Commercial painting quotes in London vary more than any other job we price. A 300 m² Shoreditch office fit-out can land anywhere between £4,500 and £16,000 — same building, same paint, wildly different scope. This guide breaks down the real 2026 numbers we use when quoting commercial work across London, so you can read a quote properly and compare like-for-like.

The headline rates (2026)

For a straightforward commercial repaint — walls and ceilings, two coats trade emulsion, no unusual access — London rates cluster in these bands:

Open-plan offices: £14–£22 per m² of wall area
Cellular offices / meeting rooms: £18–£28 per m² (more cutting-in, more doors)
Retail units: £20–£32 per m² (customer-facing finish standards)
Warehouses & industrial: £9–£15 per m² (large uninterrupted surfaces)
Restaurants & hospitality: £22–£35 per m² (heavy prep, dark colours, tight schedule)

These are wall-area rates, not floor area — a common source of confusion. A 200 m² floor-area office typically has 350–450 m² of wall area once you include partitions and columns.

What actually drives the price

1. Access — the single biggest variable

Painting a 3 m ceiling from a hop-up is one price. The same ceiling at 6 m needs a scaffold tower or MEWP, which adds £150–£450 per day in hire plus the extra labour to reposition. Atriums, stairwells and warehouse voids are where quotes diverge most.

2. Working hours

Standard daytime commercial rates assume 8am–5pm access. The moment a landlord or tenant needs out-of-hours work:

Evenings (6pm–11pm): +15–25%
Night shifts (11pm–6am): +35–60%
Weekend-only access: +20–35%

Night-shift work is common in central London retail (Regent Street, Kings Road, Oxford Street) and any live office. It is not a markup — it reflects real overtime rates for a two- or three-person crew.

3. Surface condition

A brand-new plastered fit-out needs mist coat + two topcoats — fast. A 15-year-old office with cracked plaster, tea stains, cable-run patches and existing dark colours can need filling, sanding, stain block, one full undercoat and two topcoats. That is easily double the labour on the same wall area.

4. Finish specification

Standard trade matt emulsion (Dulux Trade Vinyl Matt, Johnstone's Covaplus): baseline
Scrubbable / durable emulsion (Dulux Diamond, Zinsser Perma-White): +10–15%
Farrow & Ball or Little Greene contract emulsion: +£8–£14 per m² on paint alone
Anti-graffiti or intumescent systems: quoted per specification, always separate

5. Down-time and dust protection

The more the space stays operational during the works, the more the painter is paying for movement, masking and re-masking. A fully vacated office is cheaper per m² than a live one where desks get moved daily.

Typical London commercial jobs — real ballparks

| Project | Scope | Typical range | |---|---|---| | Small office repaint (100 m² floor) | Walls, ceiling, doors — vacant | £3,200 – £5,400 | | Mid-size office (300 m² floor) | Walls, ceiling, some woodwork — evenings | £8,500 – £14,000 | | Retail unit repaint (80 m² floor) | Full white-box after tenant fit | £2,800 – £4,800 | | Restaurant back-of-house | Kitchen walls, ceilings, mould-resistant | £3,500 – £6,000 | | Restaurant front-of-house | Dark accent, feature wall, weekend nights | £6,500 – £12,000 | | Warehouse repaint (1,000 m² walls) | Two coats, MEWP access | £11,000 – £16,000 | | Serviced-office repaint (per floor) | Communal areas + 12 offices, live | £14,000 – £24,000 |

What a good commercial quote looks like

If a quote is a single lump sum with no breakdown, you can't compare it. Ask for — or expect us to volunteer — the following line items:

1. Wall area, ceiling area, and door count (so you can sanity-check the m² rates above) 2. Paint specification, brand and product code (not just "white emulsion") 3. Number of coats per surface (mist coat + 2 finish is the honest minimum on new plaster) 4. Prep scope (fill, sand, stain block, undercoat) — written out 5. Access equipment (towers, MEWPs, cherry pickers) listed separately 6. Working hours assumed and any premium for out-of-hours 7. Protection and reinstatement — floor coverings, moving furniture back 8. Programme — start date, working days, handover

Quotes without these are guessing at your project, and the "cheap" one usually catches up on variations mid-job.

Where you can save money without cutting corners

Give one clear point of contact. Every extra decision-maker adds 3–5% to the final bill in delays and re-quotes.
Vacate the space if you can. Even one weekend of empty access can cut 15–20% off a live-office repaint.
Batch it. If you know the reception, break-out room and boardroom all need doing this year, quote them together — mobilisation is a fixed cost.
Specify durable emulsion in high-traffic zones only. You don't need Dulux Diamond on the ceiling.
Colour-match, don't chase premium brands, where finish tolerates it. Dulux Trade will colour-match most Farrow & Ball colours to within 2–3% at a third of the paint cost. For heritage and front-of-house we'd still specify the real thing.

How we quote commercial work in London

For any commercial enquiry we ask for the floor plan (or measure on site), confirm working hours with the building manager, and issue a written quote within 24–48 hours that itemises everything above. Most of our commercial work is in EC, WC, W1, SW3, SW6, SE1, SE15 and E1–E9. We are fully insured to £5m public liability, RAMS supplied on request, and every crew is directly employed — no subcontractors, which matters when a landlord asks for site inductions.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to paint a London office?

For a typical open-plan London office, expect £14–£22 per m² of wall area for a two-coat repaint in standard trade emulsion, including prep and protection. A 300 m² floor-area office usually lands between £8,500 and £14,000.

What is the price per square metre for commercial painting in London?

London commercial painting rates in 2026 are typically £14–£22/m² for offices, £20–£32/m² for retail, and £9–£15/m² for warehouses. These are wall-area rates, applied on top of measured prep and access costs.

Do you charge extra for night or weekend work?

Yes — evening work adds roughly 15–25%, full night shifts 35–60%, and weekend-only access 20–35%. This reflects real overtime rates for the crew, not a markup, and it's always itemised separately on the quote.

How long does a commercial repaint take?

A 300 m² office typically takes 5–8 working days with a three-person crew on standard hours, or 3–4 nights on a full night-shift programme. Retail fit-outs usually run in tighter windows agreed with the landlord.

Can you provide RAMS and insurance certificates?

Yes — full Risk Assessments and Method Statements, £5m public liability, and employer's liability certificates are supplied with every commercial quote as standard.

Which paint brands do you use for commercial jobs?

Dulux Trade and Johnstone's Trade as standard, Zinsser and Tikkurila for durable and moisture-resistant work, and Farrow & Ball or Little Greene where the finish specification calls for it — always confirmed in writing on the quote.

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Planning a commercial repaint anywhere in London? Request a commercial painting quote — we'll come out, measure up and send a fully itemised quote within 48 hours. For a wider view of our commercial service, see commercial painting in London, and for related interior work read our guide to interior painting for London period homes or the practical surface preparation guide.

Commercial Painting Costs in London: The 2026 Pricing Guide