New skirting boards are one of the single highest-impact finishes in a room. They crisp up tired edges, hide scuffs, modernise period rooms, and give the whole space a reason to look finished. Whether you're updating one room, running a full renovation, or turning around a rental or holiday let between guests, it's a job that punches well above its weight for the money.
But how much money? The honest answer is “it depends on five things,” and the five things are what this guide is for. Here's what to actually expect, where the real costs sit, and how to tell a sensible quote from a padded one.
Average skirting board installation cost in the UK
As a quick orientation, UK pricing for supply and fit sits in these ranges:
| Scope | Typical cost (UK, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Supply & fit, per linear metre | £18–£45+ depending on material |
| Average room (around 15m perimeter) | £300–£600 fitted |
| Full ground floor | £900–£1,800 |
| Whole three-bed house | £1,500–£3,500 |
| Labour-only day rate | £150–£280 depending on region |
The spread looks wide because it is. A plain MDF skirting in a square modern room is a different job from oak skirting in a period cottage with uneven stone walls, and the price reflects which end of that scale you're at.
Hourly billing isn't the only way the job gets priced — many handymen and small firms now quote jobs flat-rate rather than by the hour, which removes the risk of a slow afternoon ending up on your bill. Either way, the right question to ask isn't “what's your hourly rate?” but “what's the all-in figure for the room, materials included?”
What drives the price
Material is the single biggest variable. The main three options:
MDF (medium-density fibreboard). The default for most jobs today, and for good reason. It's the most cost-effective option, comes pre-primed from the factory so painting is quicker, cuts cleanly, and — importantly — won't warp, twist, or move with humidity the way softwood can. Moisture-resistant MR grades handle kitchens, bathrooms and utility rooms without issue. Expect £18–£28 per linear metre supplied and fitted.
Softwood (usually pine). Worth considering if you want a real wood grain for a stained or oiled finish rather than painted. Slightly more expensive than MDF, needs more prep (knotting, sealing, sanding) before finishing, and will move seasonally in centrally heated rooms. Expect £25–£35 per linear metre supplied and fitted.
Hardwood (oak, walnut, ash). The premium choice for high-end properties, listed buildings, or anywhere the skirting is being treated as a feature in its own right. Material cost is significantly higher, cutting takes longer because any waste is expensive, and finishing is slower. Expect £40–£70+ per linear metre supplied and fitted, more for exotic species or wide profiles.
Profile and height matter too. A 120mm plain pencil-round costs noticeably less than a 170mm Victorian ogee or torus, both in material and in labour time at the mitre saw.
If the existing boards need to come off, factor in removal and disposal. The job itself is quick, but there are two caveats worth knowing. First, old boards are often held with cut nails or heavy fixings that take plaster with them when they come off, meaning a round of making-good before the new boards go on. Second, waste wood counts as construction waste, and any tradesman carrying it away should hold a waste carrier licence from the Environment Agency — fly-tipping fines land on whoever's name the waste is traced back to.
Allow an extra £3–£8 per linear metre for removal, plus any plaster patching that reveals itself.
This is the hidden cost that catches people out most often. Modern houses with plasterboard walls are mostly square and plumb; older brick, stone and lath-and-plaster properties almost never are. Fitting skirting neatly to an uneven wall or an out-of-square corner requires scribing — shaping the back edge or the mitre joint of the board to match the actual geometry of the wall rather than the theoretical geometry of the drawing.
The photo above shows what a proper prep stage looks like on a period wall: old boards removed, cut nails and plug holes patched back with mortar, loose plaster made good, and the new pre-primed board sitting in place for a dry-fit before it goes on. None of this prep shows in the finished job, but skipping it is what makes bad fittings look wrong forever.
Scribing is slow, careful work, and it's the single clearest marker of whether skirting has been fitted properly or just banged on. On straight walls it adds nothing. On a bowed cob or stone wall in a period cottage, it can double the fitting time per board. If your property is pre-1930s and has solid walls, expect this to show up in the quote — and if it doesn't, ask whether the fitter has actually looked at the walls.
How the boards are fixed matters for both cost and finish. The three main approaches:
- Grab adhesive only — fastest and cheapest, but relies entirely on a clean, dust-free wall and only works well on plasterboard
- Adhesive plus pin nails — the standard for most jobs, giving instant hold and a long-term bond with minimal visible fixings
- Screwed and pelleted — the premium approach for hardwoods and high-end work, with each screw countersunk and the hole plugged with a matching timber pellet so the fixing disappears
A tradesman defaulting to adhesive-only on an old lime-plastered wall is cutting the wrong corner. Ask what fixing method is being used before you accept the quote.
Fitting is only half the job. The finishing sequence — filling the pin holes with decorator's filler, caulking the top edge to seal against uneven walls, sanding smooth, priming any bare cuts, then applying two coats of satin or eggshell — is what separates a professional result from a visibly amateur one.
Many fitters quote fitting and finishing separately. If you're getting a fit-only quote, add roughly £8–£15 per linear metre for the painter to come behind. If finishing is included, make sure the quote names the number of coats and the paint grade — “one coat of trade emulsion” is not the same as “two coats of Dulux Satinwood.”
DIY or hire a professional?
Skirting looks like a classic weekend DIY job, and for a plain run along a square wall with a mitre saw and some grab adhesive, it genuinely is. Where DIY runs into trouble is at the corners, the uneven walls, and the finish.
Tight external mitres on 170mm skirting with a profile — the sort of corner your eye lands on every time you walk into the room — are unforgiving. One degree out and the gap is visible from across the room. Internal corners on uneven walls usually need to be scribed rather than mitred, which is a different skill altogether. And cutting MDF without proper extraction creates a serious health hazard: MDF dust is classified by HSE as a workplace carcinogen because of its formaldehyde-based resin content, with specific guidance on exposure control that most domestic DIY setups don't come close to meeting.
A professional carpenter or handyman brings a mitre saw, dust extraction, scribing tools, a wet-finger feel for which corners are going to fight back, and the finish standards to make the whole thing look like it belongs. For a single wall, DIY is reasonable. For a whole room, the labour saving rarely justifies the finish you lose.
If the existing skirting is only tired rather than damaged, there's a third option worth considering — filling, caulking, sanding and repainting the originals rather than replacing them. We cover when it's worth repairing versus replacing in a separate guide; skirting is often a strong candidate for repair.
What a good skirting quote looks like
A proper quote for skirting work should name:
- The material, grade and profile being used (e.g. “18 × 120mm MDF torus, pre-primed”)
- The total linear metres being installed
- Whether removal and disposal of old boards is included
- The fixing method
- Whether making-good of plaster behind removed boards is in scope
- Whether painting and finishing is included, and to what spec
- The total price with VAT shown explicitly if applicable
- Start date and estimated duration
A one-line “skirting fitting — £750” without any of this isn't a quote; it's an opening position. Our separate guide on how to spot a good tradesman covers what else to check before you commit.
Frequently asked
How much does it cost to fit skirting boards per metre?
In the UK, expect £18–£28 per linear metre supplied and fitted for pre-primed MDF, £25–£35 for softwood, and £40–£70+ for hardwood. Painting and finishing is sometimes separate — add £8–£15 per linear metre if so.
Is it cheaper to replace or repaint existing skirting?
Repainting is almost always cheaper if the boards are structurally sound and the profile is one you can live with. Replacement is the right call when the profile is dated, boards are damaged or rotten, or you're changing the look of the room significantly. See our repair or replace guide for the full decision framework.
How long does it take to fit skirting in a room?
A single average room (around 15 linear metres) takes a competent fitter half a day to a full day, depending on wall condition and whether old boards need removing. Painting and finishing adds another half day on top.
Do I need a carpenter or a handyman for skirting?
Either, provided they can produce clean mitres and know how to scribe. For a single room or straightforward replacement, a general handyman with carpentry experience handles it comfortably. For a whole-house job in a period property with significant scribing, a specialist carpenter may be worth the extra.
Should skirting be painted before or after fitting?
Both, ideally. Pre-prime any raw cuts before fitting (the ends and backs), fit, fill, caulk, sand, then apply two topcoats in situ. Painting fully before fitting leaves exposed raw cuts; painting fully after fitting means paint runs where the boards meet the floor and the wall. The hybrid approach is standard.
Is MDF skirting as good as timber?
For painted finishes, yes — in most cases better. It won't move seasonally, won't knot-bleed through the paint, cuts more cleanly, and arrives pre-primed. The one exception is anywhere you want a stained or natural timber finish, which only works with real wood.
How much does a whole house of new skirting cost?
A three-bed semi typically costs £1,500–£3,500 fitted and finished, depending on material, profile, and whether old boards need removing. Oak or walnut throughout can take that past £6,000. For whole-house work it's usually part of a wider renovation rather than a standalone job.