Drywall installation costs about $2.45 per square foot of board at a typical Level 4 finish: roughly $0.45 for standard ½ in board and $2.00 for hanging, taping and finishing. A room with 500 sq ft of walls and a 200 sq ft ceiling comes to about $1,700, with a range of $980 to $2,450 before regional adjustment.
How the drywall installation cost is calculated
The calculator prices board and labor separately, per square foot of drywall, then scales both to your state:
Cost = area × (board price + labor for the finish level) × state factor, plus texture, tear-out and permit if chosen
Board prices per square foot come from Fixr and HomeAdvisor (standard board $0.40 to $0.50). Labor by finish level comes from Fixr's table, which runs from $0.30 to $0.80 per square foot for hanging only up to $1.15 to $3.50 for a Level 5 skim-coated finish. The typical price is the middle of each range, and the low and high ends carry through to the range bar.
Worked example (the default)
- 500 sq ft of walls + 200 sq ft of ceiling = 700 sq ft
- Standard ½ in board: $0.40 / $0.45 / $0.50 per sq ft
- Level 4 labor: $1.00 / $2.00 / $3.00 per sq ft
- Typical: 700 × ($0.45 + $2.00) = $1,715, shown rounded as $1,700
- Low 700 × $1.40 = $980; high 700 × $3.50 = $2,450
HomeAdvisor's June 2026 guide gives $1.50 to $3.50 per square foot for materials and installation, and Homewyse puts a basic ½ in job at $2.32 to $2.75 per square foot in September 2026, including screws, tape and compound. The example's $2.45 sits inside both.
Drywall installation cost per square foot, by finish level
| Finish (GA-214) | Labor per sq ft | With standard board, typical |
|---|---|---|
| Hang only (Level 0) | $0.30 to $0.80 | $1.00 |
| Level 1, tape only | $0.70 to $1.50 | $1.55 |
| Level 2, garages, behind tile | $0.80 to $1.75 | $1.73 |
| Level 3, under heavy texture | $0.90 to $2.50 | $2.15 |
| Level 4, smooth, flat paint | $1.00 to $3.00 | $2.45 |
| Level 5, skim coated | $1.15 to $3.50 | $2.78 |
Labor ranges: Fixr, updated January 2025. The Gypsum Association's GA-214 describes Level 4 as the finish for flat paint and light texture, and Level 5 for gloss paint, dark colors or strong side light. The same 700 sq ft at Level 5 comes to about $1,950 typical; hung only, about $700.
Ceilings, texture and board type
Ceilings are priced at the same board and labor rates as walls. Texture is where they differ: HomeAdvisor gives $0.80 to $2.00 per square foot to texture walls and $1.00 to $2.00 for ceilings. Board type changes the material line: moisture-resistant board runs $0.54 to $0.70 per square foot, Type X fire-rated $0.50 to $0.90 and soundproof board $1.85 to $3.00.
Removing old drywall first adds $0.50 to $1.00 per square foot (Fixr), and a permit $50 to $400 where your town requires one (HomeAdvisor).
Drywall cost for a room
Switch to "Rooms" and enter length, width and wall height; doors and windows are subtracted and the ceiling is added. A 12 × 12 ft bedroom with 8 ft walls, one door and one window has 352 sq ft of wall and 144 sq ft of ceiling: $1,215 typical at Level 4 (shown as $1,200), before your state's adjustment. HomeAdvisor's range for a 12 × 12 bedroom is $600 to $1,800.
Doing it yourself
Turn on "I'll hang and finish it myself" and labor drops out: the 700 sq ft example costs 700 × $0.45 = $315 in board, shown rounded as $320. Add screws, compound and tape from the drywall calculator and the drywall mud calculator, which count sheets, screws, pails and tape rolls for the same area.
Your state
Prices are US averages. Choose your state and labor and materials are scaled by regional factors. Your choice is remembered on the other cost calculators.
Next steps
Painting follows drywall: estimate it with the painting cost calculator. For holes and water damage rather than new walls, use the drywall repair cost calculator. Finishing a whole basement? The basement finishing cost calculator covers framing, insulation and flooring too. All cost tools are in project costs, and the drywall tools in drywall, paint and walls.