Material choice changes the price more than you expect
Primed MDF is the economical default: dead straight, no knots, takes paint beautifully, and costs a fraction of solid wood. Its weakness is water — an MDF baseboard that gets wet swells permanently, which makes it a poor choice for bathrooms, laundry rooms, and garages.
Finger-jointed pine is the middle ground and handles occasional moisture better. Solid poplar or oak is what you use when the trim will be stained rather than painted, and it costs several times more per foot. PVC trim is the right answer in wet areas and basements.
Profile height matters too. A modern 5 1/4-inch baseboard costs noticeably more per foot than a builder-grade 3 1/4-inch and takes longer to cope, but it is the single cheapest way to make a room look more finished.
Coping versus mitering, and why it matters
A mitered inside corner is two pieces cut at 45 degrees meeting in the middle. It works perfectly when the corner is exactly 90 degrees — which almost no corner in a real house is. When the wall is off by even a couple of degrees, the miter opens into a visible gap, and it opens further as the wood dries and shrinks through the first heating season.
A coped joint has one piece run straight into the corner and the second piece cut to the exact profile of the first with a coping saw. It absorbs out-of-square walls and stays tight through seasonal movement. It takes longer, and it is the mark of someone who does trim for a living. Outside corners still get mitered, but they get glued and pinned so they cannot open.
What is included and what is extra
A trim quote should specify whether it includes removing the old baseboard, filling and sanding nail holes, caulking the top edge to the wall, and painting. Those are four distinct steps and each adds hours.
Install-only means bare or primed trim on the wall with nail holes showing. Install and finish means filled, caulked, and painted, ready to look at. On a full-house job the difference between the two is significant, so make sure both quotes you compare are pricing the same thing.
Signs you need this work
- Gaps between the baseboard and the floor, or between baseboard and wall
- Inside corners that have opened up and show a visible dark line
- Baseboard damaged by vacuum cleaners, pets, or moving furniture
- Water-swollen MDF baseboard in a bathroom or laundry area
- Missing baseboard after new flooring was installed
- Builder-grade trim you want upgraded to a taller, more finished profile
- Door casing that has separated at the mitered top corners
Cost by property type
| Property | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Apartment / condo | $320 – $1,735 | Usually simple profiles and short runs. Building rules may limit saw noise to certain hours, which stretches the schedule. |
| Small home (under 1,500 sq ft) | $335 – $1,830 | Short wall runs and fewer corners keep this near the low end per room. |
| Midsize home (1,500–2,500 sq ft) | $340 – $1,850 | The baseline for this estimate — roughly one to two rooms of baseboard plus door casing. |
| Large home (2,500+ sq ft) | $380 – $2,060 | Long uninterrupted runs actually improve the per-foot rate, but tall baseboard, crown, and multi-piece built-up profiles push material and labor up sharply. |
| Older home (pre-1978) | $410 – $2,245 | Plaster walls are rarely flat and floors are rarely level, so every piece gets scribed or shimmed. Matching an existing historic profile may require custom milling. |
| Rental / turnover unit | $300 – $1,640 | Simple MDF baseboard in a single paint color is the fast, economical choice and holds up fine to normal tenancy. |
| Small commercial / office | $410 – $2,220 | Often rubber or vinyl cove base rather than wood, which is faster and cheaper but a different scope entirely. |
Ranges assume national-average handyman labor rates ($60–$100/hr) and mid-grade materials.
Cost by state
| State | Typical range | |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $320 – $1,640 | |
| Alaska | $400 – $2,060 | |
| Arizona | $340 – $1,780 | |
| Arkansas | $300 – $1,570 | |
| California | $400 – $2,200 | |
| Colorado | $360 – $1,920 | |
| Connecticut | $380 – $1,990 | |
| Delaware | $340 – $1,780 | |
| Florida | $340 – $1,850 | |
| Georgia | $320 – $1,710 | |
| Hawaii | $420 – $2,200 | |
| Idaho | $320 – $1,710 | |
| Illinois | $360 – $1,920 | |
| Indiana | $320 – $1,640 | |
| Iowa | $300 – $1,640 | |
| Kansas | $300 – $1,640 | |
| Kentucky | $300 – $1,640 | |
| Louisiana | $320 – $1,710 | |
| Maine | $340 – $1,780 | |
| Maryland | $380 – $1,990 | |
| Massachusetts | $400 – $2,130 | |
| Michigan | $320 – $1,780 | Find a handyman in Michigan |
| Minnesota | $340 – $1,850 | |
| Mississippi | $300 – $1,570 | |
| Missouri | $320 – $1,640 | |
| Montana | $320 – $1,710 | |
| Nebraska | $300 – $1,640 | |
| Nevada | $360 – $1,920 | |
| New Hampshire | $360 – $1,850 | |
| New Jersey | $400 – $2,060 | |
| New Mexico | $320 – $1,710 | |
| New York | $400 – $2,130 | |
| North Carolina | $320 – $1,780 | |
| North Dakota | $320 – $1,640 | |
| Ohio | $320 – $1,710 | Find a handyman in Ohio |
| Oklahoma | $300 – $1,640 | |
| Oregon | $360 – $1,920 | |
| Pennsylvania | $340 – $1,850 | |
| Rhode Island | $360 – $1,920 | |
| South Carolina | $320 – $1,710 | |
| South Dakota | $300 – $1,640 | |
| Tennessee | $320 – $1,710 | |
| Texas | $340 – $1,850 | |
| Utah | $340 – $1,780 | |
| Vermont | $340 – $1,780 | |
| Virginia | $340 – $1,850 | |
| Washington | $380 – $2,060 | |
| Washington DC | $420 – $2,200 | |
| West Virginia | $300 – $1,570 | |
| Wisconsin | $320 – $1,780 | |
| Wyoming | $320 – $1,640 |
State ranges reflect typical independent handyman labor rates for a midsize home.
Common questions
How much does baseboard installation cost per linear foot?
Typically $4 to $10 per linear foot installed and painted, depending on material and profile. A standard 12x12 bedroom has roughly 45 linear feet, so expect $250 to $500 for that room.
Should baseboard go in before or after flooring?
After, in almost all cases. Flooring needs an expansion gap at the wall and the baseboard covers it. If the baseboard is already installed, shoe molding or quarter round covers the gap instead.
Do I need shoe molding?
Only if the floor is uneven or the baseboard was installed before the flooring. On a flat floor with baseboard installed after, a caulked bottom edge looks cleaner than adding shoe.
Can baseboard be reused when replacing flooring?
Sometimes, if it comes off carefully and the paint line is not damaged. In practice, removal usually splits some pieces and the labor to salvage often costs more than new MDF trim.
Related project cost guides
Sources and further reading
Primary sources behind this page. Federal safety, emissions and consumer-protection references — worth reading before you authorize any repair.
- EPA Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule Certification required to disturb paint in most housing built before 1978.
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