How Much to Charge for a Hardwood Floor Recoat: A Pricing Guide for Owners
Most recoat businesses charge about $1.50 to $3 a square foot, which puts a 1,000 square foot floor at about $1,500 to $3,000. Where you land in that range depends on your market, what refinishers near you charge, and how well you show the homeowner what they are getting. This guide walks through setting your rate, a minimum job, add-ons and options, and the costs your price has to cover, so you can build a price sheet before your first estimate.
Start with the market range
Homeowners commonly pay about $1.50 to $3 a square foot for a buff and recoat. A full sand and refinish runs about $3 to $8 a square foot, and replacing the floor costs far more. That gap is your best selling point. Your price can sit well below a sand job and still pay you well, because a recoat takes one person about 3 hours on an average floor.
Look up what floor companies near you charge for a recoat, often called a screen and recoat, and for a full refinish. Call a few if you have to. Your rate should make sense next to theirs.
Price toward the top by adding value
It is tempting to start at the bottom of the range to win jobs. Do not. A low price is hard to raise later, and it attracts the customers who shop on price alone. The goal is to price toward the top of the range by giving real value.
Value is what the homeowner sees and hears: a fast reply, a clear price before you leave, a plain explanation of what the recoat will and will not fix, photos of your past floors, good reviews, and a finish they cannot compare jug to jug with the other quotes.
Know the costs your price has to cover
- Finish: about $236 for one coat on an average job
- Buffer rental: about $40 a day
- Materials and job costs in all, including screens, pads and gas: about $360 to $460 on a 1,000 square foot floor
- Marketing to win the job: about $250 in the example, less for a referral
- Labor, if you hire someone: a part-timer runs about $250 a job
- Taxes, insurance and the normal costs of running a business
Your rate per square foot has to cover every cost of the job, with profit left over. Here are the costs from the job example we use across this site, on an average floor.
Run the job example
In our example, an average $2,499 job costs about $236 in finish, $40 for the buffer and $250 in marketing to win it. That leaves about $1,973 before your labor and taxes. That is an example, not a promise. Run it again with your own rate and your own costs.
A one-coat job and a two-coat job are different math. A second coat uses about twice the finish and more time. Price it as its own option, not as a free extra.
Set a minimum job
Small jobs can lose money. At $2.50 a square foot, a 200 square foot hallway is only $500. It still needs the buffer rental, the drive, the setup, the dust cleanup and an opened gallon of finish. A minimum job price makes sure every trip pays for itself.
Set your minimum by adding up a small job's fixed costs, then the least you want to earn for a half day. Say it plainly on the phone: "Our minimum job is this much, which covers up to this many square feet." Most homeowners respect a clear rule.
Price the add-ons ahead of time
- Stairs: priced per step, since each one is slow hand work
- Extra rooms: added at your square foot rate
- Furniture moving: a flat fee, or included above a certain job size
- Extra prep: floors with store polish or other residue need more work. Say so, and price it in
- A second coat: the premium option for worn traffic lanes
Decide these prices before you walk into a home, not in the living room. A price sheet keeps you from guessing and keeps your quotes the same from job to job.
Offer options, not one number
Giving a homeowner two or three options changes the question from "yes or no" to "which one." A simple set is one coat on the main rooms, one coat on the whole floor, or two coats on the whole floor for worn traffic lanes. Worn lanes soak up the first coat, and the second brings the floor to one even sheen. Offering it tells the homeowner you do the job right.
Keep it to three options at most. More than that slows the decision down.
Give the price before you leave
Measure every room you will coat, multiply by your rate, add the add-ons, and give a clear number before you leave. A quote by email next week gives the homeowner time to forget you and call someone else. If they do not say yes that day, follow up the next day and again a few days later.
After your first 10 jobs, look at your price sheet again. You will know your real time per job and your real costs by then, and you can adjust.
How FloorIt helps with pricing
FloorIt partners set their own prices. The training teaches how to price a floor, not what to charge. You fill in your own price sheet: a rate per square foot, a minimum job, and prices for stairs, extra rooms and furniture moving. The pricing calculator shows what each option leaves you after finish, buffer and supplies.
Common questions
How much should I charge to recoat a hardwood floor? Most recoats run about $1.50 to $3 a square foot, about $1,500 to $3,000 on a 1,000 square foot floor. Check what local floor companies charge and price toward the top by giving real value.
Should a floor recoat business have a minimum job? Yes. Small jobs still need a buffer rental, a drive, setup and cleanup. A minimum makes every trip pay for itself.
How do I price stairs on a recoat? Many owners price stairs per step, since each step is slow hand work. Set the price on your price sheet before the estimate.
Should I charge more for two coats? Yes. A second coat uses about twice the finish and more time. Offer it as a premium option for worn traffic lanes.