A single feature wall in mid-range wallpaper costs roughly $250 to $500 in DIY materials. An average room runs about $500 to $900 in mid-range paper, dropping toward $300 with budget rolls and climbing past $1,500 with designer paper or professional hanging. The biggest lever is the paper you choose and whether you hang it yourself. Get your exact roll count first with the calculator.
Where the money goes
Wallpaper cost is mostly the paper, then a short list of supplies. Here's the per-project picture for a small feature wall of about 3 to 4 double rolls.
| Item | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Wallpaper (3–4 double rolls for a 12 × 9 ft wall) | $120 – $600 |
| Budget ~$30–60/roll · mid ~$70–150 · designer $200+ | |
| Paste or primer (if not prepasted) | $20 – $50 |
| Tools (smoothing tool, seam roller, snap knife, level) | $25 – $70 |
| DIY materials total | $165 – $720 |
Price per roll, by tier
- Budget: roughly $30–60 per double roll. Simple prints and textures, often prepasted. Fine for a first project.
- Mid-range: roughly $70–150 per double roll. Better non-woven papers, richer prints, the sweet spot for most rooms.
- Designer & specialty: $200 and up. Hand-screened prints, murals, and natural materials like grasscloth. Beautiful, and where budgets run away.
DIY vs professional hanging
Non-woven, paste-the-wall paper is squarely DIY-friendly, which matters because labor is the big swing in the total.
- DIY: materials only, so a feature wall lands around $165 to $720 depending on the paper.
- Professional hanging: commonly $30 to $80 per roll in labor, more for big repeats, tricky corners, or wall prep. On a whole room that can match or beat the cost of the paper itself. Prices vary widely by region, so get two or three quotes.
Three example budgets
Rough DIY material estimates, assuming you own basic tools.
| Project | Est. materials |
|---|---|
| Feature wall — 12 × 9 ft, budget paper | $180 – $300 |
| Feature wall — 12 × 9 ft, mid-range paper | $350 – $550 |
| Average bedroom — ~7–8 double rolls, mid-range | $600 – $1,000 |
Swap in designer paper or grasscloth and every line jumps. A large drop-match repeat also costs more, because you trim and waste more to line the pattern up.
What pushes the price up
- Designer and specialty papers (hand-prints, murals, grasscloth).
- Large pattern repeats that waste more per strip.
- Wall prep and lining paper on rough or previously papered walls.
- Professional installation, especially with prep or difficult layouts.
How to keep it affordable
- Hang it yourself. Non-woven paste-the-wall is the friendliest, and labor is the biggest cost.
- Feature one wall instead of the whole room. Most of the impact, a fraction of the paper.
- Choose a small or random-match pattern to cut waste.
- Order all your rolls in one purchase, in one dye lot, so you don't pay to re-order or end up with a visible colour shift.
- Get the count right the first time so you don't over-buy.