Trim & Baseboard Cost Guide: Houston, TX (2026)
Trim is priced by the foot. Baseboard benchmarks at $3.50-$9 per linear foot installed and crown at $5-$16, confirmed at your walls because no Texas-specific source exists for either. Most houses are done in one to three days.
- Measured, cut, done in days
- Baseboard $3.50-$9 per foot
- Fast quote: 512-290-5153
Get Instant Quote
Professional Quotes for Houston & Central Texas
What can we help you with?
Pick one or more. No contact details needed yet.
Quick Overview
Trim Numbers, No Preamble
- Baseboard, installed: $3.50-$9 per linear foot. A national benchmark, confirmed at your walls.
- Crown molding, installed: $5-$16 per linear foot, driven by profile build-up and ceiling height.
- Material only: MDF base $1.25-$4.00 and crown $2.25-$8.50 per linear foot.
- Reaching the $500 minimum: Roughly 55-145 feet of baseboard at those rates, so rooms usually pair up.
- Speed: One to three days, one or two installers, a single mobilization.
- Permits: Interior trim is exempt finish work. Nothing to pull and no threshold.
Direct Answers
Three Answers, Fast
Baseboard installs at $3.50-$9 per linear foot and crown at $5-$16, figures drawn from national benchmarks because no Texas-specific pricing source exists for either.
One to three days for most houses, with one or two installers running the whole scope in a single mobilization rather than spreading it across weeks.
Inside corners that have to be coped, stacked crown on tall ceilings, and floors knocked out of level by clay movement that force every piece to be scribed.
Why Houston Is Different
Three Things That Slow Trim Down in Houston
Trim is the fastest finish trade in the house when conditions cooperate. When they do not, the same linear foot takes three times as long. That is the entire story behind the spread in the per-foot rate, and here is what causes it locally.
Floors That Move Stop Being Straight Lines
Beaumont clay swells in spring and pulls back in August. Slabs follow. So a baseboard run across a Westbury or Meyerland living room meets a floor that dips and rises, sometimes half an inch over twelve feet. Cut that piece square and you get a shadow gap along the bottom edge. The fast fix is the wrong one: caulk it and the gap reopens next season. The right move is scribing the bottom edge to the floor you actually have, piece by piece, down the whole run. That is hand time, and it is exactly where a $3.50 foot turns into a $9 foot.
Corners Are the Clock, Not the Footage
Straight runs fly. A hundred feet of single-profile base down an open hallway goes in fast and prices at the low end of the range. Corners are what eat the day. Every inside corner on a profiled base wants coping rather than a mitre, because a mitred inside corner opens up as the house moves on clay. A room with six inside corners and two bays carries the same footage as that hallway and three times the labor. Count your corners before you compare quotes; they explain more of the spread than material ever will.
Humidity Decides When Trim Goes In
Gulf humidity runs high year-round and MDF drinks it. Stock delivered into a house that has been closed up with the air off swells, then shrinks once the system runs, and joints open weeks later. So material gets acclimated inside the conditioned space before a single piece is cut. Sequence matters for the same reason: flooring and drywall finish first, trim after, paint last. Running those out of order is the most common way a two-day job turns into a return trip, and return trips are what make trim expensive.
Houston: 77002 · 77006 · 77007 · 77008 · 77036 · 77084
Typical Trim & Baseboard Scopes in Houston
Baseboard benchmarks at $3.50-$9 per linear foot installed, crown at $5-$16. Both figures are national, since no Texas-specific source exists, so each is confirmed at your walls first. The $500 project minimum covers roughly 55-145 feet of base.
Whole-House Baseboard
Six hundred feet, one crew, three days
Old base out, new five-and-a-quarter MDF in, every bottom edge scribed to a floor that had moved. Inside corners coped. One trip, three days, from first cut to last caulk line.
| Rooms | Whole house, roughly 600 linear feet |
| Duration | 3 days |
| Lead time | Often the same week |
| Products | MDF baseboard, DeWalt 16-gauge finish nailer, DAP Alex Flex caulk, Festool miter saw |
Crown in the Main Living Areas
Nine-foot ceilings, stacked profile, two rooms
The ceiling line was out of plane, so the crown was set to the eye line and the gap taken at the top where nobody looks. A pine backer carried the build-up. Two rooms, two days, staged and cleared.
| Rooms | Living and dining |
| Duration | 2 days |
| Lead time | 1 week |
| Products | MDF crown molding, pine backer, 16-gauge finish nails, coping saw |
Board and Batten Accent Wall
One wall, one day, priced after the measure
Entry and stair wall, battens laid out to the stair rise so nothing looked accidental. Priced per wall after the measure, because batten spacing and height change the footage more than the square footage does.
| Rooms | Entry and stair wall |
| Duration | 1 day |
| Lead time | Within the week |
| Products | MDF battens, pine cap, DAP Alex Flex caulk, construction adhesive |
Site Conditions
Conditions That Set the Pace
Six things decide whether your footage runs at the bottom or the top of the range. We read all six on the measure, before a figure goes out.
| Condition | Where you see it in Houston | What it needs |
|---|---|---|
| Floor out of level under the run | Westbury and Meyerland slab ranches | Bottom edge scribed piece by piece instead of caulked to hide a gap |
| Many inside corners and bays | Pre-war bungalows and 1990s tract plans alike | Coped inside corners, which is the real driver of the per-foot rate |
| Nine to ten foot ceilings | Inner-Loop townhomes built since 1998 | Stacked crown over a backer, plus staging time at height |
| Out-of-plane ceiling line | Any house that has moved with the clay | Crown set to the eye line with the gap taken at the top |
| New drywall at Level 4 or 5 | Additions and full wall-plane replacements | Trim after drywall finish and before paint, in that order |
| High-humidity delivery conditions | Vacant or utilities-off houses in summer | MDF acclimated inside conditioned space before anything is cut |
Materials
Stock and Consumables We Run
MDF base at $1.25-$4.00 per linear foot does most of the work, pine casing at $1.50-$4.25 handles stain-grade openings, and crown runs $2.25-$8.50 per foot depending on profile. Consumables are small and constant: 16-gauge finish nails at $10-$28 per box and DAP Alex Flex caulk at $3-$9 per tube.
| Product | Brand | Why it earns the spot |
|---|---|---|
| 16-gauge finish nails | Bostitch / generic | Primary fastening consumable. |
| Coping saw | Stanley / Olson | Used for inside corners and coping joints. |
| DeWalt 16-gauge finish nailer | DeWalt | Common for trim and baseboard installs. |
| MDF baseboard | MDF millwork | Most common mid-market baseboard choice. |
| Paintable caulk | DAP Alex Flex | Used to finish nail holes and seams. |
| Crown molding | MDF / wood crown | Upsell finish item for rooms and ceilings. |
| Festool miter saw | Festool | Precision cutting for finish carpentry. |
| Pine casing | Pine millwork | Used around doors and windows. |
Material grades are specified per substrate after the on-site walkthrough. Material prices are carried in the project scope.
Pricing
What Trim & Baseboard Costs in Houston
Two of these rows carry benchmark figures and three are quoted after a measure. We would rather label the gap than fill it with a number nobody can source.
| Scope | Typical Houston range | What drives the spread |
|---|---|---|
| Baseboard, installed | $3.50-$9 per linear foot | Profile height, material, and how many inside corners have to be coped |
| Crown molding, installed | $5-$16 per linear foot | Profile build-up, ceiling height, and how far out of plane the ceiling runs |
| Door and window casing | Quoted per opening after the measure | No Texas per-opening source exists, so the figure comes off your openings |
| Chair rail and picture rail | Quoted after the measure | Run length, returns, and whether it ties into existing base or casing |
| Board and batten accent wall | Quoted per wall after the measure | Batten spacing and wall height, which move footage more than area does |
Minimum project size is $500. Every figure is confirmed on site before work starts.
Trim Material Cost per Unit
Material is the half of a trim quote you can price yourself at any lumber counter. Here is what the stock and consumables actually cost before labor.
| Material | Cost per unit | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| MDF baseboard | $1.25-$4.00 per linear foot | Painted base, the volume choice in nearly every house |
| Pine casing | $1.50-$4.25 per linear foot | Door and window casing, and anything stain-grade |
| MDF or wood crown | $2.25-$8.50 per linear foot | Ceiling line; profile size drives the whole spread |
| DAP Alex Flex paintable caulk | $3-$9 per tube | Top edge, joints and nail holes before paint |
| 16-gauge finish nails | $10-$28 per box | Primary fastening consumable across every scope |
Material only, before labor. These are per-unit stock prices and do not include cutting, fitting or waste.
Installed Rate Against Material Share
Put the installed benchmark next to the material cost and the labor share becomes obvious. It is also why corner count moves a quote more than profile choice.
| Element | Installed, per linear foot | Material share, per linear foot |
|---|---|---|
| Baseboard | $3.50-$9 | $1.25-$4.00 in MDF stock |
| Crown molding | $5-$16 | $2.25-$8.50 in MDF or wood crown |
| Door and window casing | Quoted per opening | $1.50-$4.25 in pine casing |
| Chair rail | Quoted after the measure | Priced with base stock, profile dependent |
| Board and batten | Quoted per wall | MDF battens and a pine cap, cut to the layout |
The installed figures are national benchmarks; no Texas-specific source was found for either baseboard or crown. Each is confirmed against your walls before it becomes a quote.
What Moves the Per-Foot Number
Trim pricing is a labor rate wearing a per-foot costume. Everything below changes the hours, which is the only thing that changes the number.
| Factor | Effect on the per-foot number | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Long straight runs | Down | Repetition and momentum; the cheapest footage in the house |
| Many coped inside corners | Up | Handwork at every corner, and corners do not scale with footage |
| Floors out of level from clay movement | Up | Every piece scribed to the floor instead of cut square |
| Nine to ten foot ceilings with stacked crown | Up | Staging at height plus a second profile and a backer |
| Pre-primed MDF over paint-grade pine | Down | Less prep before paint and fewer joints to fill |
| Trim bundled with flooring or paint | Down | One mobilization carries two scopes instead of one |
Process
Six Steps, One Mobilization
- 1Measure and count corners. Footage is the easy half. We count inside corners, bays and returns at the same time, because those are what actually set the day rate on a trim job.
- 2Confirm the benchmark against your walls. The $3.50-$9 and $5-$16 figures are national. We check them against your run length, profile and corner count before they go on your estimate as real numbers.
- 3Acclimate the stock. Material comes inside the conditioned space and sits before it is cut. In this humidity that step is the difference between tight joints and joints that open in a month.
- 4Cut and run the straights. Long runs go first and go fast, single profile, nailed at 16 gauge. Momentum on the straights is what buys time for the corners.
- 5Cope the corners and scribe the bottoms. Inside corners are coped so they stay closed as the house moves, and bottom edges are scribed to a floor that has not been flat in years.
- 6Caulk, fill and clear out. Joints and nail holes are filled, the top edge is caulked, offcuts leave with the crew, and the run is left ready for paint the same week.
Coverage
Houston Areas We Run Trim In
Older housing stock means more scribing; newer townhomes mean taller crown. The per-foot benchmarks are the same either way.
Our Services
Trades to Bundle With Trim
Trim is quick, so the real saving is stacking it with whatever else is open. One mobilization, one crew window, no second trip.
Painting Services
Paint follows trim immediately, same week, same crew window. Houston interiors are priced at $1.50-$3 per square foot of floor area.
Flooring Installation
Flooring goes down first, base goes on after, which is the only order that leaves a clean line. LVP installs at $4-$8 per square foot locally.
Drywall Installation
Where a wall plane has to be replaced in full, drywall finishes to Level 4 or 5 and trim follows. New board, taped, finished, textured, then base.
Tile Installation
Tile transitions and bath base get sequenced so neither trade waits on the other. Floor tile runs $7-$15 per square foot in Houston.
Fence Installation
Exterior work gets bundled into the same booking window when the crew is already out. New runs and full replacements install at $30-$50 per linear foot.
Common Questions
Houston Trim & Baseboard Questions
How much is baseboard per linear foot in Houston?
$3.50-$9 installed, and crown $5-$16. Both come from national benchmarks since no Texas-specific source exists, so we confirm the figure at your walls before anything is ordered.
How much baseboard do I need to hit $500?
Roughly 55 to 145 linear feet, depending where in the range your scope lands. Below that, most homeowners add a room or pair trim with another item.
Do I need a permit for interior trim?
No. Interior trim is finish work and sits on the exempt side of the city’s trigger list. Project value changes nothing, because value is not what Houston keys permits to.
MDF or pine for baseboard?
MDF for painted base, at $1.25-$4.00 per linear foot, because it stays straight and takes paint flat. Pine casing at $1.50-$4.25 where a piece has to hold stain.
Can you install trim in one day?
A single room, usually yes. A whole house of baseboard runs two to three days with one or two installers, done in one mobilization rather than spread across weeks.
Why is my old trim pulling away at the corners?
Mitred inside corners open as the house moves on clay. Coped corners absorb that movement, which is why every inside corner on a profiled base gets coped here.
Do you repair damaged trim?
No, this is installation-only work. Rot repair and sanding-only jobs sit outside the scope, so a few damaged pieces are better handled on a multi-item handyman visit.
Does the price include painting the trim?
No, paint is priced separately under painting services. We sequence it immediately after trim in the same window so you are not waiting on a second crew.
Why the Fast Version Still Holds
One Mobilization
Measure, cut, install and caulk happen on a single trip with one or two installers. Nobody comes back next week for the piece that was missed.
Coped, Not Mitred
Every inside corner on a profiled base is coped so it stays closed as the house moves. It takes longer and it is the reason the work holds.
Scribed to Your Floor
Bottom edges are cut to the floor in front of us rather than caulked to hide a gap. Clay-moved floors are normal here and trim gets cut for them.
Benchmarks Labeled as Benchmarks
The per-foot figures on this page are national, because no Texas source exists. We say so, then confirm the number at your walls before anything is ordered.
Get the Footage Priced This Week
Bissonnet is biss-uh-NETT, and a trim quote around here should take about as long as saying it. One call to 512-290-5153 puts a measure on your runs this week.
Our Houston Homeowner Resources
Drywall Installation · Fence Installation · Flooring Installation · Painting Services · Tile Installation