Let’s skip the “it depends on many factors” answer that every other painting website gives you and just tell you what things actually cost. You’re in Brighton. You want to know how much it costs to paint your house. Here it is — broken down by every type of painting project TrueCoats handles, with the honest range and what pushes you toward the top or bottom of it.
Table of Contents:
- Exterior Painting
- Interior Painting
- Cabinet Painting
- Brick Lime Washing
- Why Painting Quotes Vary So Much For The Same Project
- Get The Actual Number for Your Home
Exterior Painting
Typical Cost: $1,800 to $6,500+
The average Michigan home exterior paint job runs $1.80 to $2.50 per square foot in 2026. For a typical Brighton-area home, that shakes out to:
- One-story home: $1,800 – $4,000
- Two-story home: $3,000 – $6,500
- Larger or complex homes: $6,500+
A 2,000 square foot home at that per-square-foot rate typically lands between $3,600 and $5,000 — that’s the most common range we see for a standard Brighton exterior repaint.
What pushes you toward the higher end:
Prep work. This is where quotes diverge the most. A home that hasn’t been painted in 10 years — peeling paint, faded color, chalky surfaces — needs significantly more prep before new paint goes on. Surface condition is the single biggest variable in any exterior quote. If a painter gives you the same price as a freshly painted home, they’re either cutting corners on prep or planning to do so.
Siding type. Vinyl siding is the most straightforward to paint. Wood siding requires more prep and a primer system. Brick and stucco are the most labor-intensive and push costs higher.
Stories and access. The moment ladders aren’t enough and scaffolding comes in, the price goes up. Two-story homes cost significantly more per square foot than one-story because of the added labor, time, and safety requirements.
Color change. Going from dark to light (or light to dark) adds coats. More coats = more time = higher cost.
Interior Painting
Typical Cost: $400 to $7,250+
Interior painting costs in Brighton and Livingston County run $3 to $8 per square foot in 2026, depending on surfaces included and project scope. Here’s what that looks like in practice:
By room:
- Bedroom (standard 12×12): $400 – $800
- Living room or dining room: $700 – $1,500
- Kitchen walls: $350 – $850
- Bathroom: $300 – $900
Full home: The average interior painting job in Brighton right now runs $5,000 – $7,250 for a full repaint. That’s for a standard single-family home with rooms, trim, and ceilings included.
Larger homes, complex trim work, vaulted ceilings, or significant prep (holes, cracks, surface repairs) push that number higher. A 3,000 square foot home with high ceilings and extensive trim can run 10,000–15,000.
What’s actually included matters. Make sure your quote specifies whether trim, ceilings, and doors are included — or if the quote is walls only. The difference between those two scopes is significant, and it’s one of the most common sources of “why does this cost so much more than I expected” conversations.
Cabinet Painting
Typical Cost: $1,200 to $4,500
Cabinet painting is one of the highest-impact projects available in a kitchen or bathroom — and at a fraction of the cost of replacement.
For a standard kitchen with 20–30 cabinet doors and drawer fronts, professional cabinet painting in Michigan runs $1,200 – $3,000. Larger kitchens with more doors, bathroom vanities added in, or premium finish requirements (sprayed factory-finish look) push toward $3,500 – $4,500.
Why cabinet painting costs what it does:
The work isn’t just painting. Proper cabinet painting means removing all doors and drawers, cleaning and degreasing every surface, sanding, priming, and applying multiple thin coats for a smooth, durable finish. Done right, it looks factory-finished. Done wrong — brush strokes, drips, inadequate prep — it looks painted.
The price difference between a $800 quote and a $2,500 quote for the same kitchen is almost always the prep work and finish process. A brush-and-roll job done in place costs less. A properly sprayed, multi-coat finish with doors removed costs more — and lasts years longer.
vs. cabinet replacement: New kitchen cabinets in Southeast Michigan run $8,000 – $25,000+ for a standard kitchen. Cabinet painting gets you a like-new look for a fraction of that. If the cabinet boxes are solid and you like the layout, painting is almost always the better financial decision.
Brick Lime Washing
Typical Cost: $2,500 to $8,000+
Brick lime washing is one of TrueCoats’ signature services — and one of the most misunderstood in terms of what it actually costs.
Lime washing isn’t paint. It’s a mineral-based treatment applied to brick that creates a soft, aged, European-inspired look — the kind that looks like it belongs on a Tuscan farmhouse or a magazine cover, not like someone slapped a coat of paint on the brick. It breathes with the brick rather than sealing it, which makes it a far better long-term choice than traditional brick paint.
For a Brighton-area home, lime washing costs roughly $3 – $6 per square foot of brick surface. A typical brick ranch with a partial brick exterior might run $2,500 – $4,500. A full brick two-story home runs $5,000 – $8,000+.
What affects lime wash pricing:
Coverage. How much of your home’s exterior is brick? Partial brick (front face only) costs less than full brick.
Brick condition. Brick that’s clean and in good shape is straightforward. Older brick with efflorescence (white mineral deposits), mortar staining, or previous sealant applied requires additional prep before lime wash can be applied correctly.
Desired coverage. Lime washing can be applied at different dilutions — from a light, barely-there wash that lets the brick color show through, to a fuller application for a more dramatic whitened effect. The look you want affects how many coats are applied.
Why Painting Quotes Vary So Much For The Same Project
You’ll get wildly different quotes for the same project. Here’s why:
- Prep is invisible — until it isn’t. A painter who skips prep gives a lower quote and produces a job that peels in two years. You won’t know which kind you hired until the paint starts failing. The most important question to ask any painter: what does your prep process include?
- Paint quality matters. Budget paint covers fewer square feet per gallon, requires more coats, and fades faster. Quality paint (Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams premium lines) costs more upfront and lasts significantly longer. Most reputable painters spec quality products because they’d rather not come back to repaint in two years.
- Labor rates in Brighton vs. the national average. Michigan skilled labor rates run about 6% below the national average — which is why you shouldn’t use national cost guides to benchmark Brighton quotes. Our numbers are real 2026 Livingston County pricing, not a national average dressed up to look local.
Get The Actual Number for Your Home
Every quote above is a range because every home is different. The actual number for your specific project depends on what you have, what condition it’s in, and what you want done. It requires someone to look at it.
TrueCoats provides free estimates for Brighton and Southeast Michigan homeowners. Alex and the team will show up, assess your project, and give you a clear quote — no runaround, no lowball estimate that blows up later.
When you need a fresh paint job…
