skimming and plastering?
Skimming is a thin finishing coat of plaster, a few millimetres thick, over a sound surface such as new plasterboard or existing plaster in fair condition. Full plastering means a backing coat first, then the skim, and is needed on bare brick or where the old plaster has been hacked off. Skimming is the quicker, cheaper job.
Can I paint straight after?
Not straight away. Fresh plaster needs to dry out fully, which takes anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks depending on thickness, temperature and ventilation. It goes from dark pink to a pale, even colour when it's ready. Then it needs a mist coat of watered-down emulsion before normal paint.
Can Artex be skimmed over?
Often, yes, once it's been sealed and any high points knocked back, but Artex applied before the mid-1980s can contain asbestos and must not be sanded or scraped without testing first. A good plasterer will ask how old it is before touching it.
Free for customers. Quotes by email and in the app.