Painting a room in Cambridge is priced by the time it takes, not by the square metre — usually a half day for a small room in sound condition and a full day for anything larger or needing real preparation. How much making-good the walls need, how high the ceiling is and how many coats the colour takes all move that. Half-day and full-day rates are set out on my handyman prices page. Those are labour only — paint, filler and sundries go on top at cost, with no markup and receipts shown.
I’m Ant, and I run a one-person handyman business covering Cambridge and the surrounding villages, plus Haverhill, Newmarket, Royston, St Ives and Saffron Walden. Painting and decorating is one of the jobs I’m booked for most, alongside general odd jobs and small repairs. Quotes are free, there’s no VAT to add, and the price is agreed before I start.
What painting and decorating jobs I take on
Most of my decorating work is single rooms and tidy-up jobs rather than whole-house redecorations. Here’s the sort of thing people call me for:
- Single rooms — bedrooms, box rooms, living rooms and studies. Walls, ceiling and woodwork, or just the parts you want doing.
- Hallways, stairs and landings — lots of edges, awkward heights and cutting in, so usually a longer job than the square footage suggests.
- Ceilings — repainting a tired, yellowed or water-stained ceiling on its own.
- Woodwork and trim — skirting boards, architraves, doors, window sills and frames.
- Touch-ups — scuffs, chips and marks where furniture has moved or pictures have come down.
- Patch plastering before painting — small holes, damaged corners and blown patches made good first, so the paint has something decent to sit on.
- Filling and sanding — cracks, old screw holes and redundant fixings dealt with properly rather than painted over.
- Feature walls — one wall in a different colour, cut in cleanly against the rest.
If decorating is one item on a longer list, that’s ideal — a day that covers a bedroom and the jobs you’ve been ignoring beats booking each one separately. See my guide to the small home jobs people put off.
What it costs to have a room painted in Cambridge
Decorating is nearly always booked as a half day or a full day rather than by the hour, because the work doesn’t stop and start. What matters most is how long a room will realistically take, so that’s what the table below sets out — what a half day, a full day and a two-day booking cost is on my handyman prices page.
| Job | How it’s usually booked |
|---|---|
| Ceiling only, one room | Usually a half day |
| Woodwork only — skirting, door and frame | Usually a half day |
| Touch-ups and filling across a few rooms | Usually a half day |
| Small bedroom or box room, walls and ceiling | Half to full day |
| Double bedroom — walls, ceiling and woodwork | Usually a full day |
| Living room with a high ceiling | One to two days |
| Hallway, stairs and landing | One to two days |
| Two average rooms booked together | Two days |
Booked as a block, a day works out at a lower hourly rate than the same hours billed one at a time. That’s why decorating is one of the jobs where booking a half or full day beats paying hourly.
Big rooms and high ceilings cost more, and I’d rather say so upfront. Tall stairwells need a platform and a lot of careful cutting in, dark walls going light often need an extra coat, and badly patched or previously papered walls need making good first. If a room needs more than a day, I’ll tell you at the quote stage rather than halfway through.
What’s included and what isn’t
Preparation is what separates a decorating job that still looks good in five years from one that starts flaking by Christmas. It’s also the part people are tempted to skip. I don’t, so here’s exactly what a room price covers:
- Protecting the room — dust sheets over floors and anything that can’t be moved out, sockets and switches masked, carpet edges covered.
- Filling — screw holes, nail holes, cracks and dents filled, then left to dry properly before sanding rather than being painted over wet.
- Sanding — filler sanded flush, glossy woodwork keyed so the new coat actually grips, and dust wiped off before painting.
- Caulking — gaps along skirting, architraves and where walls meet ceilings sealed so the lines look sharp.
- Cutting in and coats — edges cut in by hand, then the number of coats the colour actually needs rather than a thin single pass.
- Clearing up — sheets lifted, masking removed, floors vacuumed and rubbish taken away. The room is usable when I leave.
Materials are charged separately at cost, with no markup and receipts shown. That covers paint, filler, caulk, masking tape, sandpaper and anything else the job needs. You’re welcome to buy the paint yourself if you’d rather.
What isn’t included: anything that legally needs a registered trade. If a job turns out to involve gas, that needs a Gas Safe registered engineer. Notifiable electrical work needs a Part P registered electrician. I stick to minor, non-notifiable electrical and plumbing work and say so plainly rather than have a go. See the full list of what I cover if you’re unsure where a job falls.
How long does it take to paint a room?
An average double bedroom in reasonable condition is a full day: walls, ceiling and woodwork, two coats where needed. A small box room or a ceiling on its own is usually a half day. A hallway, stairs and landing is commonly a day and a half to two days because of the heights and the sheer amount of edge work.
The thing that surprises people is how much of that is preparation. Moving and covering furniture, filling, sanding, caulking and masking can easily take longer than the painting itself. The rolling is the quick bit. When someone quotes a room in three hours, prep is what they’ve left out.
Drying time matters too. Filler has to dry before it’s sanded, and a second coat needs the first properly dry. That’s why a room with a lot of making-good spills into a second day.
Do I need a decorator or will a handyman do?
For one or two rooms, a ceiling, woodwork, touch-ups or making good before painting, a handyman is the sensible and cheaper choice — which is also why it suits landlords redecorating between lets. You get one person, one visit, and you can bundle other jobs into the same day instead of paying separate call-outs.
Hire a specialist decorator instead when the job is bigger or more specialised. That means a whole house or a full redecoration, spray finishing, hanging wallpaper across large areas, ornate coving and period mouldings, or work on a listed building where the materials and methods are restricted. Those jobs want someone doing that work every day, and I’d rather point you elsewhere than take on something that isn’t my strength.
Whichever you go for, the questions worth asking are the same: what’s included, is prep priced in, are materials on top, and when will it actually be finished. My guide to finding a reliable handyman in Cambridge goes through what to check, and you can read a bit about how I work if you’d like to know who’s turning up.
Frequently asked questions
Do you supply the paint?
I can, and it’s charged at cost with no markup and the receipt shown. Plenty of people prefer to buy their own so they can pick the exact colour and finish — that’s fine, just have it on site before the day.
Do you move furniture?
I’ll shift what one person can safely move and cover anything that stays put with dust sheets. Wardrobes, beds and heavy units are quicker if they’re pulled clear of the walls before I arrive, because that time comes out of the same booking.
How far ahead do I need to book?
Decorating takes a full or half day, so it needs a proper slot in the diary rather than being squeezed in. Get in touch as early as you can, especially if you want a particular week. I work Monday to Saturday, 8:00am to 6:00pm.
Do you do outside painting?
Yes, for work reachable from ground level or short steps — front doors, window frames and garden woodwork such as fences, sheds and gates. Anything needing scaffolding or work at height is a job for a specialist with the right access equipment.
Do you hang wallpaper?
Small areas such as a single feature wall, yes. For a whole house, patterned paper that needs careful matching, or anything with tricky corners and alcoves, you’re better off with a specialist decorator. Stripping old paper and making the wall good before painting is something I’m happy to take on.
Can you paint kitchens and bathrooms?
Yes. They need a moisture-resistant paint and more attention to preparation, because grease, steam and old sealant all stop paint sticking. Cutting in around units, tiles and splashbacks takes longer, so allow more time than a bedroom of the same size.
Get a free quote for your painting job
Tell me the room, roughly how big it is and what condition the walls are in, and I’ll give you a straight price before anything starts. Quotes are free, there’s no VAT, and materials are at cost. Covering Cambridge and the surrounding villages, plus Haverhill, Newmarket, Royston, St Ives and Saffron Walden.
Call or message between 8:00am and 6:00pm, Monday to Saturday, or use the contact page and send me a photo of the room.
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