Paint quantity calculator
Calculate paint for your home
Enter wall area directly, or floor area if you don't have wall measurements — results update as you type.
Paintable wall area is estimated as 3.5× floor area for a typical Indian home layout.
Estimated wall area: 0 m²
Materials required
- Paint required0 L
- Wall putty0 kg
- Primer0 L
- Buy as—
Coverage for putty, primer and emulsion
Wall putty covers about 1.2 square metres per kilogram across the two coats it's normally applied in. Primer covers roughly 10 square metres per litre in a single coat. For the finish coat, interior emulsion covers about 12 m²/litre per coat, exterior emulsion about 9 m²/litre per coat (a thicker, more weather-resistant film), and enamel about 14 m²/litre per coat. These are manufacturer-typical figures — check the specific can for the brand you're buying, since coverage varies by a few square metres either way.
How this is calculated
Litres required = (wall area × number of coats) ÷ coverage per litre. Putty and primer are calculated separately from the finish coat since they're applied at a fixed number of coats (two for putty, one for primer) regardless of how many finish coats you choose. If you only know your floor area, the calculator multiplies it by 3.5 to estimate paintable wall area — a reasonable rule of thumb for a typical Indian home layout with average ceiling height and window/door openings, though an unusually tall room or an open floor plan will shift this ratio.
Interior vs exterior quantities
Exterior emulsion covers less area per litre than interior emulsion (9 m² vs 12 m²) because it's formulated thicker to resist rain, UV and temperature swings — so the same wall area needs proportionally more exterior paint. Exterior walls are also almost always primed, and often need a base coat plus a weatherproof topcoat rather than a single finish, so budget for at least the same putty-primer-paint sequence as interior work, sized to the actual exterior wall area rather than assumed to be smaller.
Buying in standard pack sizes
Paint is sold in fixed pack sizes — typically 1, 4, 10 and 20 litres — not by the exact litre. The calculator rounds your requirement up to a sensible combination of packs so you don't end up short; buying slightly more than the bare minimum is normal practice, since colour-matching a small top-up can via a different batch is harder than using leftover paint for touch-ups later.
Frequently asked questions
How much paint do I need for a 1000 sq ft house?
For a typical 1,000 sq ft home, estimated wall area (at 3.5× floor area) is about 325 m². At 2 coats of interior emulsion (12 m²/litre per coat), that's roughly 54 litres of paint, plus putty and primer — enter your own floor area above for an exact figure.
How much wall putty do I need per square metre?
About 1 kg of putty per 1.2 square metres, applied over the standard two coats.
Do I need primer before painting?
Yes, for new or bare walls — primer helps the finish coat adhere evenly and stops the wall surface from absorbing paint unevenly, which can otherwise show as patchy colour. It's usually applied as a single coat, covering about 10 m² per litre.
How is floor area converted to wall area for paint calculation?
By multiplying floor area by 3.5 — a rule of thumb for typical Indian home layouts. It's an estimate; measuring your actual wall area directly (length × height of each wall, minus door and window area) gives a more accurate figure.
Why does exterior paint need more litres than interior paint for the same area?
Exterior emulsion is formulated thicker to resist weathering, so it covers less area per litre (about 9 m² vs 12 m² for interior emulsion) — the same wall needs proportionally more paint.
Building on your own land?
Building vs. buying — the real comparison
This calculator is for people building on land they already own. If you're still deciding between building yourself and buying a finished flat, this comparison covers the real costs and timelines of both.