Drywall Installation Costs

Drywall installation is generally priced by the square foot, although some contractors may offer a per-room or per-job rate. Still, some handymen might work under hourly rates to install drywall in your home. This material is the basis of all the walls and ceilings in your home. You will pay a premium price for materials if you need moisture-resistant drywall for bathrooms or fire-resistant drywall in places like California where wildfires may be a threat.

Drywall sheets also come in several different sizes and thicknesses. For DIY projects and most basic installations, 4’x8’ sheets are the standard material used. Sheets are available up to 16 feet long, but they are much more difficult to work with, so they will not usually be suited for a DIY drywall job. The thickness of drywall sheets also has to be considered. One-quarter-inch drywall is designed for repairs and overlays, while ½” drywall is the one that is commonly used in wall and ceiling installations. Sheets up to ⅝” thick are available for garages, furnace rooms, and other applications that require a sturdier material.

Drywall installation: 1,000 square feet of drywall, labor costs, and other potential charges. With 4’x8’ drywall, the job would require 32 sheets.

Other considerations and costs

• Drywall finishing is done on a system of levels. There are six finish levels, rating from basic temporary construction finishing (Level 0) to fine-coated finishes that are ready for enamel, semi-gloss, or gloss paint (Level 5). The more finish work required, the more you will pay for labor.
• Textures can also be applied directly to the drywall to create a unique look in various rooms of your home. Texturing can be done by hand or sprayed on, and will have various labor and materials costs in addition to standard drywall installation.
• New construction drywall jobs are cheaper than renovations or replacements. This is because there is no demo work required and new construction has very little prep work. New construction projects are also notorious for bulk pricing.

Check out our guide if you need a loan for your home improvement project.

DIY considerations

• In order to create a finished product and a secure wall structure for the home, the drywall needs to be properly installed. This can involve a lot of measuring, cutting, and taping to get a clean finish. If you are handy and willing to invest the effort, you can save on labor by doing the work yourself.
• If asbestos is present in your home (as is the case with most homes built before 1985), you will require asbestos abatement before drywall can be replaced. This can cost as much as $5,000 and has to be done by licensed professionals.

References

• Craftsman Estimator Costbook, complete series year 2019.
• Latest prices found on Home Depot and other vendor Web sites.
• Literature review of DIY Web sites.