How much does a painter and decorator earn?

Painters and decorators are one of the most popular tradespeople in the UK, but how much does a painter and decorator earn? We’ve put together figures for average painter decorator earnings.

Whether you're just starting out as a painter-decorator, thinking about going self-employed, or you're already leading a decorating team of your own, this guide is for you.

If you’re wondering how much do decorators earn, keep reading to find out.

How much do decorators earn in the UK?

As a painter and decorator in the UK, you can expect to earn anywhere from around £11,238 as an apprentice, up to about £70,802 as a painting and decorating limited company owner.

The exact amount you’ll earn will depend on your qualifications, skills and experience – as well as the type of painting work you do and where you live / work.

If you decide to start your own painting and decorating business, whether that’s as a sole trader or a limited business, you’ll have the potential to earn a lot more than being employed.

How much does a painter and decorator earn a year?

Here are some average salaries for how much painter and decorators earn in a year in the UK:

How much do decorators earn per month?

Based on the decorator salaries listed above, here are the average figures (after tax) for how much money decorators make per month in the UK:

• Apprentice – £1,109.25per month

• Newly qualified – £1,646.54per month

• Employed – £2,859.78per month

• Sole trader – £6,412.84per month

• Business owner (Ltd company) – £8,319.36per month

How much do painter decorators make per week?

Here are some of the average figures for how much painter decorators make per week:

• Apprentice – £256per week

• Newly qualified – £380per week

• Employed – £660per week

• Sole trader – £1,480per week

• Business owner (Ltd company) – £1,920per week

How much does a painter and decorator earn per day?

A lot of painting and decorating work is charged by the day, so how much should a painter charge per day in the UK?

Here are the average day rates for a painter and decorators in the UK:

• Apprentice – £51.20per day

• Newly qualified – £76per day

• Employed – £132per day

• Sole trader – £296per day

• Business owner (Ltd company) – £384per day

How much does a self employed painter make?

When compared to being an employed painter and decorator, the earning potential as a self-employed painter is noticeably higher. Below are the average earnings for a self-employed painter in the UK:

Self employed painter salary UK

As a self-employed painter, you can expect to earn around £47,754.42per year (before tax). That works out as a take-home pay of around £36,430 per year.

As a self-employed painter decorator, your take-home earnings above reflect the deduction of tax, as well as the costs for running your business – including outgoings such as your work vehicle, fuel, tools and insurance, etc.

How much does a self-employed painter and decorator earn per month?

If you set yourself up as a self-employed painter and decorator in the UK, you can expect to earn around £384per month (before tax).

Self employed painter and decorator hourly rate

The average day rate for a self-employed painter and decorator in the UK is around £37per hour – depending on skills, experience and where in the country your business is based.

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How much money do painting companies make?

Setting up a painting and decorating businessis a great way to boost your earning potential. As the owner of a painting ltd company, you can expect to make somewhere in the region of £45,913per year.

The total revenue that you can generate will depend on a number of factors, including the size of your painting company, where your business is based, and the types of painting and decorating services you offer.

Want tips to make more money as a painting company? Check out our guide on how to grow your business.

Painting and decorating company profit

The total revenue that you make as a painting and decorating company is one thing, but you need to factor in how much your business running costs are.

To work out your profit, you need to deduct any business expenses (your work vehicle, fuel, tools, insurance, etc) for your total revenue. Then you’ll need to pay tax on your post-expenses income.

That means, as a painting and decorating ltd company owner, your average take-home earnings could be around £58,411.58 per year.

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You'll get 8 emails in total featuring fellow tradespeople who were once in your position, a free business strategy call, and at the end of it all, you could be the founder of your new business. What's not to love?

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How to make your painting and decorating business more profitable

One of the most important factors in running a successful painting and decorating business is profitability. At the end of the day, you want to make sure that all the painting jobs you’re doing are making you money.

To help you boost your profits, we’ve put together our top tips to make your painting and decorating business more profitable:

1. Make sure you're charging enough

You need to make sure you’re earning enough to cover your outgoings (including tools, materials, insurance, marketing, wages, fuel etc.), and more. If not, you may need to look at raising your prices.

2. Choose to specialise in areas that are the most profitable

Some painting and decorating jobs make you more money with you having to spend less (for tools, materials, etc). Look at which jobs tend to earn you the most for the least outgoings, and do more of them.

3. Consider how large the area you cover should be

Travelling further afield will eat into your profits through vehicle and fuel costs. So, if possible, stick to your local area or charge extra for jobs that are further away.

If you are travelling further, you need to make sure it makes sense for your business. Either the job value is worth it, or you charge for all of the travel to and from the job for the duration of the project.

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4. Minimise your outgoings

Try to have no or as little debt as possible. Remember, interest on credit cards or loans can impact your vital profits. Make sure you shop around for the best value tools, equipment, materials and workwear too.

As a Checkatrade member, you get access to special offers and discounted rates with all our trade partners.

5. Work on getting visibility for your business

This can be through advertising, your website, your company brand, customer reviews, SEO or industry contacts who can send work your way.

Investing time and energy into marketing is essential to growing your business.

6. Provide the best customer experience

By providing excellent services to all your customers, you’ll quickly build a strong reputation, win more work through word of mouth, and gain positive customer reviews.

Why not also join a trade directory like Checkatrade to build your reviews and online reputation?

Content disclaimer: This content has been created for general information purposes and should not be taken as formal advice. Read our full disclaimer here.