// AUSTRALIAN TRADIE RATES AND BENCHMARKS 2026
How much does a plasterer cost in Australia?
As of August 2026, plasterers in Australia charge $50 to $120 per hour, with around $77 typical. Plasterboard runs $25 to $65 per square metre, and small repairs commonly land at $150 to $300 all up. A full 8-hour day runs $350 to $850, with about $550 typical.
Last updated: 18 August 2026. Sources: 7 industry datasets.
// THE DATA
Hourly rates in detail
Two dated 2026 sources agree on the plasterer band almost to the cent. WhatsTheDamage lists $50 to $120 per hour with $77 typical (verified August 2026), and ServiceSeeking's marketplace average is $77.37 per hour from a $25 minimum, drawn from the 58% of plastering quotes priced hourly. When a published typical figure and an independently computed average land 37 cents apart, the midpoint is worth trusting.
ServiceTasker's per-city figures sit inside the same band, running from $65 to $75 per hour in Adelaide up to $76 to $105 in Sydney, though that page is older (published February 2024) and its ranges read as rates charged rather than starting prices, so this page keeps them as corroboration rather than tabling them.
| Rate | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| National range | $50 to $120 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, verified Aug 2026; ServiceTasker city ranges sit inside |
| Typical rate | $77 per hour | WhatsTheDamage $77 typical; ServiceSeeking average $77.37 |
| Sydney* | $57 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026 |
| Melbourne* | $52 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026 |
| Perth* | $52 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026 |
| Brisbane* | $50 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026 |
| Adelaide* | $46 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026 |
| Hobart* | $45 per hour | WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026 |
Rows marked * are single-sourced; treat them as indicative rather than settled benchmarks.
Geographic rows show the starting rate (not average charged) (WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026).
ServiceTasker publishes much higher per-city hourly ranges ($65 to $105; February 2024). The gap is definitional, a starting rate versus a range actually charged, so treat the starting rates above as the entry point of a quote, not its likely total.
City markers: starting rate (not average charged), WhatsTheDamage, Aug 2026, single-sourced; each is a published starting rate, so it renders as a point rather than a bar. Shaded band: the $50 to $120 national hourly range. Dot: the $77 typical rate, matched by the ServiceSeeking 2026 average.
Prices are what customers are quoted, including GST where the business is registered.
Plastering rates per square metre are the other half of the market: 17% of plastering quotes are priced that way. Plasterboard supply and installation runs $25 to $65 per square metre with $41 typical (WhatsTheDamage, verified August 2026), and ServiceSeeking's 2026 average of $41.16 per square metre agrees within 20 cents. Service.com.au (updated 14 April 2026) splits the market by material: hard plaster at $20 to $70 per square metre and wet plaster at $45 to $90, inside an overall $20 to $90 band.
Airtasker's older guide (19 February 2025) is consistent on area pricing, $15 to $90 per square metre with a $40 median, but its state labour figures of roughly $40 to $65 per hour run below every 2026 source. Read those as what the labour costs, not what an insured plastering business quotes.
Quick job cost estimator
$150 to $360 around $231 at the typical rate
Slider estimate uses the sourced $50 to $120 hourly range above. Real quotes depend on surface condition, ceiling height and finish; many plasterers price per square metre or per job instead.
// MINIMUM CHARGES
Minimum charges
Plasterers do not have a published call-out fee market. The floor takes the form of small-job minimums instead: repairs are quoted as fixed prices, and ServiceTasker's plaster repair guide (23 February 2026) puts a small repair at $150 to $300 total, covering travel, setup, materials and up to an hour or two of labour. That figure is single-sourced, so treat the amount as indicative; the fixed-quote structure it describes is standard.
WhatsTheDamage's patch-repair pricing of $80 to $280 corroborates the scale. Because setup and travel cost the same whether one hole is patched or five, bundling several small repairs into one visit is the reliable way to bring the per-patch price down.
Worked example: patching and skimming one damaged wall
- Small-repair minimum, covers travel, setup and the first hour or two
- $150 to $300
- 3 hrs on site at $77/hr typical
- $231
- WhatsTheDamage patch-repair benchmark
- $80 to $280
Illustrative worked example combining the sourced figures above; it is a derivation, not a published statistic.
// DAY RATES
Day rates
Plasterer day rates are published here as full 8-hour days only. WhatsTheDamage (verified August 2026) lists $350 to $850 per day with $550 typical, and the table below carries that band. The marketplace average lands in the same place, as the footnote shows, which makes this one of the better-supported day rates on this site.
| Rate | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| National | $350 to $850 per full 8-hour day | WhatsTheDamage, verified Aug 2026 |
ServiceSeeking's 2026 average is $549.45 per day from $300, drawn from the 15% of plastering quotes priced daily; it works out at $68.68 per hour over an 8-hour day and sits within a dollar of the $550 typical full-day figure above.
// THE COST FLOOR
Why rates are what they are: the cost floor
An employed plasterer's award minimum wage, including all-purpose allowances, is $31.76 per hour (Fair Work, Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020 (MA000020), 2026). The rate a plasterer business charges customers is $50 to $120 per hour. The difference pays for the ute, insurance, tools, super, unbillable hours and the business's risk.
The gap pays for the ute, insurance, tools, super, unbillable hours and the business's risk.
Under the building award a qualified plasterer's minimum is $31.76 an hour, and adding 12% super lifts the bare employee cost to $35.57 before a trowel, a ute or an insurance premium is paid for. A plasterer charging $40 an hour keeps about $4 an hour to fund the entire business, which is why quoted rates start near $50 and cluster around $77.
The $35.57 employee-cost figure is a derivation, the award hourly rate multiplied by 1.12 for the Superannuation Guarantee, not a published statistic. Award classification: Level 3 (CW/ECW 3), weekly hire, residential, incl. industry and tool allowance (pay guide lists caster, fixer, floorlayer specialist or plasterer at this level).
// FREE TOOL
Work out your own rate
The $77 average above is what the market charges, not what your plastering business needs. Put your own wage target, vehicle, insurance and unbillable hours into the calculator and see whether your hourly and per-square-metre pricing actually clears your floor.
Charge-out rate and day rate calculator Opens with the plasterer preset loadedCharging right but still not booked out? Web Blend builds websites and lead systems for plasterers.
See the Lead System →// COMMON QUESTIONS
Plasterer rate questions
Straight answers to the questions people actually search, from the same dataset as the tables above.
Get in touchHow much does a plasterer cost per hour in Australia?
As of August 2026, plasterers charge $50 to $120 per hour, with around $77 typical. Published starting rates run from $45 per hour in Hobart to $57 in Sydney, and rates rise with access difficulty, ceiling work and decorative finishes.
How much does plastering cost per square metre?
Plasterboard supply and installation runs $25 to $65 per square metre, with $41 typical and a 2026 average of $41.16. By material, hard plaster runs $20 to $70 per square metre and wet plaster $45 to $90. About 17% of plastering quotes are priced per square metre.
How much does a small plaster repair cost?
Expect $150 to $300 total for a small repair, covering travel, setup, materials and up to an hour or two of labour (ServiceTasker, February 2026, single-sourced). Patch repairs run $80 to $280, and bundling several patches into one visit lowers the per-patch price.
How much do plasterers charge per day?
For a full 8-hour day, $350 to $850 with about $550 typical (WhatsTheDamage, August 2026). ServiceSeeking's 2026 average of $549.45 per day, from the 15% of quotes priced daily, lands within a dollar of that typical figure.
Do plasterers charge a call-out fee?
Not as a separate line. Plasterers quote small jobs as fixed prices with an effective minimum, commonly $150 to $300 all up, rather than charging a call-out fee plus hourly time. Ask what the fixed price covers before booking.
How much does it cost to plaster a room?
Replastering the walls of a single room runs $600 to $2,500, and a ceiling replacement $800 to $3,000 (WhatsTheDamage, August 2026). Size, surface condition and finish level move the price inside those bands, so get itemised quotes for anything beyond a patch.
Do plasterers charge GST on top?
Quoted prices are generally GST-inclusive where the plastering business is registered for GST, and this page shows prices as customers are quoted them. Smaller sole traders may not be registered, in which case no GST applies; a written quote should state its GST treatment.
// METHODOLOGY & SOURCES
Sources and methodology
Ranges on this page combine 7 published Australian datasets and cost guides, cross-checked on 18 August 2026; award wage floors come from official Fair Work pay guides effective 1 July 2026. This page is part of the Australian Tradie Rates and Benchmarks dataset. This dataset is reviewed and republished every July following the Fair Work annual wage review.
- ServiceSeeking, plasterer prices in Australia 2026
Page date: Published 24 Feb 2026. Accessed 18 August 2026.
- WhatsTheDamage, plastering cost guide
Page date: Last verified August 2026. Accessed 18 August 2026.
- ServiceTasker, plastering cost guide (city hourly ranges; older page)
Page date: Published 08 Feb 2024, title updated for 2026. Accessed 18 August 2026.
- ServiceTasker, plaster repair cost guide (small-repair minimums)
Page date: Published 23 Feb 2026. Accessed 18 August 2026.
- Service.com.au, plastering cost guide (per m2 by plaster type)
Page date: Published 09 Feb 2026, updated 14 Apr 2026. Accessed 18 August 2026.
- Airtasker, wall plastering cost guide (older; lower labour figures)
Page date: Updated 19 Feb 2025. Accessed 18 August 2026.
- Fair Work pay guide, MA000020 (effective 1 Jul 2026)
Page date: Pay guide dated 2 Jul 2026. Accessed 18 August 2026.
Every figure on this page with its range, unit and source. Free to reuse with attribution and a link.
// KEEP EXPLORING