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Prep is the biggest driver, and it's where quotes really differ

Prep comes first. Before any topcoat goes on, the surface has to be made sound, and that work is the single biggest reason two quotes on similar homes look nothing alike.

It means cleaning the surface, sanding back failed paint, filling cracks and gaps, patching damaged areas, treating mould at its source, and priming anything bare or repaired. Every step takes time. On a wall that's been sun-baked for a decade, the prep can take longer than the painting itself, so the quote is higher. And it should be.

Prep is also what makes the finish last. A premium exterior system is guaranteed against peeling, flaking and blistering only when it's applied and maintained to a sound, well-prepared surface, which is the manufacturer's own way of saying the durability you pay for is built on the prep underneath the paint and not on the brand of the tin.1DuluxView source

So the cheap quote is the one to read closely. A painter's work has to be done with due care and skill and be fit for purpose under Australian Consumer Law, which means a finish that fails because the surface was never made sound is a service-quality problem, not just a cosmetic one.3ACCCView source

Older homes can carry a lead-paint check before the prep even starts

Built before 1970? Mention it when you ask for quotes.

High-lead paints were common in Australian homes before the early 1970s, and the older the home, the higher the likely lead content of the original paint. Before anyone sands or scrapes old surfaces, a check is the safe first step, and a licensed painter or assessor can advise what is safe to disturb.2DCCEEWView source 4SafeWork NSWView source That assessment is a cost line that doesn't appear on a newer home's quote. Naming the home's age upfront keeps the quote honest.

Coats, access and surface condition move the rest of the number

Prep sets the floor. Three more drivers decide where the quote lands above it.

Coats and product quality. Two proper topcoats over a primed surface is the standard for a job that holds. One thin pass is cheaper today, but it brings the next repaint forward, and over the life of the wall that early repaint is what makes the bargain job the expensive one. The number of coats and the paint grade should both show as line items on a detailed quote. Ask if they aren't there.

Access and height. A single-storey wall you can reach from the ground is the baseline. A second storey, a steep gable, a tight side passage, or anything that needs scaffold all push the price up. Same wall, harder to reach, bigger job.

Surface condition and type. The state of the existing paint and the material underneath (timber, render or brick inside and out, tile or metal on a roof) set how much prep and which paint system the job needs. A sound, recently-painted surface needs light work. A flaking, chalky one needs a full strip-back first.

Three jobs, three answers: price the part you actually need

There isn't one rate. "Painting the house" usually means one of three jobs, and each is priced its own way. Work out which one you mean, then get the breakdown for it.

Inside the house. Interior painting is quoted by rooms or bedrooms, the way most people think about it, and walls, ceilings and trim are different surfaces within the same room. Condition and the amount of patching drive the cost more than floor area does. For what moves an interior quote and how rooms are priced, see [interior painting cost →].

Outside the house. Exterior painting is priced on square metres of wall, and prep and access do most of the work on the total. Weatherboard, render and brick each need a different paint system, and storeys and scaffold change the job. For the exterior drivers in full, see [exterior painting cost →].

By the square metre. If you think in rates rather than rooms, the per-square-metre view reads the same pricing model by area. It's useful for sanity-checking a quote, as long as you remember the rate folds in prep and access. For how the per-m² rate is built and where it breaks down, see [painting cost per square metre →].

Two more things are separate jobs, not part of a house-walls quote: the roof and prep-and-repair. A roof is substrate-specific, because tile and metal take different systems, and patching or crack repair is its own line. Treat each as its own item, and check the full [house painting cost guide →] for how they fit together.