Walls
Drywall repair cost
A patch is two dollars of compound. A doorknob hole on an eggshell wall is about $324, and only $68 of that is the hole — the rest is matching the texture and painting the wall corner to corner, because on any sheen a touch-up flashes. The other thing the hole does not decide is the minimum charge, which is why one nail pop costs what five do and the biggest saving here is a walk round the house with a notepad.
Written and edited by Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Last reviewed 2026-09-23 · Nothing you type leaves your browser
Drywall repair calculator
Count every hole first
A patch is two dollars of compound. What you pay for is the wall around it — the texture and the paint that make the repair disappear — and a minimum charge that costs the same for one hole as for five.
Set the screw, two coats of compound, sand. A minute of work each — which is why the minimum charge, not the repair, is the price of a single one.
A mesh patch or a California patch, three coats and a sand. The commonest repair in a house, and the one most often done badly by leaving a visible hump.
Too big for a stick-on patch: a backing strip goes behind the board and a cut piece of drywall is screwed to it, then taped like a seam. It is a small drywall job rather than a patch.
Cut the damage back to the middle of the nearest studs, screw in a new piece, tape and finish three coats. From here up the repair is really a replacement of that panel.
Stained, sagging or soft board comes out; wet insulation behind it usually does too. It cannot be quoted until the leak is found, and it should not be closed up until everything behind it is dry.
The wall it is in
These two decide the bill more than the holes do.
The commonest texture in America and the easiest to match: an aerosol can does a patch, a hopper does a wall. Feathered in properly it disappears.
Any sheen flashes: a touch-up reflects light differently from the aged paint around it and shows as a dull or a shiny rectangle. The wall gets painted corner to corner, and that is most of the bill.
Corner to corner. A 12 by 10 wall is 120. It only matters if the whole wall gets painted — and on any sheen, it does.
A wall. Ceilings cost more and are more often water.
Minimum charge applies, and one visit covers every repair you list.
Used only to pick a regional labour rate. It stays in your browser.
3 repairs, orange peel, eggshell or satin
$376
the hole 27% · the wall 73% · paint 120 ft²
$100 is the hole. $276 is the wall.
On eggshell or satin paint a touch-up flashes — it reflects light differently from the paint around it — so the wall gets painted corner to corner. That is what a drywall repair actually costs.
The minimum charge, paid once
$376 in one visit, $798 one call at a time
Nearly everybody who repairs drywall charges a minimum for turning up, about $190. Ring them once per hole and each call pays it again. Walk the house with a notepad before ringing anybody: it is $422 for the same work.
The hole, the wall, and the visit
Every line on one scale.
What the visit is made of
- The repairs, 3 of them
Setting, patching, backing, taping and three coats of compound. On its own this is the small half.$88 - Compound, tape, patches and board
A few dollars a hole. This is the line people think they are paying for.$12 - Matching the orange peel texture
The commonest texture in America and the easiest to match: an aerosol can does a patch, a hopper does a wall. Feathered in properly it disappears.$60 - Painting the wall, corner to corner — 120 ft²
Any sheen flashes: a touch-up reflects light differently from the aged paint around it and shows as a dull or a shiny rectangle. The wall gets painted corner to corner, and that is most of the bill.$216
What it costs
National average. 3 repairs on a wall with orange peel texture and eggshell or satin paint, finished to match, in one visit. Not included: finding the leak behind water damage, mould remediation, or repainting adjoining walls.
If the damage is a whole section rather than a hole, it is priced by the sheet — and once a wall is being painted corner to corner anyway, the paint is a calculation of its own.
Worth knowing
- You are not paying for the hole. The repairs themselves are $100 of this; the texture and the paint that make them disappear are $276. On eggshell or satin paint a touch-up flashes, so the wall gets painted corner to corner — 120 ft² of it — and that is most of the bill.
- Called out once per repair, these 3 jobs would cost about $798 — each visit pays the minimum again. Done in one visit they are $376. Count every hole in the house before ringing anybody; it is the largest saving on this page and it costs a walk round with a notepad.
- Ask for the repair to be brought to the same level of finish as the rest of the wall, and say which sheen the paint is. Those two sentences are the difference between a quote for a patch and a quote for a repair you cannot find afterwards.
On this page — 4 sections
You are not paying for the hole
The short version
- A doorknob hole: $68 of patching, $256 of texture and paint. The wall is 79 per cent of it.
- Any sheen flashes. The same hole is $324 on eggshell and $198 on flat.
- The minimum charge is the price of a small repair. One nail pop costs what five do.
- Popcorn cannot be matched. Smooth is the hardest to hide a patch in.
A patch is two dollars of compound and a strip of tape. Somebody who has done it before fixes a doorknob hole in an hour, and the hole is genuinely gone.
That is not what you pay for. What you pay for is the wall around it: matching whatever texture is already there, and then painting far enough that the repair cannot be found. And how far that is depends on something the hole has nothing to do with — the paint.
New paint reflects light differently from the aged paint beside it. On flat paint the difference hides. On eggshell, satin or semi-gloss it flashes — a dull or a shiny rectangle exactly where the repair is, visible from the door. The only place a colour change hides is an inside corner, so the wall gets painted corner to corner, and that is most of the bill.
| Same doorknob hole, 120 ft² wall | The hole | The wall | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flat or matte — touch-up hides | $68 | $55 | $198 |
| Eggshell or satin | $68 | $256 | $324 |
| Semi-gloss or gloss | $68 | $256 | $324 |
Orange peel texture. The hole column never moves. The wall column is the paint sheen deciding whether the wall gets repainted — and it is the bill.
MaterialsEstimator, Drywall repair price survey — by the patch, the texture and the wall around it · checked 2026-09-23
One nail pop costs what five do
Nearly everybody who repairs drywall charges a minimum for turning up — around $190. It is not padding. It covers the drive, the setup, and the fact that three coats of compound mean two return trips for a repair that takes ten minutes each time.
Which produces the single most useful thing on this page: a nail pop costs the minimum, and so do five. The work on five is still under the minimum. The saving is not in negotiating the price of a patch; it is in never paying the minimum twice.
| One visit | One call per repair | |
|---|---|---|
| Five nail pops, flat paint | $205 | $960 |
| What the work is worth | $205 | The same |
| Minimum charges paid | One, if that | Five |
| Return trips for the coats | Two, for all five | Two, five times |
| The difference | — | $755 for nothing |
$192
One nail pop
The minimum, whatever the hole
$205
Five, in one visit
Still under the minimum
$960
Five, one call each
The minimum, five times
79%
Of a doorknob hole that is the wall
On eggshell paint
The texture decides whether it can be hidden at all
After the sheen, the other thing the hole does not control is the texture on the wall. Four textures, and they are four different problems.
| Texture | Doorknob hole, flat paint | Can it be hidden? | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smooth | $314 | with the whole wall painted | The hardest finish to hide a repair in. |
| Orange peel | $198 | yes | The commonest texture in America and the easiest to match: an aerosol can does a patch, a hopper does a wall. |
| Knockdown | $198 | yes | Sprayed, left to set for a few minutes, then flattened with a knife. |
| Popcorn | $198 | no | Cannot be matched invisibly — the aggregate size and the ageing never line up. |
Smooth is dearer than orange peel on flat paint because a smooth wall gets painted whatever the sheen — there is no texture to hide the feathered edge. Popcorn is on a ceiling, because that is where it lives.
Two sentences to say to whoever quotes
- “Bring it to the same level of finish as the rest of the wall.” The Gypsum Association scale — anybody in the trade knows the phrase, and it stops a visible hump.
- “The paint is eggshell.” Or flat, or whatever it is. It decides whether the wall gets painted, which decides what the job costs.
- Ask whether the texture will be sprayed or dabbed, and how far out. Aerosol orange peel blends; a sponge does not.
- If it is popcorn, ask whether they would rather scrape the ceiling. The honest answer is often yes.
- If there is a stain, ask for a moisture reading before a price.
- List every hole in the house in the same message. One visit.
Gypsum Association, GA-214, Recommended Levels of Finish for Gypsum Board · checked 2026-09-16
What goes wrong
01Calling out for one nail pop
It costs the minimum, about $192, however small it is — and so would five together.
Instead — Walk the house first and batch everything into one visit. Or do the single pop yourself; it is the repair a first attempt gets right.
02Touching up a sheen finish
New paint reflects light differently from aged paint. On eggshell, satin or semi-gloss the touch-up shows as a rectangle from across the room.
Instead — Paint the wall corner to corner. Budget for it from the start, because it is most of the cost.
03Quoting a repair without naming the texture
Orange peel is an aerosol; knockdown needs timing; smooth needs the wall painted; popcorn cannot be matched. They are four different jobs at four prices.
Instead — Say which it is, and ask how it will be matched and how far out.
04Patching water damage before finding the leak
The drywall is the symptom. The repair fails again, and whatever was wet behind it is now sealed in.
Instead — Find and fix the source, dry what is behind, take a moisture reading, then repair.
05Leaving a hump
A patch built up proud of the wall shows under raking light for ever, particularly on a smooth wall.
Instead — Feather each coat wider than the last and sand flat. Ask for it to be brought to the wall's level of finish.
06Trying to match popcorn
The aggregate size and the yellowing never line up. Every attempt is visibly a patch.
Instead — Accept a visible repair, or take the whole ceiling off. Often the second is the honest recommendation.
07Repairing a big hole as a patch
Past about twelve inches a stick-on patch flexes and cracks. It needs backing, or the section cut back to the studs.
Instead — Treat anything over a foot as a small drywall job with a new piece of board.
08Using the wrong sheen for the touch-up
Even on flat paint, a touch-up in eggshell from the wrong can flashes exactly as if the wall were satin.
Instead — Find the original can, or take a chip to be matched, and buy the same sheen.
- 01Walk the whole house and count every holeNail pops, doorknob holes, the one behind the door. One visit covers all of them; one call per hole pays the minimum every time.
- 02Sort them by sizeUnder an inch, up to six, up to twelve, bigger. Each is a different repair, and past twelve inches it is a replacement of that piece of board.
- 03Name the textureSmooth, orange peel, knockdown or popcorn. It decides whether the repair can be hidden at all, and how far out it has to be blended.
- 04Find the paint sheenFlat hides a touch-up. Anything with a sheen flashes, and the wall gets painted corner to corner — which is most of the bill.
- 05Measure that wallCorner to corner, floor to ceiling. It only matters if the wall is being painted, and on any sheen it is.
- 06Treat water damage separatelyFind the leak first. Nothing gets closed up until what is behind it is dry, and stained board wants a moisture reading before anybody calls it cosmetic.
- 07Say two sentences to whoever quotesBring it to the same level of finish as the wall, and here is the sheen. That is the difference between a quote for a patch and a repair you cannot find afterwards.
Past a large patch the repair becomes a replacement, and a replacement is priced by the sheet — with the finishing levels, the compound and the labour split into hanging and finishing.
If it is a section, not a hole- Flashing
- A touch-up that shows as a dull or shiny rectangle because new paint reflects light differently from the aged paint around it. Any sheen flashes; flat mostly does not. It is why a repair on an eggshell wall means painting the wall.
- Nail pop
- A screw or nail head pushing a bump through the paper as framing dries and moves. The fix is a minute — set the fastener, two coats, sand — which is why the minimum charge, not the repair, is its price.
- California patch
- A piece of drywall cut larger than the hole with the board trimmed back to leave a paper flange, which is bedded in compound. The way a small hole is fixed without backing.
- Backing strip
- A batten screwed behind the board through the hole so a cut piece of drywall has something to fasten to. Needed from about six inches up.
- Feathering
- Spreading each coat of compound wider than the last so the edge tapers to nothing. On a smooth wall it is carried out a foot or more, because there is no texture to hide the edge.
- Orange peel
- The commonest sprayed texture in America — a fine dimpled surface. The easiest to match: an aerosol can does a patch.
- Knockdown
- A sprayed texture flattened with a knife while it is still wet. The timing is the skill; a bad match reads as a blotch.
- Popcorn
- An acoustic ceiling texture with aggregate in it. It cannot be matched invisibly, which is why a popcorn repair is either accepted as visible or becomes a ceiling scrape.
- Level of finish
- The Gypsum Association's scale for how far compound is taken — Level 5 is a full skim. A repair should be brought to the level of the wall it sits in, which is the sentence to say to the person quoting.
- Minimum charge
- What a tradesperson charges for turning up at all, around $190. It covers the drive, the setup and the return trips three coats need, and it is the price of any single small repair.
- Moisture reading
- A meter pressed against stained board to tell whether it is dry or still wet behind. The difference between a cosmetic ceiling patch and a leak that is still running.
- Corner to corner
- Painting an entire wall from one inside corner to the next, because a corner is the only place a colour change hides. It is the unit a repaint is priced in.
Common questions
- How much does drywall repair cost?
- A doorknob-sized hole on an eggshell wall is about $324 — and only $68 of that is the hole. The rest is matching the texture and repainting the wall corner to corner, because a touch-up on any sheen flashes. The same hole on flat paint, where a touch-up hides, is about $198. A single nail pop is the minimum charge, around $192, however small it is.
- Why does a small hole cost so much to fix?
- Because you are not paying for the hole. The patch is a few dollars of compound and an hour of work. What costs is making it disappear: matching the texture on the wall, and then painting far enough that the repair does not flash — on eggshell, satin or semi-gloss that means the whole wall. On the example above the hole is 21 per cent of the bill and the wall is 79.
- What is the minimum charge for drywall repair?
- Around $190, and nearly everybody has one. It covers the drive, the setup and the two return trips that three coats of compound need. It is why one nail pop costs what five do — and why the largest saving on this page is counting every hole in the house before calling.
- Should I get all my drywall repairs done at once?
- Yes, and it is not close. Five nail pops in one visit are about $205; called out once per pop they are $960, because each visit pays the minimum again. Walk the house with a notepad first.
- Can drywall texture be matched?
- Orange peel, easily — an aerosol can does a patch. Knockdown, with skill; the timing is what makes it match. Smooth is the hardest to hide a repair in, because there is no texture to break up the edge. Popcorn cannot be matched invisibly at all: the aggregate and the yellowing never line up, so a popcorn repair is either a visible patch or the reason the ceiling finally gets scraped.
- Do I have to repaint the whole wall after a repair?
- On flat paint, no — a careful touch-up from the same can will disappear. On any sheen, yes: new paint reflects light differently from the aged paint beside it and shows as a rectangle, so the wall is painted corner to corner because a corner is the only place a change hides. That decision is most of the cost, and it is made by the paint you already have, not by the hole.
- How much does it cost to repair water-damaged drywall?
- About $330 for a 20 ft² patch of ceiling on its own — but it cannot honestly be quoted until the leak is found. The drywall is the symptom. Repair it before the source is fixed and the money is gone; close it up while the insulation behind is wet and you have a mould problem with a fresh coat of paint on it.
- Can I repair drywall myself?
- The patch, yes: a mesh patch, three thin coats, a sand, an afternoon and about $69 including a quart of paint. The half that takes practice is the last coat feathered wide and sanded flat, and then the texture — a can of orange peel is forgiving, knockdown is not, and a smooth wall shows every pass of the knife. Expect the first one to be the one you learn on.
- How much does a large hole cost to repair?
- Past about twelve inches the damage is cut back to the studs and a new piece of board goes in, taped like a seam: about $552 on an eggshell wall, of which the board and the work are $236. From here up it is a small drywall job rather than a patch, and if it is a whole section it is priced by the sheet.
- Why is a ceiling repair more expensive?
- About 35 per cent over the same repair on a wall. Everything is overhead, compound sags while it dries, and the light across a ceiling is unforgiving of a hump. It is also where the damage is most often water, which is its own conversation before any patching starts.
- What should I ask the person quoting?
- Two things. That the repair is brought to the same level of finish as the rest of the wall — the Gypsum Association scale, and anybody in the trade knows the phrase — and which sheen the existing paint is. The first stops a visible hump; the second decides whether the wall is being painted, and therefore what the job actually costs.
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About the author
Pablo Ruiz Quintero — Editor
Editor of MaterialsEstimator. Decides which documents count as a source, what every default value is, and where the line sits between what the reader parses and what the engines compute.
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